Friends and family of the late Richard Ferrara gathered on Saturday to dedicate in his honor the boy’s group home he founded several decades ago.
Ferrara was the director of the county’s Housing Opportunities Commission when he died in September at age 63. But before working for the county, he was one of the founders of Boys and Girls Homes of Montgomery County, now called Hearts and Homes for Youth and based in Silver Spring.
County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) said it was ‘‘most appropriate” that the home is named for Ferrara because of his lifelong dedication to helping children in Montgomery County.
‘‘Rick had the vision to use this home, one that was part of the parkland acquisition, for homes for youth instead of being demolished,” Leggett said at the renaming ceremony.
The home is located on Muncaster Mill Road in Derwood.
Robbie Callaway, a member of the Hearts and Homes Board of Directors, said the home represented the legacy Ferrara left behind.
‘‘Rick always cared about kids and he cared about the kids who needed it the most,” he said. ‘‘Rick wanted to create a 90-day shelter program and this is what he created.”
Since 1977, the home, formerly known as the Muncaster Mill Therapeutic Boys’ Home, has treated boys ages 13 to 17 that have a background of being neglected, abused or running away. It is one of seven group homes in Maryland managed by Hearts and Homes for Youth, founded in 1964. The home houses seven boys who stay an average of six months to two years.
‘‘It’s really beautiful to see the continuation of the dream, hear about the dream as it first began and to know that that same spirit that began the dream has continued through so many people in so many ways,” said Rosanne Rosenberg, a clinical social worker with Hearts and Homes for Youth.
The home, now called the Richard J. Ferrara Therapeutic Boys’ Home, was recently renovated, with new siding, a new roof and a fresh coat of paint, using funds from the county.
Sue Ferrara, Rick’s wife, said it was the mutual commitment to helping children that brought the two dozen friends and family members together at the dedication ceremony. It was also what brought her and her husband together, she said.
‘‘Rick would be very, very honored,” Ferrara said after she helped unveil the plaque for her husband. ‘‘He would love to know that this home was named in his honor and I think that’s very, very fitting.”
Sue Ferrara became a counselor at several homes in the county as Rick Ferrara ran other homes before accepting a job with the county coordinating programs for youth. Their bridal party even consisted of many of their Hearts and Homes colleagues.
‘‘Our lives really revolved around the Boys and Girls Homes,” Sue Ferrara said after the ceremony.
