grassy lot edging railroad tracks . but community center director tom dibello sees a meeting hall rising on that lot a gazebo for outdoor gatherings and a brick patio paved with the names of the people who will make it happen . dibello and his community center staff make their living seeing things that aren t there yet and turning them into reality . they ve done it with neighborhoods they ve done it with people . now they re doing it with their own headquarters . the first public step toward the vision happened tuesday night when the center announced a 1 million capital campaign to pay off the office building it just bought and renovate and expand it with a 1 500 square foot meeting hall and an outdoor gathering space . the campaign is about this facility said dibello but the facility is about working in the community . it s not about having fancy digs . for 26 years the community center s mission has been to empower individuals and neighborhoods to stretch to take control of their destiny and make it real . we offer best property conveyancing at local prices to real estate investors . make your property transactions more easier with our conveyancing solutions . programs polish leadership in youngsters promote pride in neighborhoods help low income families become home owners . kenton county chief deputy sheriff ron washington is chairing the campaign . he s doing it because two decades ago the community center staff saw the strengths that weren t yet developed in young ron washington and encouraged him . in a city environment there are very few positive role models washington said . the community center was a place where my brother and sisters could go . the people at the center were our role models . they pretty much convinced you could follow your dreams . you could do what you wanted to do . i believe they re the reason i m where i am today . he joined the board of the covington community center this year and readily took on the massive fund raising responsibility . the community center was there to help me he said . i know what kind of difference it makes . the 1 million campaign already has gifts of 230 000 washington said . he s got 18 months to raise the rest . we ll be calling on business leaders and people will have parties in their homes asking friends to make donations for the community center he said . the campaign will sell bricks inscribed with the giver s name to be set in the patio . workers will tap foundations for grants . for more then 20 years the center operated out of a converted storefront with additional offices up a steep flight of stairs . it wasn t unusual for meetings to be conducted in hallways and for an entire committee to have to file out of a tiny room to allow a member to get to a filing cabinet . home about us privacy policy contact us sitemap copyright all right reserved