J.B. Hunt Senior Activity Center Opens In Lowell

Susan Moore, left, with the Office of Human Concern, greets lifelong Lowell resident Elza Tucker on Wednesday at the new J.B. Hunt Transport Senior Activity Center in Lowell.
Susan Moore, left, with the Office of Human Concern, greets lifelong Lowell resident Elza Tucker on Wednesday at the new J.B. Hunt Transport Senior Activity Center in Lowell.

— What began as a discussion more than a dozen years ago became reality Wednesday with the official opening of the J.B. Hunt Transport Senior Activity Center.

More than 60 officials and senior citizens attended the ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by the Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce.

Cordy Lee, sitting with friends at a table, said it was about time the center opened.

At A Glance

Where is the Center?

J.B. Hunt Transport Senior Activity Center is on city-donated land in Ward Nail Park on 740 E. Monroe St.

Source: Staff Report

“We’ve been waiting about five years for this to open. I hope it’s a success. It better be because we put a lot of hard work into this,” Lee said.

Lee comes to the center at least three times a week, she said, to play dominos, eat lunch and play bingo.

More than a dozen years ago, participants in the Lowell Recreation Association, a nonprofit organization, asked its 24 members what the greatest need in Lowell was, said Sonia Stanfill, an association member.

“We agreed we needed a senior center,” Stanfill said. “We didn’t have the money to build one but recognized the need and started working toward building a center.”

Trucking magnet J.B. Hunt was interested in building senior homes and a senior citizen center about the same time, officials said.

“Mr. Hunt wanted more senior housing and a center in Lowell,” said Jerry Mitchell, executive director of the Area Agency on Aging of Northwest Arkansas.

“That didn’t work out at the time, but the idea stayed alive. It didn’t happen overnight, and it took a whole community to make it happen. With the help of the agency, Walmart, J.B. Hunt and other public and private donations we got enough money together to build this center,” Mitchell said during the opening ceremony.

The reason Lowell needs a senior center is hunger, Mitchell said.

“More than a third of all seniors in Arkansas don’t get enough to eat and suffer with chronic diseases,” Mitchell said.

The senior center serves lunch throughout the week and is working toward becoming a wellness center to improve the health of area seniors, he said.

State elected officials, Sen. Cecile Bledsoe, R-Rogers, and Sen. Kim Hendren, R-Gravette, presented checks to the center Wednesday. Bledsoe gave the center a $10,000 check from the state’s general development fund, and Hendren kicked in another $5,000.

State Rep. Les “Skip” Carnine, R-Rogers, also contributed $5,000 from the general development fund.

The center isn’t complete. Some of the kitchen equipment still needs to be purchased and installed before meals can be cooked on the premises, center officials said.

“We are very proud of the center,” said Eldon Long, Lowell mayor. “We have a lot of seniors in the area and this is going to be a great place for them.”

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