THUMBS UP - to news that the Autumn Ridge supportive living facility in Vienna, offering 46 apartment units for people over 65, is expected to be completed in September.

Larry M. Mizell, executive director of Family Counseling Center, Inc., the agency that will own the facility, welcomed some 100 participants to a groundbreaking ceremony held last week in Vienna.

The complex is primarily funded by Peoples National Bank in Marion and USDA Rural Development, with initial grant funds through the Southernmost Illinois Delta Empowerment Zone Inc. and the Local Initiatives Support Corp. of Chicago.

Originally appeared in The Southern Illinoisan