Mission
To provide gap funding to any individual living with disabilities and special needs for services, support and other opportunities through the Disabilities Board of Charleston County.
vision
We hope to redefine abilities by meeting needs, providing a path to pursue dreams, achieving goals, and maximizing independence and contributions to the community.
Meet Our Board
Ben Rogers
Chairman
Erick Lemon
Vice-Chairman
Sarah Nielsen
Secretary of the Board
Blaine Ewing
Board Member
Victoria Drohan
Board Member
Dorothy White
Board Member
Leo McLaughlin
Board Member
Melanie Cason
Board Member
Disabilities Board of Charleston County
The Disabilities Board of Charleston County (DBCC) is the leading provider of services and supportive programs for children and adults with specials needs in Charleston County. The Board offers early intervention, service coordination, a developmental child center, adult day programs, and residential supports to individuals with severe, lifelong disabilities, such as intellectual disability, autism, traumatic brain injury or spinal cord injury. Extensive services and supportive programs are provided both in the form of in-home care as well as through dozens of facilities in Charleston County and neighboring counties.
Functioning as the sole provider of care and resources for those with special needs in Charleston County, the Board relies heavily on The Able Life Foundation for gap funding. These monies assist with everything from maintenance of the Board’s many facilities and homes to basic household and education supplies.
History of the Disabilities Board of Charleston County
Originally founded as the Hope Center for the Retarded, Inc., services began in 1958 through efforts of the Charleston Civitans and The Council for the Retarded Children of Charleston. In 1974, the SC General Assembly created the Mental Retardation Board of Charleston County to coordinate and administer services to people with mental retardation and related disabilities. In 1988, The Mental Retardation Board of Charleston County assumed operation of the Hope Center for the Retarded, Inc., a sheltered workshop for persons with developmental disabilities which had 35 employees and 10 vehicles.
In 1993, the agency was renamed the Disabilities Board of Charleston County, and assumed the operations of the Charles Webb Center, a non-profit organization providing supports for children with disabilities and special needs that was founded in 1919. The agency moved its administrative offices to the current location at 995 Morrison Drive in 1997. Today, with an annual budget of over 18 million dollars, this community-based agency serves nearly 2000 individuals and has 450 employees.
Meet Our Partners
R U Running?
www.RURunning.com
R U Running? promotes the health and wellness of the disabled and special needs community as well as able bodied individuals and was formed to create awareness of the Able Life Foundation.
Avondale 5k
www.Avondale5K.com
Created in 2010, the Avondale 5K helps fund the Charles Webb Center, which is a developmental child care center operated by the Disabilities Board of Charleston County, serving children with special needs from age 6 weeks to 10 years old.
Racers for Pacers
www.racersforpacers.org
Racers for Pacers is dedicated to raising funds to provide running chairs for disabled individuals who cannot run on their own. Pacers provide the individual an opportunity to “run” once or twice a week and in local competitive runs held in and around Charleston.