Center for Creative Living a central hub for seniors

The kids left the nest, which leaves parents with heartbreak and joy.

They’ll miss them, but they now have the whole house to themselves. It gets fun for a little while, but then it’s realized it’s boring to an extent.

Back in the day, there were the old stomping ground to hang out with your friends and chatted about life. Other than a restaurant or home, it can seem there’s nowhere to go.

But there is.

Similar to a student union at a college campus or a community youth center, the Center for Creative Living has been around since 1981. Its mission is to support active seniors ages 55 and older in the Lawton/Fort Sill area, according to Candace Hammond, executive director of CCL. As a nonprofit organization, CCL provides a dedicated space for seniors to meet their social. physical and intellectual needs.

CCL offers a warm, friendly atmosphere where seniors can exercise, attend arts and crafts classes, play games, read, solve puzzles, participate in workshops and more, she said. Lunch is served every weekday for seniors to eat or take meals to go. Other than that, there’s also = a small greenhouse where guests can maintain plants and enjoy the sunlight shining on the greenery. There are even opportunities to go on trips around the country. Seniors ages 55 and older would have to pay for them, the next one being in March heading to New Orleans.

“Our mission is to enhance the quality of life for senior citizens by providing social support networks and means to prevent social isolation,” Hammond said. “We have programs throughout the day. We might have dominos one day or pool one day. We have several different card games that they play. You can do puzzles, paintings, there’s four different exercise classes. You can read books, you can even check out the books.”

CCL is free and open to the public. 

“They can come in and partake in all of our activities for free, the meals we ask for a donation,’ Hammond said. “The more seniors we can get up, out and active is better for them and their families. We have 20-plus activities that they can do throughout the week. Then we have informational speakers that come in Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. That would be how to prevent falls with the elderly, why you need to eat some of the things that you need to eat. We have a cooking class that comes in because some people have cooked their whole life for a large family. Now they’re trying to figure out how to cook for themselves.”

CCL is open 8 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays.

For more information, contact CCL at (580) 248-0471.