Mr. Darby’s donates to Valley’s First Responder Center
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BOARDMAN – The owners of Mr. Darby’s Vintage & Antiques got a personal tour of the Clarence R. Smith Jr. Family Mahoning Valley First Responder Wellness Center.
The center serves police, fire, EMS and dispatch personnel from Mahoning County and the surrounding areas. It helps first responders with the mental and physical health challenges of their work, including trauma, compassion fatigue and burnout.
“This unique experience was overwhelming,” said owner Karen Neapolitan.
“The facility, and everything they offer, is so amazing,” added her husband, Robert Neapolitan.
The Neapolitans were invited to the center to present a long-overdue $1,700 donation to help first responders. Gwen Smith, daughter of the late Clarence R. Smith Jr. for whom the center is named, and former Boardman trustee Tom Costello gave them a tour, along with Boardman police Chief Todd Werth.
The facility was once the family home of Clarence “Sonny” Smith, his wife, Rose Marie, and their children, Gwen, Gail and Greg. Smith was a lifelong resident of Boardman who did a great deal to make the community a better place to live. After his death in 2021, his children decided the home would be put to its best use as a wellness center, carrying on their father’s long record of giving back.
The center includes a 5,500-square-foot space for training, education and mental health services, plus a 6,000-square-foot warehouse for physical wellness. Boardman Township and Mahoning County together contributed more than half a million dollars to complete the facility.
The check came from the Neapolitan family and the more than 100 vendors at Mr. Darby’s Vintage & Antiques at the intersection of Market Street and Route 224. The money was raised through a basket raffle and the vendors donated more than 110 baskets.
The Wellness Center is still raising money. Its next fundraiser is a concert Nov. 6 at Penguin City Brewing Company, 460 E. Federal St., Youngstown. The concert features Embers of Floyd, a Pink Floyd tribute band. Doors open at 6 p.m. Tickets are available through the Columbiana Arts Theatre at https://thecolumbianaartstheater.thundertix.com.