Aspire Indiana Health has announced that Mockingbird Hill will be the name of its new recovery center in Anderson, slated to open March 1.
Mockingbird Hill Recovery Center is a project of Aspire Indiana Health, a nonprofit comprehensive healthcare provider, and Progress House, the state’s oldest recovery residence. Upon full scale-up it will house approximately 92 men with substance use disorder (SUD) and provide them with “whole health” recovery services including primary medical care, behavioral health, addiction treatment, peer counseling, individual case management and more.
In choosing the center’s name, Aspire is reflecting the deep roots the 13-acre property has in the Anderson community as the former site of the Mockingbird Hill Park concert venue. From the 1950s to the 1970s, it was a nationally famous tour stop for legendary names in the country, bluegrass and blues music genres. Artists who performed there include Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, Dolly Parton, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry and many more.
“Mockingbird Hill Recovery Center will be a beacon of hope and healing for the entire community,” said Barbara Scott, Aspire President and CEO. “In selecting this name, it was an easy choice to tap into the rich heritage that was already there. Mockingbird Hill will sing again, this time a chorus of renewal and recovery.”
The center will be certified as a Federal Qualified Health Center (FQHC) and an Indiana Community Mental Health Center (CMHC), and to national recovery residence standards by the Indiana Affiliation of Recovery Residences (INARR). It is expected to create at least 40 new jobs.
“The center will serve local people with substance disorder, but the reverberations it will have are already being felt on a regional and state level,” said Darrell Mitchell, Aspire Vice President of Corporate Development and Executive Director of Progress House. “The incidence of substance abuse and overdoses has skyrocketed during the pandemic, so the need for healing facilities like Mockingbird Hill is more critical than ever.”
After the concert park closed, the site lay dormant until it was purchased more than a decade ago and reconstructed as a camp for adults with disabilities. Aspire purchased the property in early 2020 after being approved as a recovery center by Anderson city officials. Renovations and upgrades have been ongoing and will be completed in time for the March opening.
Learn more at AspireIndiana.org.