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SENIOR RESOURCES ANNOUNCES UNIFICATION WITH LOURIE CENTER

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July 12, 2023

Senior Resources Board of Directors announces the unification of Senior Resources with The Lourie Center, a move that will enhance existing senior programming and create a thriving atmosphere for older adults in Richland County. The collaborative change is set to take effect on August 1.

“This momentous step forward exemplifies our unwavering commitment to enhancing services and support for our active senior community,” said Chris Zecopoulos, Chair of the Senior Resources Board of Directors. “Through this unification, Senior Resources brings its extensive expertise in delivering exceptional care to older adults. Our shared vision is to expand the Lourie Center offerings, ensuring seniors receive comprehensive physical, emotional, and social well-being support. Together, we will increase accessibility, diversify programs, and create collaborative synergies that allow seniors in Columbia to thrive under our united efforts.”

“The programs and services of the Isadore E. Lourie Center focus on healthy aging: promoting balance and strength, social engagement, and lifelong learning. As its members age, they become partners in their own health care,” said Sondra Berger, Chairwoman of the Lourie Center Board of Directors. “Unification of the Lourie Center with Senior Resources expands the awareness of and accessibility to healthy aging across the Central Midlands. The Board of Directors of the Lourie Center strongly endorses a Senior Resources-Lourie Center partnership that assures the long-term sustainability of programs and services that promote healthy aging in the community.”

As a result of the unification, plans are underway to expand membership access and programming. Along with program enhancements there will also be facility improvements, including updates to the HVAC system set to begin in August. These enhancements will be the first in a series of progressive improvements aimed at updating the facility and expanding the Lourie Center’s already successful programs and events, making them more accessible and inviting to the people it serves.

“The health and wellness of our aging population in our growing city is a priority for us at the city of Columbia,” said Columbia City Councilman Will Brennan. “The joining of Senior Resources and the Lourie Center will provide the best wellness programs to all older city residents. I couldn’t be more thankful to the Senior Resources and Lourie Center boards for working to make this happen.” Senior Resources is a non-profit organization, founded in 1967, that coordinates services, provides resources, and encourages the personal choices that allow senior citizens to remain healthy and independent. Each year its services touch the lives of more than 4,000 Midlands residents.

The Lourie Center is a non-profit recreation center founded in 1995 for older adults ages 50 and older. It is located behind Maxcy Gregg Park in downtown Columbia. The center is named for the late South Carolina Senator Isadore Lourie, father of former South Carolina Senator Joel Lourie.

“On behalf of the entire Lourie family, I am happy to support the merger of The Lourie Center with Senior Resources,” Lourie said. “I have worked with Senior Resources for many years, and they are a stellar nonprofit organization that serves thousands of Midlands senior citizens yearly. For the past ten years, it has been a blessing for the Lourie Center to honor the legacy of my late father who spent his life advocating for our state’s aging population. By consolidating with Senior Resources, we believe this is the best path forward to the long-term sustainability for what The Lourie Center has already achieved in keeping older adults physically fit, socially engaged, and intellectually stimulated.”

Learn More: Senior Resources @ The Lourie Center