Senior Resources, Meals-On-Wheels will unify with The Lourie Center

COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — A new collaboration between Senior Resources on Millwood Avenue (which distributes Meals-On-Wheels to seniors) and The Lourie Center on Park Circle (which provides activities to seniors) will go into effect on August 1st.

Senior Resources’ Executive Director Andrew Boozer says combining the two organizations will allow them to maximize the need-based services provided by Meals-On-Wheels and the membership/per-class services provided by The Lourie Center.

“Columbia and South Carolina and all over the country, the senior population is booming and the needs of seniors to stay healthy and active are at the forefront of mind. And that’s the case here in Columbia as well. These are the two largest senior serving nonprofits in our community, and to work together collaboratively under one organization just made the most sense to make the biggest impact to serve more and more seniors we see in our community,” says Boozer.

Melissa Bush and other seniors enjoy a Pan-African Drum and Dance Class with instructor Nana Maestro.

Bush says the weekly two-hour class is just one of many other activities that she enjoys there including yoga, aerobics, dance, art classes and Spanish lessons.

“I love all this, it’s part of my nature anyway. It’s just here for me. And look at all the people in there, all ages, all levels. Some how that makes me happy to see everybody coming together and finding this, that maybe they didn’t even know they had until they started coming and seeing how wonderful it is to exercise and move,” says Bush.

Another class that Bush says she enjoys is the aquatics aerobics class taught by Winifred Kearse.

Kearse says her shallow and deep water classes allow seniors to work on their flexibility and range of motion more easily than on land.

“The water is a place where everybody can come, everybody can work out at their level. And they can have fun, get stronger, increase their balance, increase their body awareness, and it doesn’t take long at all. Not at all,” Kearse says.

Between the two combined organizations, about 60 staff members will serve over 4,000 seniors across the Midlands.