When Ana Mateo, 54, first came to Crescent Cities in Riverdale Park in 2002, she could not walk or talk.
Mateo of Silver Spring was suffering complications from a gastric bypass surgery. Within three years, she left the senior and medical rehabilitation center able to not only walk and talk, but able to dance.
The Crescent Cities Center, run by Oxon Hill-based Crescent Cities Charities, celebrated its 10th anniversary Oct. 22 with a catered reception. Mateo is one of about 4,000 patients who have been treated at the facility, which is located in what was the county's first hospital, Leland Hospital.
Leland Hospital was open for 51 years before it closed in 1993 due to financial problems, Crescent Cities executive director Betsy Godbey said.
Godbey said as she was helping Crescent Cities Charities in looking for a site for its new senior and rehabilitation center, she recognized the importance Leland Hospital off East-West Highway had in the community.
"For 51 years, this was the place where everyone came for surgeries and emergencies or labor," she said. "I met a lot of people in the surrounding area where Leland Hospital was a part of their lives."
Since Crescent Cities opened, it has expanded the building, adding new wings and also new services, such as an in-house gourmet chef. About 175 people work at the facility.
Many county residents come to the facility because of medical problems or no longer being able to take care of themselves, like Martha Penn, 91, who has been living in the facility for two years.
"I needed somebody to care for me. I just couldn't do for myself," she said.
Penn's friend, Virginia White of Washington, D.C., said it took a little while for Penn to get used to no longer living on her own.
"She has adjusted," she said. "She was a little depressed when she first came here."
But now Penn likes to participate in building activities, such as bingo, and attends a nearby church.
"When I do come [to visit] I can't find her because she's always off doing something," White said.
The center accepts patients of all ages, many of whom have car crash injuries, need post-surgery rehabilitation or are seniors who are unable to live alone, physical therapist Michele Shabazz said.
She added that although many leave, some do return to volunteer, such as Mateo, who comes nearly every Friday to motivate patients in physical therapy dance.
"This is my second home," Mateo said. "I love everybody here."
