Lake Norman Publications

Grant for leaky roof raises dampened spirits




DAVIDSON – The Ada Jenkins Center has been in the business of sheltering needy men, women and children from the storm since it opened its doors more than 20 years ago.

Now, the nonprofit social services center is about to get some shelter of its own.

Staff was notified March 9 that its application for $257,259 in federal funds to replace all 11 sections of the center’s decaying roof had been approved.

The funds will be dispensed through the Community Development Block Grant program of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Construction on the 23,000-square-foot roof will begin in the summer.

Georgia Krueger, executive director for the Ada Jenkins Center, couldn’t be happier.

“Replacing the leaky roof will help to display that sense of dignity and respect,” she said.

The new roof will protect the 37-member staff, hundreds of clients and volunteers, and dozens of community partners, as well as the computers, medical and dental equipment, clothing, food and records housed in the 20,000-square-foot complex.

“After any significant rainfall, we need a roof patch,” Krueger said. “We’ve had to patch it over 10 times so far. And it isn’t limited to one area. We’ve had leaks in the main building, the cafeteria, the gym and classrooms.”

In addition to water damage, staff is concerned about the health implications of rain and melting snow seeping into the building.

“Overall, the roof was assessed to be in very poor condition,” Krueger said. “We have been concerned about mold, especially in areas with drop ceilings when the panels were soaked.”

During the 1930s, Ada Jenkins helped raise money to build what was then known as the Davidson Colored School. The school opened in the 1937-38 school year. Jenkins served as its principal for seven years.

Today, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools rents the building to the Town of Davidson. In turn, the town leases the building to the Ada Jenkins Center.

What was once a brick schoolhouse now serves as the center’s main building, with an honorary portrait of Jenkins hanging just inside the front door.

In addition to seven full-time and 30 part-time staffers, hundreds of student volunteers from Davidson College and the community help run the center.

“I’m not even certain that this model would work in a location that didn’t provide a well of people to serve in the ways afforded by the center,” Krueger said. “Our partnership with the college, specifically the Center for Civic Engagement, is critical to our success.”

The Ada Jenkins Center and its community partners deliver programs and services that improve quality of life, especially for the residents of Davidson, Huntersville, Cornelius and southern Iredell County.

The center is a gateway to more than 20 programs and services, divided into four general categories: crisis assistance, medical/dental, youth education and economic independence.

Between July 2012 and June 2013, the Ada Jenkins Center and its community partners served more than 18,500 people in need.

“During the economic downturn, we began to serve a larger number of formerly middle class people who had used all of their resources,” Krueger said. “Most were in temporary poverty and fortunately, no longer need our services.”

She said the center typically serves people in three economic categories: generational, cyclical and the “working poor.”

“Each person has different needs and different goals,” she said. “Our responsibility is to meet them where they are and then help them on their journey to upward mobility. Ada Jenkins provides hope and is a place where trust is paramount.”

The Ada Jenkins Center is one of three organizations operating in Davidson that applied for Community Development Block Grant funds this fiscal year, Victoria Rittenhouse said.

Rittenhouse, who works for the Centralina Council of Governments, confirmed that the Davidson-Cornelius Child Development Center will receive $20,000 in CDBG funds to establish scholarships for low-income families. The third organization to apply was deemed ineligible to receive CDBG funds.

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