Charles Byrd says Pitt County's new senior center is designed to enrich the lives of more than 17,000 senior citizens in Pitt County.

On Thursday, the executive director of the county's Council on Aging and his colleagues showed it off.

Rhett Butler/The Daily Reflector (ENLARGE)

State Rep. Arthur Williams speaks to the audience during a dedication ceremony for the new $2.5 million senior center on Thursday. Nearly 200 people toured the County Home Road facility, which includes administrative offices and rooms designated for activities ranging from arts and crafts to reading.

(ENLARGE)

A group of people enter the lobby at the Pitt County Council on Aging as they begin a tour of the facility on Thursday.

Nearly 200 people attended a dedication ceremony for the center, which opened its doors Jan. 28 on County Home Road. The event gave donors, elected officials and seniors a chance to tour the 11,698-square-foot facility, and recognized those who made it possible.

"This is a day many of us have been dreaming about for nearly eight years now," Byrd said. "It really is special to see it all come together."

The new building includes offices for the council's administration and several rooms designated for activities ranging from arts and crafts to reading. Its cost of $2.5 million was covered by donations from the county, state, individuals and corporations, Byrd said.

On Thursday, officials announced the building would be named in honor of the Perkins, Wells and West Charitable Trust Fund — a platinum donor for the facility.

Various rooms also were named for those who donated $50,000 or more.

"So many people played a part in making this happen, but we need to realize today is not just about the bricks and mortar," said Henry McNeese, chairman of the Council on Aging's Board of Directors. "It is about the services we are now able to provide for the seniors in our county."

The new facility dwarfs the previous 5,000-square-foot location at the Pitt County office building on West Fifth Street.

Along with the trust fund donation, McNeese said county commissioners played a large role in making the upgrade possible by donating eight acres of land.

N.C. Rep. Edith Warren, D-Pitt, said she was impressed with the facility, noting its proximity to the county's Community Schools and Recreation building was appropriate.

"This is a marvelous facility, and what an enrichment it will be to our lives," Warren said. "And how fitting that this facility be located on the same campus as the recreational facility. They tie together very well in the enrichment of our lives."

Officials proudly noted the senior center is debt-free and said fundraising for a second phase of the project will begin soon.

"We've only been in this building for a few months, but we are already bursting at the seams," Bill Taft, chairman of the council's building committee, said.

An honor roll of donors included more than 70 people or organizations who contributed to the construction, and Byrd said an additional 300 people helped raise $25,000 for the facility through a buy-a-brick campaign.

The center is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information about the facility or the Pitt County Council on Aging, call 752-1717.