Kevin’s Community Center Gets $500,000 Grant

By John Voket

Governor M. Jodi Rell announced Wednesday that Kevin’s Community Center is in line to receive $500,000 in state aid when the Bond Commission meets January 25. The grant will help renovate a building on the Fairfield Hills campus to serve as a new expanded location for the free community clinic.

“Kevin’s Community Center, named in honor of the founding family’s son, has been helping the uninsured and underinsured obtain the health care they need since 2002,” Gov Rell said. “Through a network of participating physicians and other health care centers, the clinic can provide referrals to specialists, x-ray and laboratory work, and access to reduced-price medications.”

The news was well received by the clinic’s founder, Dr Z. Michael Taweh.

“I am elated, and eternally grateful to Representative Julia Wasserman for her instrumental role in securing this grant for Kevin’s Community Center,” said Dr Taweh after hearing the news.

He said the clinic’s volunteers will now have the means to expand the many programs and medical outreach initiatives KCC has the potential to offer, in addition to providing free, full-service health care to local residents.

In her announcement, Gov Rell thanked state Representative Wasserman for her advocacy and “tireless [support] of the clinic.”

Rep Wasserman said the grant will help enable the clinic to continue to play a “vital role in Newtown.”

“Kevin’s Community Center has provided comfort and healing to hundreds of people, and more than a million dollars in services since its opening. And it has done this through an all volunteer effort,” Rep Wasserman told The Bee following the announcement. She said the fight to secure this level of funding was an uphill battle, and was an initiative that has been almost five years in the planning.

She credited Senator John McKinney and the governor for taking personal interest in the project.

“Senator McKinney was right there beside me, making calls and advocating through the process with the Department of Social Services and the Office of Policy and management,” Rep Wasserman said. “We all sat on doorsteps to make this happen, and I know the governor also worked on this personally.”

The clinic is named to honor the memory of Kevin Taweh, the son of Dr and Mrs Taweh, who also reside in Newtown. It is staffed by volunteers and applies some 85 percent of the funding it receives directly to patient care. Kevin’s Community Center serves residents who are age 16 or older and meet income eligibility requirements.

Ultimately, clinic supporters hope to establish a comprehensive health care facility that will include educational programs, an outreach support center, and a library for health information. The proposed initiatives did not go unnoticed by the governor.

“The caring and dedicated doctors, nurses, and others who serve the clinic really provide a tremendous service to the people of Newtown and I am pleased to see this worthy project move ahead,” Gov Rell said.

Rep Wasserman said the expansion of clinic services will come none too soon, and called the operation a rarity not only in the region, but throughout the country.

“They have supplied a million-plus in valuable medical care totally free. And their efforts can only get bigger and better now,” Rep Wasserman said. “I’m afraid this will come just in time because there will be a greater demand for services. They will need the increased space in their new facility.”

The clinic is planning a relocation to the former Newtown Hall at Fairfield Hills, which is in the final stages of a lease negotiation with Hawley Realty. When completed, that project will likely include a Danbury Hospital satellite operation featuring numerous other medical services.

While Dr Taweh celebrated the good news, he also acknowledged the role his son played in the eventual delivery of such a broad scope of public health services to Newtown residents who might not otherwise be able to afford or receive them.

“Kevin’s spirit has guided this endeavor since its start,” Dr Taweh said, “and his spirit is always present to see us through this worthy service.”