HOULTON, Maine — The dream of establishing a senior citizens center in Houlton is about to become a reality.
For the past six months, construction crews and volunteers have been busy renovating the 48 Court St. location of the Putnam House Senior Center. That work now is about to be unveiled to the general public in the form of an open house 2-6 p.m. on Friday, April 20.
“We want everyone to come by and see all the work that has been done to transform this building into the senior center,” said Jane Torres, vice president. “We know quite a few people have been anxiously waiting for this to open.”
Jennifer Sylvester fills in a hole at the Putnam House Senior Center in Houlton as the group gets ready for its open house unveiling on Friday, April 20, from 2-6 p.m. (Joseph Cyr)
The center will be open Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Additional days may be added, provided enough volunteers can be found to help manage the center.
Board members for the senior center, which has received its official non-profit status, include Lori Weston, president; Torres, vice president; Zach Abbotoni, treasurer; Jennifer Sylvester, secretary; Dawn Degenhardt, Bob Anderson and Becky Day.
For the past two years, the group of dedicated volunteers have tried to make the senior center a reality. The group originally hoped to base its center at the historic Putnam House building on North Street when the Putnam Charitable Trust offered the property at 105 North St. for free.
But when major flaws in that building were discovered, which would have required more than $100,000 to repair, the group decided to look elsewhere for its center. Since they had already received grant funding under the name Putnam House Senior Center, the decision was made to keep the name, even though they were no longer using that property.
Undeterred, the group decided to create a temporary home at the First Baptist Church on Court Street to offer programs for local seniors. Every Tuesday, starting in July 2017, the center hosted events at the church offering free coffee and donuts, fellowship, games and puzzles for seniors. Those gatherings drew between 10-20 people, depending on the weather.
In October, a lease agreement was worked out for the building located adjacent to the First Baptist Church and the renovations began in earnest. The building previously served as a veterinarian’s office, but had been empty for some time. It was originally built by Frank Rogers and served as dentist office for many years.
Sylvester said the interior of the building was completely gutted, with new walls and flooring put in. Two handicapped accessible bathrooms were created and a kitchen area was added so that small meals could be served at some point in the future. In addition, all new heating vents were installed in the basement because the existing duct work was filled with animal hair.
Buildings Etcetera, Ross Sheet Metal and Swallow’s Electric all provided their services at a reduced rate to help the nonprofit center become a reality, Torres added.
“I believe most everyone who was asked to help out did so because they love the project,” Torres said. “Our goal is to be a social place for folks to gather, have some great conversation, play some games and maybe do some gardening in the spring.”
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- Work is now complete on the Putnam House Senior Center, located at 48 Court St. in Houlton. An open house for the center will be held Friday, April 20, from 2-6 p.m. (Joseph Cyr)
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- The Putnam House Senior Center at 48 Court St. will be opened to the public Friday, April 20, from 2-6 p.m. (Joseph Cyr)
