A Lehigh Valley nonprofit leader will become Northampton County’s first director of Gracedale Continuum of Care next month.

Northampton County Council hired Thomas Carson, who currently works as executive director of Victory House of the Lehigh Valley, to the newly created position by an 8-1 vote at its meeting July 16. Councilman Thomas Giovanni voted against the hire.

With more than 10 years of experience overseeing human service operations in partnership with county, state and federal systems, Carson has a proven ability to help an organization, such as Gracedale, through staffing and operational transition while maintaining compliance, said county Executive Tara Zrinski.

“He brings a combination of strategic guidance and hands-on experience in housing, mental health and workforce stabilization,” Zrinski said. “Having led Victory House through moments when staffing and service demands were intense, he has shown that he can manage publicly funded programs, multi-million-dollar budgets and initiatives that sit at the intersection of health care, behavioral health, housing and workforce systems. That kind of cross-sector experience is what will help us design and implement the continuum of care.”

Victory House of the Lehigh Valley focuses on providing a range of services to homeless veterans and homeless men, such as transitional housing; housing, employment, education and recovery assistance; life skills education; and case management, according to information on the organization’s website.

Carson, an Air Force veteran with a bachelor’s degree from Penn State University in rehabilitation and human services who is currently working on a master’s degree in executive leadership, said he is ready for the opportunity.

“I love the idea of the continuum of care,” Carson said. “In the Lehigh Valley, we celebrate the best Main Street. We celebrate a great stadium. We celebrate all of these things, but at the end of the day, we still have a vulnerable population that needs help. I love the idea of bringing it all into one network where we can serve people [who] need support and offering more opportunities.”

He cited opportunities for services for veterans and those struggling with mental health and addiction problems as possible ideas, along with continuing to work with current providers and partners.

Speaking at the county council’s personnel committee meeting July 15, Carson stated priorities would include working with current leadership and the council to keep things moving forward. Additionally, he indicated he would like to meet with frontline staff and find out what is working and what is not working.

The skill set for this position is different from that of a nursing home administrator, Councilman Jason Boulette said.

“What we want is someone [who] can bring both oversight of the many employees that work at Gracedale as well as strong leadership skills,” Boulette said. “I thought the answers he gave last night at the personnel committee meeting demonstrated that excellently. The other thing that I think is important for the continuum of care director to bring is strong financial skills.”

Carson’s track record shows that, Boulette explained.

“In fiscal year 2024 while he was executive director of Victory House, he actually more than doubled the number of contributions and grants that Victory House received while keeping their expenditures flat on a year-to-year basis,” Boulette said. “I think that demonstrates to me that he will be very effective in bringing in the additional money that we need to not only decrease the county contributions to Gracedale but allow the continuum of care model to take off.”

Northampton County created the continuum of care department, which Carson will serve as director of, in May. The department will focus on Gracedale and remove the home’s oversight from the county’s human services department.

The director position will focus on strategy, partnerships, funding alignment and long-range system design while coordinating a full continuum of care from nursing care to supportive living and future development of the Gracedale campus in Upper Nazareth Township, Zrinski said in May.

Carson will receive a salary of $109,632 and is scheduled to begin in the position Aug. 17.

Also at the July 16 meeting, Zrinski said the county held a pre-bid meeting for the rehabilitation of county bridge 149 in Lehigh Township.

Earlier this month, county officials announced the county received a $1.5 million federal grant to rehabilitate the bridge, located on Cedar Drive in Lehigh Township. The bridge, built in 1826, is recognized as the oldest bridge still remaining in the county’s inventory, Zrinski said in the grant announcement.

The grant will allow for repairs including removing, repairing and reinstalling bulging stone masonry spandrel walls; installing new guardrails; and adding signage and hazard clearance markers, according to the announcement.

Zrinski did not list a start date for work during the meeting.

County council also unanimously approved two contract resolutions. The county will pay Convergent Technologies LLC, of Illinois, $14,696.58 over three years for preventive maintenance and software service agreements for the county’s prison security system. Additionally, the county will purchase 351 overbed tables for Gracedale Nursing Home residents from Medline Industries Inc., of Illinois, at a cost of $149,720.67.