[photo credit: Pasadena Senior Center]
Tours run Mondays at noon and Thursdays at 10 a.m., led by center ambassadors through the facility at 85 E. Holly Street. In March 1999, the center became the first in California to achieve national accreditation through the National Council on Aging’s National Institute of Senior Centers. As of 2024, only approximately 300 senior centers nationwide have earned this recognition out of more than 11,000 in the United States.
The center’s roots reach back to 1953, when Ed Bignell, Pasadena’s first full-time Director of Physical Education and Recreation, believed older residents deserved recreational services comparable to those provided for children and teens. In May 1960, the center opened with 2,000 people in attendance, established as the first nonprofit senior center in Southern California and one of the first in the nation.
Executive Director Akila Gibbs, who has led the center since 2008, reflected on her first visit: “What I saw impressed me: I heard frequent laughter, saw people deep in serious conversation, playing piano, playing pool. I heard some tap dancing going on somewhere. The energy and joy I saw made me want to be part of this place.”
On August 30, U.S. Representative Judy Chu honored the center as Nonprofit of the Year.
Guided Tours of Pasadena Senior Center will run on Mondays at noon and Thursdays at 10 a.m. Pasadena Senior Center, 85 E. Holly Street, in Pasadena. For more call (626) 795-4331 or visit https://www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org/activities-events/special-events/482-guided-tours-of-pasadena-senior-center. Admission: Free.
