During the late 1970’s and early 80’s Marjorie Hoeksema headed up a seniors program called the Friendship Club in Holland, Michigan. Marjorie became a well-known advocate for seniors in the surrounding area and found generous support for her efforts from Ed and Elsa Prince. In 1976, Eileen and Emilie Prince, Ed’s and Elsa’s daughters, spent their summer vacation giving pontoon boat tours on Lake Macatawa to seniors from the Friendship Club. The family treasured these days. They found the seniors’ wisdom and stories fascinating, and they found their desire to do more for the growing senior community.
Ed Prince asked Marjorie what her ultimate dream would be for seniors in Holland. Marjorie could imagine the benefits of a permanent location dedicated to the gathering of seniors on a daily basis for community events and continued education. In 1983, the Prince family and The Prince Corporation and employees gave the first million dollar donation to launch the project to build a senior’s community center. Other businesses and members of the community also donated a million dollars to equip the project. Ed recruited his daughter Emilie upon her college graduation to research and design the ideal senior’s community center.
In 1985, Evergreen Commons opened its doors in the remodeled and expanded Holland Christian Middle School. The former school become a 45,000 square foot senior’s community center in the heart of Holland. In July of 1998, a 20,000 square foot expansion was added to include the swimming pool, fitness center, expanded wood shop, seminar room, billiards area, and rehabilitation treatment center.
Over 25 years later, Evergreen Commons is a thriving, private, non-profit community center serving nearly 4,000 members in the greater Holland/Zeeland area. Seniors serving seniors is a core value embraced and promoted by Evergreen’s members and upheld by its leadership. At Evergreen Commons, members find a warm, inviting place to participate in affordable programs and priceless relationships to enhance the senior years physically, socially, intellectually, emotionally, vocationally and spiritually.
Below you can view some stories that show how Evergreen is impacting the community. Watch and enjoy!