Our History
Versie Hawkins: Inspiration for Our Center
The Hawkins Center is named after Versie Hawkins, a woman who sought representation to obtain her Social Security disability benefits after suffering a severe back injury in 1982. Her story is typical of the clients served by The Hawkins Center. Prior to her injury, Mrs. Hawkins had worked steadily since the age of eighteen supporting her family of six children. After suffering the injury, she became completely disabled and unable to continue in her occupation as a nurse’s aid. Like millions of Americans, she turned to the Social Security Administration for medical and financial support, filing a claim for disability benefits.
Mrs. Hawkins’ claim was denied, however, and over three years of appeals ensued. During this lengthy appeal process, she suffered extreme mental and emotional distress, which developed into a reactive psychiatric illness. As a result of the stresses associated with this process and the lack of any support system to help Mrs. Hawkins cope with process, what had begun strictly as a physical disability led to severe psychological impairments which required months of treatment to correct.
Linda G. Mills represented Mrs. Hawkins before the Social Security Administration, and Mrs. Hawkins finally received the benefits she was due.
Kelly Dunn, our Director and Rubicon's Chief Operating Officer, with Linda Mills, our Founder, in 1987
Inspired and motivated by Mrs. Hawkins’ struggle, Linda G. Mills founded The Hawkins Center of Legal and Support Services for People With Disabilities in April of 1986. In going through this process with Versie, Linda realized the significant need for support services offered in conjunction with legal representation for people facing the dual hardships of living with a disability that prevents work and pursuing the bureaucratic nightmare of applying for Social Security benefits. With Versie’s persistent urging and support, Linda conceived of an agency which served these needs and founded The Hawkins Center. Since that time, The Center has assisted thousands of physically and emotionally disabled individuals like Mrs. Hawkins, many of whom suffer from “hidden” physical disabilities such as back problems, diabetes, or heart conditions. Although these individuals are too sick to work, they often do not appear sick. They are treated as though their impairments are imagined or non-existent. As a result, Social Security disability applicants often feel inadequate, guilty, isolated, and depressed. As in the case of Mrs. Hawkins, the development of psychiatric disorders is not unusual.
Founded as a community based non-profit agency in April 1986 with a staff of two, The Hawkins Center has since its inception provided legal and support services to people with physical or mental disabilities seeking the basic financial and medical assistance of Social Security’s disability programs. After merging with Rubicon Programs in 2003, The Hawkins Center has continued to expand the scope of its legal services, while staying committed to its original vision and mission. As part of Rubicon Programs, The Hawkins Center takes the innovative approach of providing “wrap-around” legal representation to its clients, by linking clients to available medical, social service, mental health and community-based resources . The Center has now grown to a staff of seven attorneys, an AmeriCorps Fellow, a community work incentive coordinator, a benefits advocate, and an office manager.
The Center is primarily self-supporting through fees earned from representation on disability claims. All additional legal services, support services, and educational services are offered free of charge. Foundation and other grant support and donations were integral to the start-up of the agency and continue to be essential as we increase the range and scope of our services in our ongoing effort to meet the many demands faced by people struggling with physical and mental disabilities.
