Jul 13, 2008 11:15 pm US/Eastern
Families From Other Facilities Join Rosewood Fight
OWINGS MILLS, Md. (WJZ) ―
-
-
Family members of developmentally disabled people living at the Rosewood Center have new allies in the fight to keep the center open.
The Rosewood Center has been home to the state's developmentally disabled for more than 100 years. But when inspections found neglect and dangerous conditions, Governor O'Malley decided it was time to close the outdated facility.
Derek Valcourt reports though the state found most residents can be moved into privately run community living facilities, many family members disagree and say Rosewood is the best place for their loved ones.
"The resources that are available while they are in a state residential center is much more than in a group home," said Doug Wantling whose 44-year-old sister has been at the Holly Center in Salisbury since she was 22.
Now the voices of opposition are growing as those trying to keep Rosewood open are joined by family members from two of the state's other facilities for the developmentally disabled: The Potomac Center in Hagerstown and the Holly Center in Salisbury.
"We're going in this fight because we are all in this together, all the families across the state," said Marshal Rickert.
Rickert says closing Rosewood is unfair and worries the state's three other residential centers will also be closed soon.
"My brother is 64. My father is 95 and still worried about the stability of his placement in the Holly Center. That's very, very unfair to the aging population of loved ones," said Rickert.
All of them hope that the governor will hear their pleas for help and keep the Rosewood Center open.
"The more people we have, the more chances we have of changing his mind," said Harry Yost.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Jewish Celebrities
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
Reporting
