Core Community leaders present participant testimony, ask Dickinson County for $5,000 split between Harrington and Abilene

Representatives of the Core Community program told the Dickinson County Commission on the morning of the meeting that their peer-led education classes support adults recovering from addiction and experiencing poverty, and asked the commission to consider $5,000 in additional county funding split evenly between the Harrington and Abilene sites.

The request was presented by Cherry Magna, identified in the meeting as the Harrington liaison and facilitator, and Cindy Wennington, the coach at the Abilene site. “We would like to request $5,000, and that would be split in half between Harrington and Napoli,” Magna told the commission.

Why it matters: Core Community staff and several program graduates described outcomes commissioners said were uncommon in small, rural programs: participants who regained stable housing, obtained reliable transportation, reunited with children and pursued leadership roles. The program’s presenters said the initiative focuses on 11 resource areas — emotional, mental, spiritual, physical, financial, relationships, support systems, role models, knowledge of hidden rules, language and motivation — and offers weekly trauma-informed classes, child care and a meal. April Rios, a participant who described medical and financial crises her family faced after relocating to Abilene, said the program helped her family move into a home and obtain a vehicle; she closed her prepared remarks by saying, “I stand behind my core family 100% and I hope you do too.”

Supporting details: Program staff provided cumulative figures for both sites combined: they reported 62 graduates in Harrington over six years and 11 graduates so far in Abilene, with eight more slated to graduate in October. Presenters said 54 adults had moved out of poverty across the two sites, total participant debt reported as $376,038 and total participant income increases reported as $844,000. Program leaders and graduates stressed the program is not a clinical treatment provider but a post-treatment support and stability program.

Commission response and next steps: Commissioners and staff acknowledged the program’s results and described two funding threads. County staff confirmed the county already paid Core Community $5,000 in January 2025 for an earlier request. Commissioners expressed support for the program but asked Core Community to submit a more specific, fund-targeted request before approving additional opioid-settlement dollars: because opioid-settlement funds must be used for opioid-related services, commissioners asked the program to identify which qualifying activities (for example, staff time specifically devoted to participants with opioid use disorders) the requested funds would cover. County staff offered to help Core Community draft that request.

No county appropriation was approved during the meeting for this second $5,000 request; the presentation request remained pending. Commissioners directed staff to follow up and to place any formal funding request on a future agenda.

Ending: Program leaders thanked the commission and described partnerships that supplement their budget, including a recurring $5,000 contribution from a local Family Resource Exchange, support from the Community Foundation and in-kind contributions such as donated meals and child care from local churches and businesses. The presenters said the Harrington program’s annual operating budget is about $74,000 and that coach positions at each site are funded as part-time roles (about 20 paid hours per week).