The Rev. Dr. Carl S. Fisher served as the much-beloved pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Johnstown from 1951-1978. Seeing a need in the Johnstown community as members of his congregation became older, he was instrumental in the 1961 founding of the Presbyterian Home, a non-profit assisted living facility at 787 Goucher Street. The church continued its close association with the Home for many years.
In 2015, the Home was sold to Quality Life Services, a Butler-based, for-profit company that immediately planned a million-dollar renovation to the facility, which has been renamed Westmont Woods. A portion of the sale proceeds has funded a new foundation to carry on Rev. Fisher’s vision and mission.
Established in 2016, the Fisher Foundation will assist elderly people in Cambria and Somerset Counties in maintaining their quality of life. Pastors, social workers, or representatives from elder care or other non-profit organizations can nominate individual seniors who could benefit from new wheelchairs, other medical equipment, or adaptations to their homes to enable them to live independently.
The Foundation is governed by a non-profit board of directors drawn from the community.