Senior Center earns award
Houston Senior Center administrator Bernadine Hohlt, second from right, receives a plaque from Dorothy Knowles, retired CEO of the SeniorAge Area Agency on Aging, during a ceremony Aug. 11 honoring the center for receiving the 2017 Jim S. Applequist Award of Excellence. The award is for outstanding leadership, performance and service to senior citizens. Before he died of Alzheimer's diease, Applequist was the director of field operations for the Southwest Missouri Office on Aging from 1979 to 2012. During that time, numerous senior centers were built, home-delivered meals programs were expanded and senior center programs devoted to wellness and independence were developed. At left is Houston Senior Center assistant cook Robert Mitana and at right is lead cook Sylvia Snelling.