Cole Secures Funds for Ardmore Resource Center

WASHINGTON - Congressman Tom Cole (OK-04) announced today that the FY08 Omnibus Appropriations bill signed by the President yesterday included $350,000 to help the Ardmore Development Authority develop phase 2 of the Ardmore Community Resources Center.

"I am proud to again support the Ardmore Development Authority's efforts to build the Community Resources Center," Congressman Cole said. "I believe that it is critical that the at-risk and elderly populations of Ardmore are able to find all of the services available to them in one central location in the city. It serves Ardmore's best interests to have the Resource Center as an efficient one-stop outlet to the city's social services."

Cole has worked with Ardmore city officials and the Ardmore Development Authority to see the vacant Colvert Dairy Building converted into the Resources Center. One major advantage of the building's location is that it is located within walking distance of other assistance buildings such as City Hall, the Carter County Sheriff's Office, the Salvation Army, and the Carter County Courthouse. The City of Ardmore has been given the opportunity to purchase the historic Colvert building at a reduced price.

The Ardmore Community Resources Center will serve the community by partnering with existing organizations who offer social services. Specifically, a few of those organizations are: the YWCA, Communities in Schools, Workforce Oklahoma, the Department of Human Services, Good Shepherd Medical Clinic and the Sunshine Supported Employment Program. Those organizations are working to offer their respective services, which include domestic violence and child-abuse prevention education, mental and physical health counseling and treatment, as well as education and employment services, among other services, at the Ardmore Community Resources Center.

The past few years Congressman Cole and U.S. Senator James Inhofe have worked to secure $220,000 in funding for the first phase of the Ardmore Community Resources Center. Next year's funding will work to assist the second phase of the Center's development plan.