The motto of Northshore Senior Center is "Keep Active - Stay Young." You'll see many Seniors here, but very few "old people" and there is not a rocking chair in the place.

The primary service area of Northshore Senior Center includes Bothell, Juanita, Kenmore, Mill Creek, Woodinville, Northeast King County and Southeast Snohomish County. However, we have members in 42 cities and towns from Blaine to Olympia and from as far away as New York City.

In 2002, 8,025 individual seniors used our services and programs 154,045 times, and averaged over 19 times for each participant. The Center was open seven days a week and offered 112,633 hours of scheduled activities! 1,982 volunteers reported working nearly 45,621.25 hours for the Center, contributing over $456,212 worth of labor (figured at $10 per hour).

About 65% of our participants are female and 35% male.   About 60% live in King County.  35% in Snohomish County, and 5% in areas beyond our "core" counties. In 1997 Northshore Senior Center celebrated its 25th anniversary. These pages endeavor to tell the story of this amazing, ever-young organization.

The Birth of a Dream: In 1972 a small group of senior citizens gathered in the Bothell Odd Fellows Hall to form a group they called the Senior Apollos. They dreamed of the day when seniors would have a building of their own, offering a full schedule of services, activities and programs. Getting started took a while and it was two years before this group could hire a director to help achieve their dreams.

In 1974 the club, now known as Northshore Senior Center, came under the auspices of the Northshore Recreation program.  Activities took place in classrooms of Anderson School. A few years later the Senior Center was sponsored by the Northshore Multi-service Center where it shared space with a number of organizations. In 1977 Northshore Senior Center listed a total of 60 volunteers and in that year the Center received partial funding from King County.

The City of Bothell owns a historic building known as the Lytle House which had stood in downtown Bothell since 1882. In 1983 Lytle House was moved to the Park at Bothell Landing and became the home of Northshore Senior Center. Lytle House had 1,200 square feet which later was doubled in size. It remained the Center's home until the Fall of 1992.

In 1982 Northshore Senior Center joined Senior Services of Seattle/King County, an umbrella agency for United Way funding. In 1983 the Center hired Marianne LoGerfo as director. At that time the Center had 800 members and an annual budget of $81,532.

Under Marianne's direction, with the help of a small staff and hundreds of volunteers, the Center grew rapidly. It soon ran out of space and was scattered in a total of 11 satellite locations. Yet with all of these, the center did not have enough room!

No record of the Center's early years would be complete without recognizing its pioneer members whose stalwart efforts made possible our present achievements.  A few of these names are Hattie Anderson, Mary Kanski, Ruth and Wallace Bartholomew, Helen and Percy Bell, Thelma and Sid Feiwell, Jean and Perry Gundrum, Marion Ransopher, Maxine and Con Schmidt, and Bertha and Al Sells. The complete list would number in the hundreds. Northshore Senior Center owes an unpayable debt to all its early volunteers.

The Dream Realized: In 1986 the Center began its search for new and larger quarters. First a 25-person Strategic Planning Committee was formed, composed of Senior Center members and leaders of the area's business community. This Planning Committee researched potential building sites, funding methods and many other factors.

During the following five years this original group expanded into 12 working committees with nearly 500 volunteers to plan and execute various parts of the campaign for a new building. Invaluable assistance was provided by elected officials including Maria Cantwell, Audrey Gruger, Karen Miller, Louise Miller, Pat Pierce and Sue Walsh.

The Planning Committee learned about Park and Recreation Service Areas which have the power to issue voter-approved bonds. Center and County staff engineered a change in state law so that these districts would also have the power of eminent domain. Then staff and the Planning Committees had to convince the political entities within the Center's service area that this new Senior Center building was both needed and practical.

Northshore Senior Center volunteers under the leadership of Lenn Width telephoned and doorbelled every registered voter in the Northshore School District and asked them to vote for two measures. The first vote was to form the Northshore Park and Recreation Area.

The next ballot measure was a $3.6 million dollar bond issue for construction of a new senior center. Both formation of the tax district and the bond issue won approval by 76%! This was not by seniors only.  76% of all voters approved our bond issue. With the help of the Boeing Employees Good Neighbor Fund, broad community support and the center's own fundraising activities, another $500,000 was raised for equipment and furnishings.

Then began the tremendous task of designing the Center's new home. Thirty-four firms of architects expressed interest. ARC Architects, a Seattle firm, was selected with Rex Bond and Dave Rutherford as the principal architects.

Searching for good ideas, the architects and Center volunteers visited most of the senior centers in King and Snohomish Counties. The Center's membership was continually involved in the planning process. The planners surveyed every class and every activity at the existing location. Comments were invited from the membership, and the planners evaluated nearly 1,000 individual suggestions and requests.

In designing the new Center, much emphasis was placed on flexibility and multiple uses of space.  Colors were selected to provide restful harmony. Rugs, fabrics and fixtures were selected to provide many years of use. The success of these efforts can be seen by anyone who visits the completed facility.

Construction of the new building took just over a year. Problems such as a landslide were overcome, and on October 10, 1992, after more than six years of effort, Northshore Senior Center formally opened its new home. The new Center has 24,000 square feet on two levels, ten times the size of its former location at Lytle House.

One frequent question asked by members is: "What is the state of our finances?" Northshore Senior Center is financially strong and the Center's funds are managed conservatively. All bills are paid promptly. With the help of outside support, the Center completes each year in the black.

We raise more than half our operating budget by our own efforts, membership dues provide only 7% of the Center's annual expenses. These are augmented by more than 20 fundraising projects conducted each year by our volunteers. Major sources of income include the annual raffle, trip commissions, the annual rummage sale, individual and corporate donations, memorials, pancake breakfasts, the Coffee Bar and the Gift Shop.

Most classes and activities are designed to be self-supporting. Some require modest charges, usually when outside teachers or leaders are utilized. In most cases, charges are reduced for members and for those who cannot afford the fees.

The Center has received substantial help from our friends in the business community including the Boeing Employees' Good Neighbor Fund, Molbak's Nursery, Puget Power, Safeco, Kiwanis, Rotary and many other firms and organizations. A new program is being designed to invite all business and professional firms in our area to become supporters of Northshore Senior Center on an annual basis.

The remainder of the Center's operating budget comes from United Way (through Senior Services), King County, Snohomish County, Bothell, Woodinville, and grants from public and private agencies. In addition, the Center is building a reserve fund designed to cover income shortfalls and to provide funds to maintain, repair and replace equipment as necessary.