History
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The Senior Center’s solar panels - a work of art!
Founded in 1968, and established as a Public Charity in 1970 when it received its 501 (c) (3) from the IRS, Park County Senior Citizens Corporation is located in the old Yellowstone Hotel on Main Street, in the heart of Livingston’s historic district, in Montana. Since the aging population of Park County makes up almost 25% of its total population and many of them live in rural environments, providing them with a variety of services, programs, and amenities to meet their physical, intellectual, and social needs is crucial, and we thrive to make it our mission.
Planters in front of the Center, a community project donated by Girl Scout Troop #2033.
Staff
Kateri Nelson
Business Manager
Born and raised in Montreal, Canada, Kateri (pronounced "Kat-Tree") fell in love with the West when she married Dean - a fourth-generation Montanan descendant of homesteaders, with deep roots in Richland County. They moved to Colorado in 1994, and left in 2017 when Dean received a job offer that would finally bring them back to Big Sky Country. They chose Livingston for three main reasons: the reputation of Park High (they had a teenage son), the proximity of Yellowstone National Park, and the vibrant artistic community since Kateri is also a painter and a sculptor. Over the past two decades, Kateri dedicated her career to the nonprofit sector and wore many hats, from grants administrator, to executive director, to board member, to volunteer of several organizations. Since 2010 she has been the executive director of Animals 4 Therapy, a nonprofit focused on animal-assisted interactions.
Kateri and her family live just outside of town in a former parsonage full of quirks and mysteries, with their horses, dog, and other critters, and in 2020 she and her husband became the proud parents of a Soldier when their son Daniel enlisted in the U.S. Army as a Blackhawk helicopter mechanic right after graduating from Park High.
Ralph Harper
Building Manager
Originally from Seattle, Ralph was hired as the Facilities Manager in September 2019. He is retired from the US Navy having served on our behalf for 22 years. After retiring, Ralph entered the world of Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning, eventually owning his own business, Paradise Valley HVAC for 19 years. He was involved with Livingston Troop 516 as Troop Leader for 15 years, served as a firefighter volunteer with Park County Rural Station #1 for 5 years, and is active with the American Legion Post 23 and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. Ralph and his wife, Jo Ann, have been married for 38 years and they have three sons, one daughter, and seven grandkids.
Ralph came to the Senior Center looking for work after retiring from his HVAC business. We will forever be thankful to Jo Ann for insisting that he should find something to do since "retirement" is not in Ralph's vocabulary! Ralph is the kind of guy you want on your team. We are very lucky that he chose the Senior Center as the place to be.
Board of Directors
Emily Post
Chair
Emily grew up in northern Idaho but has been in Montana for twenty years now where it feels like home. She studied biology and economics in college and now likes to write and collaborate on community projects that make life better for people here.
She has two sons, Henry and Ernest and is married to her dream guy DeWitt Dominick. As a family they like to read and cook and play in the rivers and camp and bike and garden.
The Park County Senior Center matters to Emily because she believes we should all have community, learn new things, share ideas, and have a wonderful and dynamic quality of life at every age.
Lisa Herrald
Secretary
Bio coming soon!
Johnathan Hettinger
Treasurer
Johnathan moved to Livingston to work for the Livingston Enterprise and learned all about Park County through his daily newspaper reporting for a year. Raised in Central Illinois and a graduate of the University of Illinois, Johnathan has quickly made a home in Livingston. Johnathan is a freelance journalist who is frequently published by Montana Free Press and the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting and does work for other local nonprofits in Park County.
Tanya Calhoon
Director
Tanya Calhoon, a native of Livingston, Montana has lived here most of her life and has raised her children in Livingston as well. She is involved with community agencies and is currently a board member for Park County Senior Citizens Center and for the Livingston Community Choir. She has a degree in business management.
Tanya’s nine years of experience with the Mental Health Center, including case management, have prepared her well for providing the variety of services needed by clients of Sapphire Assistance.
Her personal interests are reading, baking, hiking, camping, traveling and spending time with friends and family.
BOARD OPENINGS
The Park County Senior Center Board is actively recruiting to fill 4 vacancies.
If you are interested in serving on our Board please download our Board Member Application here.