If my grandparents, Kate and George Traenkenschuh, were alive today you can bet they would have been the first in line to attend the grand opening of Café Now, Friday, Nov. 13, at the Rock Island County Senior Center, 2221 11th St., Rock Island.

The opening of Café Now will introduce a new concept for serving seniors by the Project Now Community Action Center.

The open house is from noon to 5 p.m.

Café Now will be a comfortable place for seniors of all ages to relax, enjoy friends, read a newspaper or updated magazine and search the Internet in comfort while learning about resources in our community.

Café Now will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The center features large-screen television, DVD players and movies, Wii Nintendo game system, gourmet coffee, wireless Internet connection, computer, comfortable lounge setting and meals served 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday-Friday.

My grandparents immigrated to Rock Island in the mid 1800s in their early teenage years with other siblings and cousins and eventually provided Rock Island with lawyers, doctors, contractors, and farmers. They believed in contributing to their community, church and projects for the "englekints" or children. And they believed in strong work ethics.

No doubt they would have contributed to a project like Café Now, a good place for seniors to meet. In their day, there were no senior centers, no service agencies. Often as a child I heard them remark, "Children have play centers outside of school to make friends, learn new things. Maybe someday for old folks like us, a place inside to gather and talk, maybe have a lunch."

They even suggested someday their big family house could be such a place - a room for music, a library, the dining room for lunching.

They would have liked Café Now, and since it operates on donations maybe I could donate a service in their name!

Whether you live in Iowa or Illinois, be sure you check out Café Now.

Gloria Fisher of Davenport is chairman of Senior Voice.