You may have heard that the Center’s UpLifting Elevator Project was awarded $50,000 by City of The Dalles and Wasco County as one of the Google Immediate Impact Projects. And now you may be asking what does that mean for the Elevator Project? It is definitely good news. And with the hundreds of donations from all of you plus the foundation and local grants, the Center has secured almost $360,000 for the project. Sadly, the $360,000 would have been enough four years ago, but with increasing costs, the Center is still short of funds. (It confirms a basic truism: the more time it takes, the more the project will cost.)
To bridge the funding gap, the Center has applied to the Meyer Memorial Trust (MMT), the largest foundation in Oregon, for the remaining funds to complete the project. We expected to hear in mid-July if the Center made the first cut, but because of the enormous number of applications MMT has received, they need additional time to review all of the requests. In the meantime, we are still accepting donations knowing there will always be unexpected costs.
Since we are very close to acquiring the necessary funding, the Center has decided to initiate the planning process to install the elevator. The first step is to meet with construction firms to review the current design to see if there are any practical ways to reduce the total cost of the project. From those conversations, a final design will be decided with opportunities for Center members and the community to comment, before the final design is ultimately approved by the MCSC board. With approval of the final design, the building permits can be acquired so the Center will be ready to start construction once all the funding is secured.
It is exciting to know that with your help, and the local support of The City of The Dalles, Wasco County, Northern Wasco County PUD, MCMC and Northwest Farm Credit Services, we are close enough to start transitioning from a dream to reality. And soon those who have difficulty walking, will no longer need to take the exterior stairs to the Center’s activities downstairs.
Do you ever feel that different parts of your body are competing for your attention? I mean if I make an appointment with my cardiologist, my ears start bothering me so I have to see my ENT doctor. Of course my skin doesn’t want to be ignored, so I make my annual appointment with my dermatologist; and my eyes demand their annual check-up. And I won’t mention how jealous my knees and lungs can get. It’s to the point where every month I have an appointment to see a specialist for some part of my body. Can’t they just get along! Sorry about the distraction. I just had to vent.
The Center’s annual rummage sale is this Saturday, June 25th from 8:00 – 2:00 PM in the basement. This year we have a particularly good selection of items including home furnishings, furniture, kitchen items, knick-knacks as well as clothes.
Every Tuesday night at the Center there is live music for your dancing and listening enjoyment, and during the summer months you don’t have to worry about driving home in the dark. Next Tuesday on the 28th, Andre and Friends will be performing. Doors open at 6:00, music starts at 7:00, and donations are always appreciated.
The answer to last week’s question was Tab Hunter: one of the top romantic leads in the late fifties who costarred in the 1955’s World War II drama “Battle Cry”.
This week’s “Remember When” question is about a movie released in 1968 that became a landmark, science fiction classic – about exploration of the unknown. What was the name of this masterpiece that many considered (including myself when I first saw it) bewildering, boring, and slow-moving, and contained more spectacular imagery and special effects than verbal dialogue? And for bonus points what was the name of the computer that was the brains of the space journey to Jupiter? Email your answer to www.mcseniorcenter@gmail.com, leave a message at 541-296-4788 or mail it to the Center with a recording of Richard Strauss’s Also Sprach Zarathustra.
Well, it’s been another week enjoying the cool mornings in June. Until we meet again, a smile is the best way to say hello.
“There are exactly as many special occasions in life as we choose to celebrate.” Robert Brault
