Appreciates seeing Community Counseling continuing to serve area
Congratulations to Mr. Richard Duggin as the newest Executive Director and to the Board of Region VII Mental Health/Mental Retardation Commission (dba Community Counseling Services) for choosing him as their fifth Director. For almost 50 years, CCS and the Board have been helping the residents of our seven counties (Choctaw, Clay, Lowndes, Noxubee, Oktibbeha and Winston) receive quality mental health, effective alcohol/drug addiction and intellectual disability services locally on a sliding fee scale which makes these services available to all citizens, regardless of income.
Special thanks also need to be extended on this occasion to some of the earliest pioneers of this endeavor. Without the generous contribution and leadership of people like Mr. S.B. Platt III and Ms Margo Swain (former Commissioners), Mr. Bud Phillips and Mr. Clay Terrell (Region VII Foundation members) and Dr. Raymond Overstreet (staff Psychiatrist), our region and its people would not have had the quality of care we now receive.
When CCS was established in 1972, a psychiatric nurse would come thru our region for a half day once a month on the way to Tupelo! There were no local Mental Health office facilities nor were there any group homes for developmentally delayed individuals nor were there any quality residential addiction services available as there are now at The Pines and Cady Hill until the Foundation (Mr Phillips; Mr. Terrell) was established; there were no psychiatric care services locally available for mental illness on a regularly scheduled basis by appointment until Dr. Bernard Ellis, followed by Dr. Overstreet, joined the staff.
As the fourth employee and third Ex. Director (1973-91), I was overjoyed to see the continuity of these services going forward in an ever more expanded and diverse manner. Fifty years of service could only have been achieved with dedicated Commissioners and Foundation members, executive leadership and line staff “helping people build a life they can live with”…ad multos annos!
Paul J. Ackerman
Columbus
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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