Carson City Senior Center Director talks collaboration

Courtney Warner, the new director at Carson City’s Senior Center, already has consulted with city library leadership about collaborating for homebound city seniors.

Warner, who enjoyed chatting with various folks Friday at an afternoon Senior Center “meet and greet event,” disclosed she has talked with Sena Lloyd, Carson City Library director, about prospects for pairing up to offer whatever makes sense from their combined resources to aid those served by the Meals on Wheels program. Warner said some 200 homebound Carson City resident seniors could take advantage of such a cooperative approach.

“Right there, you’ve got a really neat bridge,” she said of combining Meals on Wheels contact and library staff picking a book or some other media for people for delivery when they receive meals. She said that’s not the only possibility, but one idea that could bear fruit. “I think that there’s a lot of opportunity.”

Warner, who has been on the job about three weeks, also talked a bit about her hopes for offering technology guidance for seniors who use the center. She said that was among the last programs she was involved with in a Seattle senior residential setting before coming to Nevada’s capital community to assume her new role.

“I’m tech savvy,” she said, but added she knows programs for some require an understanding of how to handle the introduction process for those learning computer, social media and other tech-oriented skills. She said seniors seem open to learning such skills or already have.

The new director comes to Carson City from Seattle, where she handled programming in residential care facilities dealing with fitness and wellness, educational lectures on topics of interest, and on independent lifestyles or other special interests.

She has a bachelor’s from Whittier College in kinesiology and leisure science, a master’s from Seattle University in sports administration and leadership. Her annual pay here began at $96,197.

Warner’s family was expected to arrive in Carson City later Friday, she said. She’s married to Mike Warner and they have two children named Matthew and Andrew. Matthew is nearly four and Andrew is a year old. Warner said it was the first trip for her family to Carson City. “My husband has great trust in me,” she said.

The center’s new director praised Carson City, the people she has met and upbeat attitudes involving both the community and the center.

“I’ve been pretty impressed,” she said. “There is a level of pride in the senior center and its strong foundation. I wasn’t expecting that much of an impact, though I knew there was pride.”

Warner was picked from a group called a stellar set of candidates by City Manager Nick Marano and Mike Pavlakis, a center advisory board member. Marano said Warner’s dynamic. personable and able to enhance center programming.