By RAY WYCHE
Staff Writer

The Goshen Medical Center of Bolton is now officially in business.

Formerly the Bolton Health and Wellness Center, the operation was recently incorporated into the Goshen Medical Center of Faison, a non-profit group that operates 20 such centers in eastern North Carolina.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony that officially dedicated the center was held Thursday afternoon with Congressman Mike McIntyre wielding the scissors. Several dignitaries, including state Rep. Dewey Hill, Bolton Mayor Frank Wilson and Goshen’s chief executive officer, Dr. Greg Bounds, took part in the official opening event.

The building, to be called the Goshen Health and Wellness Center of Bolton, was constructed with a $450,000 grant obtained by Rep. McIntyre in 2004.

“This means a lot to me. There’s not a lot we can do without good health,” McIntyre said.

He praised those who had worked to obtain the building and had arranged for a physician to practice in the town.

“Up in Washington, I use this as a positive example of our tax dollars working for us. This is a success story,” McIntyre said.

Mayor Wilson welcomed those attending the ceremony and thanked Rep. McIntyre for his efforts in obtaining the new home for the center.

“He was an integral part of this,” Wilson said.

Dr. Bounds said the center is currently seeking additional medical personnel, including a nurse practitioner. More services, possibly a dental clinic, may be added in the future, he said.

Dr. David White will continue to serve as physician at the Bolton site as well as to provide medical services for Boys and Girls Homes of Lake Waccamaw. Dr. White also serves patients at the Waccamaw-Siouan Tribal Grounds in the Buckhead community north of Bolton. Dr. White will continue to provide inpatient service at Columbus Regional Healthcare System in Whiteville.

The Bolton center has a board of directors made up of area residents. Goshen Medical Center of Faison will provide supplies and administrative services for the Bolton operation.

The Goshen family of medical facilities is funded by the federal government to provide health and medical services on a sliding fee basis to populations, including uninsured, migrants, Medicaid recipients and homeless persons, presently underserved medically.