ST. CLAIRSVILLE — The Belmont-Harrison Juvenile District is marking a half-century of providing local assistance to at-risk young people in the local area.

On Friday, district Director D.J. Watson greeted officials and introduced staff at the Sargus Juvenile Detention Center. He pointed out pictures of the founders, the late brothers Edmund Sargus, who had been a juvenile judge, and former Belmont County commissioner A.J. “Mel” Sargus. Watson has worked for the district since 2010 in a variety of different roles and took over as director in 2018. He was deputy director 2012-2018.

“Fifty years later, it’s an honor for us to carry on the vision of the late Judge Sargus and his brother Mel. It gives us the opportunity to recognize and celebrate the efforts of everyone who has and everyone who continues to carry on that vision,” he said. “Our elected local leadership understands and acknowledges our challenges and needs here more so than ever before.”

Watson said support and engagement with young people are central to the district’s mission.

“Oftentimes we are seeing youth that are in need of a hybrid of services, and what our facility does is provides a safe and secure environment for them to receive that style of more intense intervention,” he said. “The longevity and sustainability of the building are important to us. I think it’s important to the community and that’s what we’ll be working on as we head into the new year. …

“Fifty years is remarkable when you think about a building where the lights are never shut off and it’s used 24/7. Correctional settings are unique in that they’re used every day all day. Naturally one of our biggest concerns is equipping the building to last for years to come, so that’ll be a focus of ours.”

Watson said one added advantage is the facility’s central location, which keeps local juvenile offenders local and makes family therapy and partnerships with community agencies more viable.

“What a lot of our youth need is structure. Teaching them and guiding them how to do the small things correctly is important,” he said.

Watson also said cyber crime and other offenses involving technology are expected to be continuing factors to be addressed.

“Guiding them and steering them in the right direction so that they’re making better choices,” he said.

Guests included the Belmont and Harrison county commissioners, Belmont County Sheriff David Lucas and Ohio Rep. Don Jones, R-Freeport. Jones presented recognition on behalf of the state. He said lawmakers will continue to look into available funding for renovations.

Jones, who has a background in education, added that while many things have changed in the past 50 years, others have remained the same.

“Every kid wants to have a happy childhood,” he said. “We want young people to be successful. Unfortunately they don’t always have that environment. … Sometimes they end up here, so we have to ensure that the staff here is equipped to do what they need to do.”

Belmont County Juvenile and Probate Judge Al Davies said the district and detention center have been critical. He pointed out such programs as mental health counseling and drug and alcohol counseling.

“They provide a lot of programs today that probably 50 years ago weren’t on the radar,” Davies said. “It’s probably changed a lot in the last 50 years. There’s always changes that have come across juvenile justice in the ways we’re trying to help kids and families.

“I cannot imagine operating the juvenile court without having this facility. They’re called upon to address a lot of issues these days, and they do it very well with the program that they offer to the kids,” he continued. “Unfortunately today, some of these kids aren’t going to school, so the only education they’re getting is when they’re here at the detention center,” Davies said. “It’s unfortunate that it takes being in detention to get some of these services.”

Harrison County Juvenile Probate Judge Mark Puskarich has served 20 years on the board of Sargus. He commended the range of educational services and security to allow juveniles to continue their education with more one-on-one attention during a stay.

“Sargus has been blessed over the years to have some amazing directors who put children first, and I appreciate both sets of commissioners have been working to do the upgrades and try to keep our building as tip-top as possible,” he said, adding that his court has made use of video conferencing with the youth.

Monroe County Juvenile and Probate Judge James Peters also said a few words.

“This facility has gone out of its way to assist Monroe County in dealing with its delinquent and unruly children and financially, I don’t think our county understands what a financial benefit we reap by being able to send kids here at a much lower cost than somewhere else. We don’t have an alternate facility to send them to,” he said. “The staff here has gone out of their way.”