Entering the new calendar year the Family Support and  Children’s Justice Center has had a busy few months. Following a successful recent fundraiser, the future schedule of planned projects has added excitement for the Friends Board.

For the first time in 20 years the Christmas Tree Regalia made its return to Carbon County as the Friends Board played host to the event at the Carbon County Fairgrounds Event Center. With close to 50 trees on display, the three-day affair was an overwhelming success.

The proceeds from the regalia will stay local, as some will go towards placing a covered patio over the playground area at the Justice Center. This particular project has been one held in high priority for those associated with the center.

“We’re really excited to use the funds we made from regalia to go towards that big project,” said Shelley Wright, director of the Carbon and Emery Children’s Justice Center. “We’re just so grateful for the community and all the businesses and all the people that came out and enjoyed themselves at the regalia, it was a lot of fun.”

With the regalia, and the holiday season now in the rear-view, the board has put an extended emphasis on the next project of adding a medical room to the facility. With the neccasary space already available, Wright says it’s all about finalizing the logistics to make it possible.

“Right now when our children need specialized medical exams, we have to send them over the mountain to Primary Children’s,” said Wright. “We’ve been working on trying to bring the medical program back to Carbon County for a few years now. We actually have to get a medical provider and then we have to get the medical equipment put in the room.”

The board has received funding to move forward with purchasing the needed equipment. With the process of adding the equipment underway, the next step will be finding the proper medical provider to complete the process in adding another element to the facility.

The Children’s Justice Center is a home-like facility that serves children who might have been physically and/or sexually abused. The center is designed to help children feel safe and comfortable. The atmosphere is child-friendly and the interview rooms are designed with children in mind. Children visit the center while investigators meet with them and their parents.

Listen to Wright’s complete interview below: