Gladys and Henry Crown Center for Senior Living will mark its 50th anniversary in 2017. To celebrate the milestone, Crown Center has planned a gala event at 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 6 at Washington University’s Hillman Hall.

 The gala will commemorate Crown Center’s past, and honor two leading senior services visionaries, Marylen Mann and Dr. Nancy Morrow-Hall, with Crown Leadership Awards. Mann is the founder of Older Adult Service and Information System (OASIS), a national education organization dedicated to enriching the lives of adults age 50-plus, and Morrow-Hall is a national authority in the field of gerontology and director of the Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging located within the Institute for Public Health at Washington University in St. Louis.

“Fifty years ago, the founders created an apartment building and gathering place for retirees, specifically designed to be comfortable, caring, active and affordable; where seniors could live, learn and thrive,” said Crown Center Executive Director Nikki Goldstein in a news release. “That vision still guides us today and sets the course for Crown’s next 50 years.”

 In 1967, Crown Center was founded by the National Council of Jewish Women as “The Delcrest,” with one 10-story tower featuring 144 apartments for low-income seniors. Today, Crown Center consists of 244 apartment homes and offers a variety of programs and services for residents and retirees in the area, including meals, health and wellness and volunteer opportunities. 

 Mann has cultivated a partnership between Crown Center and OASIS in order to offer meaningful, engaging programs for retirees, giving them the opportunity to learn and grow and stay independent and active. She was a faculty member at Washington University for nearly 20 years and is founder and president of The OASIS Institute.

Morrow-Howell directs Washington University’s Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging and has been on the faculty at the Brown School of Social Work since 1987. Her work in productive aging often provides a framework for the development of the Crown Center’s programs and services. She has also encouraged numerous students to perform their field work at the Crown Center, and she brings all of her Introduction to Gerontology students for a site visit. 

 Tickets for the gala are currently on sale for $100. To buy tickets to the event or to learn more about Crown Center, contact Randi Schenberg at 314-991-2055. 

Event Co-Chairs are Michelle and Jeffrey Cohen and Lauren and Darryl Sagel; Honorary Chairs are Nancy and Randy Green.