Thanks to the dedication of many volunteers and organizations, the historic Florin East Grammar School building was renovated and re-opened as the Eppie G. Johnson Therapeutic Recreation Center in the spring of 2006. Funding and support for this renovation was provided by a partnership of the County of Sacramento, the California Department of Housing and Community Development and the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency. Read this document in pdf and see a photo of the original school.

Why was the Center named after Eppie Johnson?
The County named the Center after Johnson in appreciation of over $800,000 in proceeds of the Eppie's Great Race that have been donated to Therapeutic Recreation Services since 1980. Johnson, a local restaurateur and philanthropist, is a major TRS benefactor.

History of the Old Florin Town School
Old Florin Town was historically the center of a vibrant Japanese American farming community. The community was established in the 1870's and the original Florin East Grammar School was built around 1887. The original building was destroyed by fire and re-built in approximately 1914, and is one of the few remaining structures from that era.

The first Florin School of 1887 was located on McComber Lane just east of the railroad tracks and was a one-room structure, as were all the schools in the area. Destroyed by fire, it was re-built and had the distinction of being one of only four desegregated schools in California. Only Japanese children attended the school when a new brick building was built west of town and was attended by Caucasian children. For years, the two schools were referred to as the East School and the West School, and they remained segregated until 1939. The West School was destroyed by vandals in the 1970's, but the East school lives on and it is now the home of Therapeutic Recreation Services.

The name Florin comes from the railroad stop town designated as such by Judge E. B. Crocker who was impressed with the multitude of wild flowers in the area - thus the Spanish Flor for flower.