Coleman Senior Center to operate in new building

COLEMAN, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – After eight months without a physical building due to flooding in May 2024, the Coleman Senior Center board members donated a new building to become the new center and office for Coleman’s Meals on Wheels.

When the building flooded, it left many residents without a hub of resources. Tina Rankin, Director of the Coleman Senior Center, expressed that the building’s loss affected more than 100 seniors in the area, especially those who rely on dine-in meals.

“The seniors had a place to go, to socialize in, and have activities to do; they lost that once we had to leave due to flooding. It’s hazardous, so they didn’t want nobody in the building,” Rankin said. “Our dine-in people are the ones who are really suffering through this because they’re stuck at home and have no place to go.”

The new building, on 400 South Concho, was a former auto parts shop, and while it still needs renovations, Rankin said with the community help, she hopes to have it up and running in six months.

“The senior center was a place where they could come eat and enjoy the friendship activities. So that was our home, the senior center, where we got damaged. That was that’s been their home for since 1998,” Rankin said.

While the organization had no building, Rankin used the help of local churches to deliver meals on wheels and hold small activities. Carolyn Merriman, a Coleman Senior Center board member, said when the board members threw a Thanksgiving get-together for the local seniors, she saw how much they were affected by the building closing.

“To bring our seniors together on Thanksgiving to give thanks for all that we have. And it was an amazing gathering. It was a chance for us to see our seniors hugging and crying. And you could see how much displaced the displacement has involved with them,” Merriman said.

For steering committee member Sharon Sneed Hicks, she said she wants to continue the legacy the senior center and Meals on Wheels gave to her mom.

“When our parents became seniors, this was a lifeline for them. I know my mother received meals, delivered meals for many years, and she was so gracious to talk to her, to check on her and, you know, if they weren’t feeling well, they’ll come back, and they’ll tell the,m and somebody will check on them because that’s what our community does,”