Washington County officials clarify support for LOYAL program
Washington County leaders have voiced support for the LOYAL afterschool program in the face of mounting uncertainty over its future.
The Washington nonprofit had to close the doors on its rented headquarters in October after being deemed ineligible for further Pennsylvania Opioid Settlement Trust awards earlier this year. An earlier story incorrectly stated that the county revoked LOYAL’s previously awarded funding when it was deemed non-compliant by the Pennsylvania Opioid Settlement Trust. The designation only removes its eligibility for future grant awards from the trust.
That left advocates concerned about the program’s fate as they await the result of an ongoing Commonwealth Court appeal to restore its funding eligibility.
Program founder Avery L. Turner Sr. began searching for a source of funding to get LOYAL off the ground in 2024 after recognizing a need for a comprehensive afterschool program to help Washington youth.
This led to several visits to local municipal governments and school districts in search of support and funding, and eventually a meeting with Washington County Commissioners Chief of Staff Daryl Price, who arranged a second, larger sit-down meeting shortly after to encourage LOYAL and three other nonprofit groups to seek state grant support, including from the opioid trust.
The Washington County commissioners unanimously approved $125,000 for the LOYAL afterschool programming during their March 2025 meeting using money from the state’s opioid settlement trust fund. The LOYAL program was one of 24 programs that received funding totaling $2.69 million during the second round of opioid grant payments.
On March 21 – about two weeks after the commissioners voted on the opioid grants – the county sent a direct payment of $34,200 to LECK Realty LLC in the care of Christopher Adkins for the first 12 months of rent and utilities for the LOYAL program at its location on East Chestnut Street, according to invoices obtained by the Observer-Reporter. On April 25, 2025, the county sent a check for $90,200 to L.O.Y.A.L. Inc., according to the payment records. The two checks represented the full $125,000 that the commissioners approved.
Human Services Director John Tamiggi said the county paid LECK Realty owner Chris Adkins directly in order to facilitate a fast payment, since he needed the deposit immediately.
Adkins is working to purchase the East Chestnut building from its current owners, Linda and Bill Wolfe, over a five-year period. Adkins manages building tenants and general maintenance through his company on behalf of the Wolfes until he owns the building outright.
LOYAL, or “leading our youth to an abundant life,” used the capital to pay for meals, supplies and staff to get the program up and running.
Turner provided one-on-one mentorship; athletic training in boxing and wrestling; content creation classes; and meals to just under 200 Washington area children from the program’s facility at 31 E. Chestnut St. alongside Co-Director Rev. Edwin Davis and two staff members.
“My purpose in life is to help children. We grew so fast because of the unconditional love our foundation is built up on. Our mission is simple, ‘keep these children off the streets and out of harm’s way,'” he said in a statement.
In December, the LOYAL program was one of eight grant recipients from Washington County that the Pennsylvania Opioid Misuse and Addiction Abatement Trust’s dispute resolution committee deemed “non-compliant.”
The non-compliant designation does not mandate a revocation of any previously awarded funding, but marks the program as ineligible to apply for any future trust awards. Turner said he is seeking other sources of grant funding.
His application for a second round of funding from the county’s cut of the settlement – which would include another year’s rent at the East Chestnut facility – cannot be reviewed until eligibility is restored.
The county appealed the “non-compliant” decisions, but the committee upheld its ruling during a meeting this March, although two other programs geared toward youths were approved after also initially being deemed non-compliant. The county appealed that decision to the state Commonwealth Court to restore LOYAL’s eligibility for future funding, although the court has not yet set a hearing date for the case.
Earlier this year, the commissioners formed a county-based opioid settlement review committee after concerns were raised about how the grant applications were being chosen and the number of them that had been deemed non-compliant by the state. That committee reviews applications and then votes to make recommendations on which programs should receive grants, with the commissioners having the final approval.
“(Turner’s program) was singled out as non-compliant, but I don’t see any difference in what he does versus the other three groups,” Price said of other youth programs in the area. “They all reach different ages, interests and demographics, and all are needed, so I don’t know why he was singled out.”
Turner applauded the county’s continued support for the program, saying that “they have been nothing but understanding and helpful to LOYAL,” and are “fighting to get our funding reinstated.”
Tamiggi said that “the county has supported LOYAL from application till now, and we’ve seen the impact it has had.”
Staff writer Mike Jones contributed to this story.