MONROE — Elizabeth Sorn can often be found running up and down the stairs in the Behring Senior Center in Monroe. 

“The elevator is just too slow,” she said, laughing.

The hustle and bustle of the center is nothing new to Sorn — she’s been the assistant coordinator for more than six years. The Salary and Personnel Committee approved the hire to replace longtime Behring Senior Center Coordinator Tammy Derrickson, who took another position in the City of Middleton and worked her last day Sept. 14. Derrickson had been there since 1996. 

Accepting the position was an easy choice for Sorn. Working there for so long has changed her view of the world. 

“Age — take the term ‘old’ out of your vocabulary,” she said. “It’s all in your mind. It’s about keeping yourself healthy and keep going. It’s changed my whole outlook on life.” 

The jobs at the senior center have been that of many for Sorn. As the assistant, she organizes bus trips, programs, oversees volunteers as well as handles some of the banking, deposits and registration. She’s also behind almost all of the marketing, creating brochures and flyers, and leading the charge on ads and social media presence. 

“It’s nonstop,” she said. “You just go wherever you’re thrown into. You’re running all the time.”

Her position won’t be filled immediately. She said the center will be shuffling for a while, and offer more duties to some who already work there. 

Sorn said she has brought variety to the center and has made it her mission to keep the organization relevant for baby boomers as well as the elderly. She also considers herself “artsy” and has been able to share that passion by holding painting and jewelry classes. 

The center has grown immensely in recent years, and Sorn said in 2018 there were 40,000 sign-ins, meaning people who visited the center for one reason or another, which was only slightly lower than Madison senior centers, which range around 45 to 50,000 sign-ins annually.

“It’s busy. It’s good,” Sorn said. “It’s a really good thing that more and more people are coming.”

Paul Hannes, who has served on the city’s Senior Citizens Board for about 10 years said the hiring process went fairly smoothly. There were around 13 applicants and about four were interviewed. In the end, he said he feels they have the right person for the job.

“As far as I’m concerned, I think the city chose the right individual to lead the senior center into the future,” Hannes said.

Hannes noted that Sorn is well-known and well-liked around the center. She is people-oriented, he added.

“She’s been the right hand to Tammy for a long time,” Hannes said. “She has a good knowledge of what it takes to run the senior center.”

The Behring Senior Center is currently undergoing a feasibility study to see whether plans to add to the current building or construct a new facility would be best. The center has grown heavily in recent years, Hannes said, but plans are in very early stages.

“That’s a long way into the future,” Hannes said. “But you’ve got to start somewhere.”

Sorn said she worked closely with Derrickson for the past six years, which has been proven as a positive now taking the reins. Sorn hopes to continue to build on the veteran programs Derrickson started at the center, as well as others. They are also working on computerizing registration so some have the ability, if they wish, to register online. 

“She really taught me a lot,” Sorn said. “Her heart was into this place for over 20 years. She helped me learn all of the areas I wasn’t familiar with.”

Sorn graduated from Monroe High School before attending the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, earning a degree in recreation administration. After living in Madison for 25 years, working in marketing as a meeting planner with heavy travel, she moved back to Monroe to take the assistant coordinator position. 

In her free time, Sorn enjoys traveling and thrift stores. She also enjoys spending time with family and her cats, who are 18-year-old brother and sister.

“It’s a great place,” Sorn said. “It’s fun to come to work.”