Friday, Oct. 10, 2008
Child Abuse Trauma Center Breaks Ground
New CACDC facility to open June 2009
By Adrian McCandless
Staff Writer
The Children’s Advocacy Center for Denton County [CACDC] Board of Directors and staff members, local and state officials and the general public celebrated breaking ground for a new $2.5 million, 14,000 square-foot facility on Sept. 25.
The ceremony included key note speeches from Texas State Sen. Jane Nelson, Sen. Chris Harris and CACDC board member Sue Bancroft at the future 3.14-acre site located at the corner of Cain Road and Justin Road [FM 407] in Lewisville with more than100 people in attendance.
"I am so grateful we have facility like this," Nelson said. "I’m sad that we need it – I wish that we didn’t need it – but thank goodness we have it." She added one of the things she loves most about Denton County is that those people who need help receive it.
"Our children who are abused and neglected are those who most need our care," she said.
Bancroft said that the new center is going to make it easier for everyone who works in this field to do the best that they can do. She added that the new facility would allow staff to be more efficient and they will be able to help even more children.
CACDC Executive Director Dan Leal also had a surprise presentation for Highland Village Police Cpl. April Roppolo.
"In this new facility we have rooms that are being adopted," Leal said. "We had a special donor who thought that they needed to not only adopt a room, but also provide the room sponsorship in the name of Cpl. April Roppolo."
Leal added that Roppolo is big supporter for the CACDC and volunteers on the weekends when she is off duty.
"There is no person here who feels as strongly about the CACDC as Cpl. April Roppolo does," he added.
Leal said Roppolo would be the first to walk the site layout to place the sign where the future Law Enforcement Office named in her honor would be located.
"I’m not ashamed of it, but I am a victim and even at my age we didn’t have an advocacy center – for that I suffer today," Roppolo said. "God Bless this place. I support it 100 percent."
The new facility will allow the CACDC organization and partnering agencies to be co-located. The center will also include three group therapy rooms and three play therapy rooms.
CACDC Development Coordinator Jaime Carlin also said that the center is expected to be completed by June of 2009. To date, the CACDC organization has raised $1.57 million of the $2.5 million needed to build the center.
Those interested in contributing supplies or monetary donations to the CACDC organization should visit http://www.cacdentonco.org/.
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