Nanticoke Senior Center

SEAFORD, DE –  The $2.3 million campaign to build a new home for members of the Nanticoke Senior Center got a boost recently with the naming of Rob Harman as Campaign Chair.

Harman is a Managing Broker and Senior Adviser with Sperry Van-Ness-Miller Commercial Real Estate and co-owner of Home Team Realty in Seaford.  He was named the 2008-09 Realtor of the Year and is a past president of the Sussex County Association of Realtors.

Nanticoke Senior Center, which has co-occupied a facility for the past 10 years with another regional non-profit, needs to relocate by 2010 in order to meet the growth needs of both organizations, said Lora Schuler, NSC chair.

In just the last two months, the Senior Center has received more than $500,000 in gifts, pledges and challenge grants, giving the new campaign a solid start.

“We are delighted that Rob has agreed to chair our campaign,” Schuler said. “He brings high energy, a passion for the elderly and years of excellent relations in the Seaford region to this new assignment.”

Harman is equally pleased, stating that “I really look forward to being of help to the region’s older population.  They are far too often our forgotten residents who sit quietly to the side – but their needs are very real and compelling.”

Harman notes, for example, that the NSC provides more than 33,000 meals each year to both members and home-bound residents.  “I am not sure many people in our region know that, or appreciate what an important service that is,” Harman said.

Staff of the Senior Center also make some 500 trips per month in Center vans and other vehicles to take members to doctors’ appointments, pick up food and medications and facilitate group outings. “For many of our members, the Senior Center is their lifeline to remaining active and vital.”

“There is no question that the services we provide help to defer medical expenses and save money for the state and county,” said Schuler.

The new 12,000 square foot facility to be built near the Seaford Industrial Park and Ross Mansion complex is smaller than was originally conceived, said Schuler, “but it is the right size for our current economy.”   She said that the new Center will be able to serve more than 1,000 NSC members on a regular basis, and has the ability for future expansion.

The Center will be constructed on land that is being provided to the NSC by the City of Seaford.  “This will allow us to pursue state funding for certain infrastructure costs,” Schuler said.

Harman, who is now recruiting his campaign leadership committee, promises that “no stone will be unturned” in the course of the NSC campaign, which is expected to last through 2010.  “ We want everyone in the region to have the chance to give generously to this very important effort,” he said.

# # # #

Rob Harman

Photo Caption:  Rob Harman is a Managing Broker and Senior Adviser with Sperry Van-Ness-Miller Commercial Real Estate and co-owner of Home Team Realty in Seaford.  He was named the 2008-09 Realtor of the Year and is a past president of the Sussex County Association of Realtors.