Monday – Thursday 8am – 4pm
Friday 8am-3pm
At The Center for Life Enrichment, our mission is “to provide programs and support services that will increase the vocational and personal potential of individuals with disabilities.” Our goal is to provide these services in a unique and individualized manner to improve overall quality of life. Increased independence, integration into the workforce, and the opportunity for social interaction is the focus of our services.
Since incorporation in 1963, our programs have expanded and evolved to where we are currently serving over 200 individuals. Our services are provided in a safe environment promoting growth and self-expression. The Center completed a major facility expansion project to provide additional program space in the recent past.
Individuals who enter our programs have their own unique needs, abilities, and interests. We offer each of them a comprehensive approach to services. We are licensed and certified, and have partnerships and affiliations with many other provider agencies. We have a compassionate, dedicated and highly trained staff that interacts with and supports each of the individuals supported by the Center.
Direct Support Professional staff of the Center for Life Enrichment are trained in medication administration, CPR, first aid, Mandt, and management of disruptive behavior. We also retain the consultative services of a licensed nurse and psychologist, and provide programs in speech, physical and occupational therapy to address the individualized needs of individuals we support.
Individuals supported by the Center can access our transportation system for trips to and from Center activities, as well as medical appointments, job sites, and community activities. Vehicles are specially equipped to meet the needs of our clients. Drivers receive the same level of training as Direct Support Professionals.
Originating in Leonardtown, Maryland in 1961, the Center served children with intellectual disabilities in a group daycare program. By 1968, fourteen children were being served and the Center began to serve children with multiple disabilities. The opening of an adult activity center in Leonardtown, which offered pre-vocational activities and recreational opportunities, highlighted the year 1971. Our current facility was completed in 1976 and allowed all programs to be located at one site. Shortly after, public law 94-142 allowed children to attend public school and the Center began serving adults exclusively.
In 1978 the Center was licensed as a sheltered workshop by the U.S. Department of Labor and received state funding to serve 56 individuals. Ten years later there were 80 adults with disabilities involved in day habilitation and vocational programs, plus a thrift store operated as a training facility in Leonardtown, Maryland.
A name change from St. Mary’s County Developmental Center, Inc., to The Center for Life Enrichment, Inc., took place in 1999. This was done to more accurately reflect the evolving nature of services. Today The Center for Life Enrichment, Inc., serves over 200 individuals with disabilities. The Center for Life Enrichment focuses strongly on consumer choice and independence. The center is licensed by the Developmental Disabilities Administration and certified by the Division of Rehabilitative Services. Four thrift stores and a number of work enclaves, highlight our community-orientated programs. The Center for Life Enrichment also has an office located in Prince Frederick Maryland which opened in 2011. The facility provides the same services and supports for those individuals residing in Calvert and Charles County.
A key service which has been provided since our incorporation in 1961 is transportation. Given our rural setting, transportation has become so important in maintaining services throughout both counties.
