MOUNT VERNON — It was an emotional day for Dr. Afet Kilinc.

A new chapter began Thursday for The Freedom Center’s executive director, following the efforts of the organization’s staff and donors who flipped the pages.

“They are the heart of The Freedom Center,” Kilinc said. “We would cease to exist without them.”

Their dedication to The Freedom Center’s mission and clients was shown at a ribbon cutting for the recovery center’s new building.

The Freedom Center bought the building at 135 S. Main St. in April 2022 through a $550,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (OMHAS).

“This has just been a dream come true and sometimes I really have a hard time believing that it is real,” Kilinc said in a previous Knox Pages article.

Donors who contributed to the project include OHMAS, Ariel Foundation, Knox County Foundation, Mental Health and Recovery Board for Licking and Knox Counties, and several families.

Robert Robertson Construction Services started renovations in the fall of 2023. The Freedom Center occupies nearly 8,000 square-feet on the second and third floors, with the first floor opened for retail use.

Renovations included a new ceiling on the third floor and adding stairs from the second to the third floor.

Future improvements include a new ceiling on the second floor, fixing underground drainage downspout problems, improving the elevator, and creating more accessibility by adding a ramp on the Gambier side entrance.

What does The Freedom Center provide?

The second and third floors almost double the center’s current space at 106 E. Gambier.

“We had to use space next door for some of our programming because we didn’t have enough space in our current building,” Kilinc said in a previous Knox Pages article. “Plus, it’s a very old building, almost 200 years old.

“It’s on the registry of historic homes. It was not really built to be an office building, so it doesn’t flow very well.”

We’re going to be able to service more people.Ora Smith

The center owns its building at 106 E. Gambier St. and will continue offering intensive medication and medical services there.

Expanding to South Main allows the center to take on a second capital project: renovating the Gambier building and transforming it into recovery housing services.

Mount Vernon Mayor Matthew Starr said The Freedom Center stands for a place of hope, healing and transformation.

“We know the journey through addiction can be incredibly difficult but we also know recovery is possible with the right support,” Starr said.

The Freedom Center sees around 900 people a year, board president and treasurer Ora Smith said at the ribbon cutting.

“That number is increasingly rapidly. It’s a serious problem for addictive individuals and their families and the community,” he said.

Smith said the new building is “a big step” for the organization.

“We’re going to be able to service more people,” he said. “In a better quality environment now that we have this (building.) We’re very grateful.

by Grant Ritchey October 11, 2024