New Dungarvin Office in Eastern Kentucky Enhances Team’s Ability to Serve the Community

Resilience. It’s a term that gets thrown around often, but Dungarvin Area Director Kitty Burchett experiences resilience among her team daily. Along with Dungarvin’s Eastern Kentucky Operations team, Kitty had the chance to celebrate their collective resilience May 28, during an open house for their new office and day training space in Prestonsburg, Kentucky. In attendance were community partners, agencies, guardians and legislators – all there to build community and welcome Dungarvin to the new neighborhood.

The open house celebration had special significance to the team, due to major challenges they experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic and the years that followed. The pandemic led to the closing of the Eastern Kentucky day training doors in April 2020.

A year later, a flood caused by spring storms damaged the facility in Wayland. After months of repairs and cleaning, the doors reopened on June 1, 2022, but then were forced closed again three weeks later, due to another COVID outbreak. By July, more devasting floods hit the Eastern Kentucky area.

“The water reached 6 feet up on the walls of the day training center,” Kitty said. “After all this, it was decided that the location needed to be demolished. At that time, we had three offices, in Pikeville, Prestonsburg and Wayland. We made the decision to combine all offices and the day training – and so, the journey began for Bart Mullins (a Maintenance Technician) and me,” Kitty said.

That journey wasn’t an easy one. Geographically, the offices were spread out and the options for a building that needed to combine three offices, as well as two day training spaces, were few and far between. “For over two years, Bart and I had been looking to try to find the perfect location,” Kitty explained. “When we finally found the Oakridge Court location in Prestonsburg and spoke with the owner, we both knew this was our new home. The owner was willing to do what we needed to make the location work for us and, especially, for our day training needs.”

Finally, after several months of behind-the-scenes renovations, the offices and day training space were completed. “This new space will allow everyone to return to day training and enjoy participating in more community and social events,” said Dungarvin Kentucky Senior Director Paula Pulley.

The new location also gave the Eastern Kentucky team with a fresh start, providing a centralized space to enhance collaboration, strengthen its relationship with the community and create even more opportunities for growth and success.

Excitement about the new office led the team to go all out for the open house. Kitty and Area Manager Brittany Caudill sported Dungarvin-green blazers. The office was decorated with a balloon arch, a table was set up to offer Dungarvin-branded swag, and decadent desserts were ready to enjoy.

Attendees included representatives from the Kentucky Department of Guardianship Services, directors of the Big Sandy Area Agency on Aging & Independent Living, case managers and a well-known local physician, Dr. Jeremy Parsons. The event even attracted the attention of Kentucky State Representative Ashley Tackett Laferty and Prestonsburg Mayor Rick Hughes. Many Dungarvin team members also showed up, eager to celebrate this success.

Kitty and her team held a Q&A forum and provided a tour of the new facility. Members of the Floyd County Shriners Club volunteered to prepare lunch for guests, persons served and staff. With an outpouring of support from the community, Dungarvin’s Eastern Kentucky Operations team is now poised to expertly collaborate with support systems to ensure persons served will be able to work on new goals to live their best lives. Kitty and her team are perfect examples of living the Dungarvin mission: “To respect and respond to the choices of people in need of supports.”