The Carroll County Senior Activity and Wellness Center is not your grandma’s senior center. On the other hand, it is exactly that, but different. Or perhaps it’s grandmas and grandpas that aren’t the same. In recent years, the 60-plus to 90s generation is traveling more, enjoying more activities, learning more new things and socializing outside the home more than did the grandparents many of us adults remember.
And the CC Senior Center in Berryville does its best to accommodate; offering a gym area, billiard tables, a dedicated card and table games room, book and puzzle libraries, periodic live music, quilting equipment, craft area, computer access, scheduled events and classes onsite, group shopping and entertainment trips off site, good company, and a modernized lunch menu served in a spacious dining area.
But change and growth don’t always pay their own way. Struggling to regain membership after COVID-19 devastated attendance numbers, the Center began to experience operational funding needs, and early in 2026 management shifted from Our Healthy Communities (OHC) to the Area Agency on Aging (AAA).
The Center’s OHC employees had the opportunity to re-apply to the Area Agency for their jobs and those who did were hired. Since the former director had not reapplied, that job was quickly eyed by a young woman who had come on board as a program assistant in August 2025, McKenzie McCreary.
McCreary was born and raised in the area and had worked as a cosmetologist with what she calls a “fondness for making people feel and look good,” especially older people. In addition to a huge soft spot for helping seniors, she had the qualifications to apply for the director position but was technically too young per AAA regulations. Determined to succeed, McCreary soldiered on until she reached her proper mid-20s last month and was officially hired as the Center’s new director.
“The best part of this job is interacting with older people,” McCreary said. “It’s fun being a local, I know a lot of people and I even have family members who are members here at the Center.”
Along with new program assistant, Jessica Gomez, McCreary is taking classes to certify as an instructor for the Super Noggin workshop, one of the innovative programs she’s adding along with the Wii Bowling Tournament and Chair Volleyball. All this and the Ageless Grace Exercises for Body and Brain appear on the monthly Activities Calendar schedule along with Bingo, Walmart and Harrison shopping trips, Crafty Tuesday, and other activities which are available daily during open hours.
New kitchen manager, Dana Wise, has been busy surprising diners with some elevated dishes on the monthly menu: shrimp cavatappi, ham steak with honey mustard sauce, smoked turkey with sweet potato hash, pork cutlet supreme with toasted herb rice, cheese frittata, roasted vegetables, sour cream mashed potatoes, sundry interesting veggies and desserts… and breakfast for lunch once a week.
And it’s a very busy kitchen, to boot. Every weekday Dana and her crew cook and pack almost 150 dinners for Meals-on-Wheels before 9:30 a.m. to be delivered to individuals throughout the county, then they pack some 200 more to go to the two Carroll County Learning Centers. They break to serve lunch at the Center ($5 donation for members) and then continue packing food that’s left. An estimated 900 to 1,000 hot meals are prepared and delivered per week, plus a frozen food delivery to cover weekends.
If you haven’t been to the Carroll County Senior Activity and Wellness Center in a while – or ever – it’s a good time to visit. Get a group together for dominoes, cards, billiards, a group workout in the gym room, a Bingo Thursday, or just to hang out and stay for a nice lunch. The staff are working hard to make the center welcoming and relevant, so give it a try. Sixty or over? Sign up for a membership card while there. Your suggestions are welcome!
Current hours are weekdays from 8 a.m. – 3 p.m. at 202 W. Madison Ave, Berryville, (870) 423-3265, email: carrollcountysc@aaanwar.org. Check out the menu and activities on Facebook at “Carroll County Senior Activity & Wellness Center”.
The Area Agency on Aging of Northwest Arkansas’ Senior Activity Centers receive partial funding through the U.S. Health and Human Services Administration for Community Living and Arkansas DHS Division of Aging and Adult Services. The building and attached contents are owned and maintained by Carroll County.
Senior Activity Center services are also made possible through the generous support of client contributions, your community support, and various foundations.