26 Aug 2014 Grand opening Thursday for new senior center

Special events are in the works for the grand opening of the new Conway Senior Wellness and Activity Center on Thursday.

“Our goal is to help seniors remain active and independent while enhancing their quality of life,” said executive director Debra Robinson. “Our new center will help us further our goal by offering more programs to more seniors.”

The community will have an opportunity to see the new facility at a special celebration 2 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 4, at 705 Siebenmorgen Road.

An open house is also planned 5 to 7 p.m. that day for tours and refreshments.

In addition, a special dance to celebrate the new center and the program’s 40th anniversary will be held 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 5.

A new center would never have been possible without the tremendous support of the community, according to Robinson. The program has received donations from approximately 400 individuals, corporations and foundations.  

A $2 million campaign was undertaken to make a new center a reality.

The John and Ola Hawks Family Foundation made a significant gift toward the center, which will now bear the name The Ola and John Hawks Center.

“Without the early support from the John and Ola Hawks Family Foundation, contributions from the Nabholz families in honor of their late aunt Monica Strack, Conway Corporation, the City of Conway Community Development Block Grant and First Security Bank, we would not have tackled this daunting task,” Robinson said.  

For more information on the center, contact Robinson at 501.327.2895 or [email protected].

(For more information on the new center, see the foldout in the September issue of 501 LIFE.)