Aug. 15, 2024

Congratulations to Laura Cisneros, vice president of senior center operations for the WellMed Charitable Foundation, who received the 2024 Melissa Carter
Leadership in Aging Award from the Aging in Texas Conference. Laura was recognized Aug. 2 in Austin, Texas, during the Aging in Texas Conference event.

Based in San Antonio, Texas, Laura oversees eight senior activity centers in Texas and seven in Florida, which together serve about 14,000 older adults annually.

With a career in the field of aging and social services that spans 50 years, Laura is a national leader in the senior center arena, serving as a board member for the National Institute of Senior Centers and National Association of Nutrition and Aging Service Providers.

Her many accomplishments include helping to develop the one-stop concept for senior centers, which develops centers as focal points in the community, providing an array of activities and services, including workouts in facility gyms, lunch services, food bank deliveries, art and dance programs, movie theaters, library satellites and more.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Laura was recognized by the national Council on Aging for her work converting Texas senior centers into COVID vaccination sites, which distributed up to 4,000 vaccinations a day. She also helped transition senior center lunch programs from senior center cafeterias to curbside delivery, which ultimately distributed more than a million meals.

Today, Laura continues to keep the senior centers thriving with her knack for establishing successful public and private partnerships, including the City of San Antonio, City of Corpus Christi, City of Dallas Park & Recreation Department, Lower Rio Grande Valley Area Agency on Aging, and Capital Area Agency on Aging.