As the City of Troy cut the ribbon to officially open its new Nutrition Center on Wednesday, a longtime dream came to fruition.

The city’s nutrition program provides hot meals and activities for seniors in need of those services. For many years, the program was housed in the same building at the Colley Complex, which also provided educational and social activities for seniors. In recent years, though, the demands on the nutrition program have increased and the space available has been limited. Expansion at that site was difficult, due to geography. So when the opportunity to build a new nutrition center near the new Troy Library presented itself, former Mayor Jimmy Lunsford and the then-council pressed ahead.

The center, which opened Wednesday, is a state-of-the-art facility with pool tables and a computer center, as well as plenty of areas for seniors to gather, eat meals together and interact. As current Troy Mayor Jason Reeves said, “The Troy Nutrition Center not only feeds the body, it feeds the soul.”

We think that’s important. Our senior citizens deserve the opportunity to be engaged and nurtured as they move into their golden years. Whether gathered around the table for a hot, midday meal or sitting in a rocking chair, swapping stories with new friends, residents who take advantage of the Troy Nutrition Center will find their lives just a little bit happier, a little bit more fulfilled.

And, ultimately, that’s the goal: to nourish the body as well as the soul.

On behalf of the residents who take advantage of the nutrition center now, and those who will in the future, we say “thank you.”