Kramer takes helm at senior center

• Kramer

“I think new people add new things,” said Ann Kramer, who took over as director of the Ellsworth Senior Citizens Center in April. She is looking for more volunteers and new ideas for programs. -- Photo by Judy Wiff

Talk about it

The Ellsworth Senior Citizens Center has a new director, but Ann Kramer certainly isn’t a new face at the center.

Kramer figures she started volunteering there in 2005. About 3 ½ years ago, she was hired part-time to work at the center through Experience Works, the successor to the Green Thumb program.

Now she is working as both senior center director and part-time for the county as a site manager for Meals On Wheels.

“I hope to increase people’s interest,” said Kramer of her goal for the center. She added, “If some people are tired of the old things, we’ll try new things.”

She took over in April from Gloria Nelson, who was director for 23 years.

“Gloria was the first person I met when I moved to town in 2003,” said

Kramer of Nelson, encouraging her to volunteer at the center.

Kramer, a single mother, moved to Ellsworth looking for a nice small town in which to raise her son. While she found that, Kramer--who had worked in the floral industry and in social services as a counselor for teens and children--wasn’t able to find a job that didn’t require a long commute.

For more please read the June 1 print version of the Herald.

Tags: communities, ellsworth, health