St. Camillus to use $200K state grant for capital improvements

GEDDES — The Centers at St. Camillus on Sept. 10 announced that it has received a $200,000 New York State legislative grant for capital improvements to its health-care facility that was “championed and secured” by New York State Senator John A. DeFrancisco, who is retiring at the end of this year. 

St. Camillus said in a release that it will use the funding to help fund three primary capital-improvement projects at its facility: repair a portion of the existing roof, buy a new boiler, and purchase a new resident call system for one of its residential skilled-nursing care units.

The Centers at St. Camillus, located at 813 Fay Road in Geddes, first opened in 1969 as a residential skilled-nursing facility and has grown to now include specialized short-term and brain-injury rehabilitation, adult day health-care programs, medical-transportation services, and home care, along with its affiliate Integrity Home Care Services.

To thank Sen. DeFrancisco (R–DeWitt) for his help in obtaining the grant, St. Camillus residents, staff, and board members and trustees invited him to the Geddes facility on Sept. 10 for a reception where they “surprised and honored” him for his 26-year tenure as the 50th State Senate District representative with an official certificate of recognition and honor.

In their remarks, James D. Spencer, chairman of St. Camillus’ board members and trustees, and Aileen Balitz, president and CEO of The Centers at St. Camillus, stated that DeFrancisco has provided critical support to the organization over the years in the following ways.

• y “vigorously fighting” against cuts in funding to long-term care providers in state-budget talks each year, “thereby preserving access to high quality long term care services for the people in our community.”

• e secured $200,000 in grant funding in 2007 to help St. Camillus upgrade its facilities and provide a “better care environment for its residents.” That grant enabled St. Camillus to upgrade its heating system and convert from electric to hydronic heat. 

• en. DeFrancisco also has written many letters in support of grant requests on behalf of The Centers at St. Camillus, which have been awarded and “significantly enhanced and expanded the service offerings it is able to provide.” For example, a HEAL NY Grant of $1.2 million in 2006 allowed St. Camillus to expand and upgrade its adult day health and outpatient programs. More recently, he supported the New York State Unified Funding application for Christopher Community’s Harborbrook Apartments project, which was funded and opened in August 2018. Christopher Community partnered with St. Camillus to provide service coordination and health-care services to 20 of the residents in this project in need of accessible housing, the release stated. 

GEDDES — The Centers at St. Camillus on Sept. 10 announced that it has received a $200,000 New York State legislative grant for capital improvements to its health-care facility that was “championed and secured” by New York State Senator John A. DeFrancisco, who is retiring at the end of this year. 

St. Camillus said in a release that it will use the funding to help fund three primary capital-improvement projects at its facility: repair a portion of the existing roof, buy a new boiler, and purchase a new resident call system for one of its residential skilled-nursing care units.

The Centers at St. Camillus, located at 813 Fay Road in Geddes, first opened in 1969 as a residential skilled-nursing facility and has grown to now include specialized short-term and brain-injury rehabilitation, adult day health-care programs, medical-transportation services, and home care, along with its affiliate Integrity Home Care Services.

To thank Sen. DeFrancisco (R–DeWitt) for his help in obtaining the grant, St. Camillus residents, staff, and board members and trustees invited him to the Geddes facility on Sept. 10 for a reception where they “surprised and honored” him for his 26-year tenure as the 50th State Senate District representative with an official certificate of recognition and honor.

In their remarks, James D. Spencer, chairman of St. Camillus’ board members and trustees, and Aileen Balitz, president and CEO of The Centers at St. Camillus, stated that DeFrancisco has provided critical support to the organization over the years in the following ways.

• y “vigorously fighting” against cuts in funding to long-term care providers in state-budget talks each year, “thereby preserving access to high quality long term care services for the people in our community.”

• e secured $200,000 in grant funding in 2007 to help St. Camillus upgrade its facilities and provide a “better care environment for its residents.” That grant enabled St. Camillus to upgrade its heating system and convert from electric to hydronic heat. 

• en. DeFrancisco also has written many letters in support of grant requests on behalf of The Centers at St. Camillus, which have been awarded and “significantly enhanced and expanded the service offerings it is able to provide.” For example, a HEAL NY Grant of $1.2 million in 2006 allowed St. Camillus to expand and upgrade its adult day health and outpatient programs. More recently, he supported the New York State Unified Funding application for Christopher Community’s Harborbrook Apartments project, which was funded and opened in August 2018. Christopher Community partnered with St. Camillus to provide service coordination and health-care services to 20 of the residents in this project in need of accessible housing, the release stated.