How did the Clubhouse program come about in the Atlanta area?

In the early 1990s, Cindi Johnson and Mike McCord were known to the brain injury community as therapists and co-directors of Camp Hargrove of the Brain Injury Association of Georgia. They had a desire to create a place for people with brain injuries to come every weekday where they can belong, contribute, be accepted and appreciated; have responsibility and control over their daily lives – and to feel good about themselves while doing it!

Shepherd Center and Emory Healthcare, Cindi’s and Mike’s employers, agreed to sponsor the startup of Side by Side Clubhouse in July 1999. Both facilities are committed to helping people with brain injuries be as successful as possible throughout their lives, long after rehabilitation has ended. Side by Side Clubhouse opened as a not-for-profit charitable organization in March 2000 with 3 members and 3 staff in Decatur Georgia. While Mike has moved on from Side by Side, the other two founding staff are still with us.