Dillon Adult Daycare

Community Facilities

A bright red for sale signs sits in front of the building that served as home for Mary Johns’ business, Dillon Adult Daycare, for the past 19 years.

She had no clue the owner was looking to sell the property or if her community facility would soon face eviction from the pending new owners.
Mary learned of the sign being placed in front of her Dillon, South Carolina business on the day it happened.

“A man walked into my business and started taking pictures,” she said. “I asked him what was going on and he looked at me and said, ‘They did not tell you?’ I said no! He said, ‘They are selling this place.’ I could not believe what I was hearing and was in shock. I wanted to cry but I held it together.”

For months, the vibrant red sign was a reminder that she had work to do. Her business, Dillon Adult Daycare, is the only adult daycare in the community. The possibility of eviction meant a lot of families in town would have no options for their loved ones’ care during the day. This would disrupt Mary’s ability to run her business and impact the lives of people who depend on her services.

“Each day I still came to work with a smile,” she said. “I was tired, and it felt like I was dragging, but I kept going and didn’t give up.”
Mary decided that moving into a new building would increase her business’ capabilities and give her a sense of peace. Although her current building held cherished memories and met a need in the Dillon community for adult daycare services, it needed a lot of repairs.

“I did some of everything to get help and no one would help me,” she said. “They want you to have a perfect credit score before helping you out. I told them if they wanted something for our community, this was it. I asked everyone I knew to ask, and they all said no. The only people that said anything was South Carolina Community Loan Fund.”

She learned about South Carolina Community Loan Fund’s Community Facilities Loan Program through Borrowing 101, a financial workshop for people interested in learning about how to obtain financing for community development projects.
She was filled with happiness on the day her loan officer called to tell her that her loan was approved.

“It felt like the burden that I had on my shoulder just lift,” She said. “I screamed thank you from A to Z. I had to go through all of the alphabet because I was so happy. I never gave up after how long it took to get help.”