JANUARY 15, 2009 ISSUE
Don Suggs Named Interim Director of Smoky Mountain Center
Ed Tarleton (right), vice chair of the Smoky Mountain Center board, presented a resolution to outgoing CEO Tom McDevitt recognizing his lifelong vision, leadership and commitment to Smoky Mountain Center and his dedication to building a system of care for individuals in need of mental health, developmental disability and substance abuse services.The Smoky Mountain Center (SMC) Board of Directors has appointed Don Suggs as the interim director of this agency that manages mental health, developmental disability and substance abuse services across a 15-county area. Suggs assumed his duties as of January 1.
Suggs will serve as the interim director for at least a 6-month period to give the SMC board the opportunity to conduct a search for the new area director position that Tom McDevitt vacated on December 31.
SMC Board Chair Ed Tarleton said, “The whole board was very excited that Don was willing to step in and serve as the interim director during the next months. His positive relationship with the SMC board and staff, along with his vast experience in the field, and as an area director, will ensure a strong continuity of leadership for the organization.”
Suggs comes to SMC with a long history of experience and service in the mental health system. He worked for the New River Area Program and Local Management Entity from 1975 until his retirement in July 2007.
In his tenure with New River, Suggs served in a variety of clinical and administrative positions until becoming the area director in 1994. He was instrumental in working with the five counties in the New River area—Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Watauga and Wilkes—to form an intergovernmental service authority that provides a full array of mental health, developmental disability and substance abuse services in the region. He also led New River in its merger with Smoky Mountain Center in July 2007.
Suggs will work out of both the Sylva and Boone SMC offices.
At its December meeting, the SMC board passed a resolution recognizing the contributions of Tom McDevitt during his 24 years with SMC. Most recently, McDevitt served as CEO, but he held positions as the chief financial officer, deputy area director of administrative services and co-area director before becoming the CEO of the organization. Under McDevitt’s tenure, SMC has grown to serve a 15-county area.
McDevitt has assumed the full-time directorship of the Evergreen Foundation that supports mental health, developmental disability and substance abuse efforts in the seven westernmost counties of North Carolina.
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