MARSHALL — It was born out of teamwork and community partnerships. And over the past 35 years, the Adult Community Center in Marshall has offered “countless” opportunities for area senior citizens and community members, said ACC coordinator Katie Brusven.

This week, Marshall will be celebrating the 35th anniversary of the ACC opening its doors.

“We’re excited,” Brusven said. “The goal is to highlight what the Center has done for the community.”

On Friday, the city will host an anniversary event at the ACC including music, a light lunch and a program. Speakers including Marshall city officials, Lyon County Museum Director Jennifer Andries, Marshall Area Senior Citizens president Darwin Leek and longtime former ACC coordinator Barb Lipinski, will reflect on the center’s history and impact.

“We’re excited to have Barb come back,” and share her thoughts, Brusven said.

The idea to build the ACC grew out of what was already a longstanding community effort to connect with senior citizens. In the 1960s, a group of local residents formed who wanted to reach out to “shut-ins” in Marshall, Brusven said.

“They started what eventually turned into MASC (Marshall Area Senior Citizens),” she said. Today, the MASC organization has more than 500 members, and organizes a variety of activities and educational programs for people age 55 and older.

While there was an active senior group in Marshall, the city didn’t have a permanent senior center. The Adult Community Center, located in downtown Marshall off of South Fourth Street, was built in 1988 with plenty of community support.

“It was a collaboration between the senior organization and the city,” Brusven said.

The senior organization worked to raise awareness of the referendum that approved the center’s construction, and collected donations to help pay for the project.

“The community has been very supportive of the Adult Community Center over the years,” Brusven said.

The ACC isn’t used only by seniors, but over the years it has been a location for a variety of programs, social events, and senior dining.

Although Brusven said she and program specialist Jennifer DeRuyter are newer staff at the ACC, they want to continue the variety of programs that have been offered to the public over the past 35 years. The ACC isn’t only a place where seniors can socialize, Brusven said. There are meetings for community clubs and support groups, fitness programs, informational talks, a book club and more.

“We just started a monthly coffee social,” Brusven said. “We feel like there’s something for everybody,” but at the same time, she said ACC staff and MASC are also open to ideas of what programs people want to see.

“We encourage everybody to come here and give it a try,” she said.

The celebrations on Friday will start at 10:30 a.m., with musical entertainment featuring Darwin Dyce and Lee Kanten. At 11:30 a.m., Lutheran Social Services will hold a light lunch, for a suggested contribution of $5. The anniversary ceremony and speakers will begin at 1 p.m.