A BUSY PLACE FOR SENIORS : LARGER T.O. CENTER MARKS ANNIVERSARY.

Byline: R.A. Hutchinson Daily News Staff Writer

For Dorothea Silbert and Horace Freni, the Goebel Senior Center gives them a place to dance.

For Annette Dahlberg, it offered a chance to heal emotionally.

For newcomer Lorraine Koste, the center is the doorway to meeting new friends.

``My daughter said I should come out and get involved,'' Koste said. ``When you're older you want to get out of the house. I've been in town two months. I'm starting to meet people.''

Koste, who moved to Thousand Oaks from Camarillo, said she already has met a neighbor who also takes part in some of the dozens of programs, activities and volunteer opportunities offered at the center.

``I hope to get involved in oil painting. And I love music,'' Koste said.

On Monday hundreds of area residents gathered at the Goebel Senior Center to celebrate its fifth anniversary, marking the move from the smaller location on Conejo School Road to the larger facility on Janss Road. County supervisors, and officials from the state Legislature, the city and the park district noted the success of the center, which serves about 10,000 people a month.

Mark Schrock, recreation supervisor, said the move from the old center to the new one nearly tripled the space available for programs. The former senior center had about 6,300 square feet of space; the present facility has a little more than 17,000 square feet.

The project was a cooperative effort between the city of Thousand Oaks and the Conejo Recreation and Park District. Schrock said the city paid the $3.2 million construction costs while the park district donated the land.

The partnership continues today, with the city responsible for maintenance of the building and grounds and the park district responsible for the staffing and programs.

``Senior residents can meet their leisure needs here and we also offer a variety of social services,'' Schrock said. ``This gives them a place to go, a sense of well being.''

Under the social services banner, for example, senior adults can learn about nutrition, confer with an attorney from Grey Law, learn about will preparation, get advice on tax preparation or join the 1,000 volunteers who take part in RSVP, the Retired Senior Volunteer Program.

Activities include excursions abroad, road trips to sporting events, shopping expeditions, sewing circles, classes in arts and crafts, pool, bingo and several dance classes, including tap and ballroom.

``My dad used to play at the old center,'' Silbert recalled. ``There just wasn't much room there. Now we have room for more activities, especially the dances.''

Silbert and Freni demonstrated a few quick dance steps to show where their interest lies.

``I'm a dancer, in case you hadn't guessed,'' Silbert said. ``I take a lot of the dance classes here.''

Dahlberg said the greatest benefit she's gained in the 18 months she has been participating at the senior center is the social contact with other adults.

Dahlberg takes part in the ``Forever Young Singers,'' a traveling chorus of senior singers, and she volunteers to help make teddy bears that are distributed to local hospital emergency rooms, physicians and child service agencies.

``I really enjoy being here with everyone. For me it was a way to heal. Believe me, it's done wonders,'' she said.

ACTIVITY SAMPLER The Goebel Senior Center at 1385 E. Janss Road in Thousand Oaks provides a variety of volunteer, educational and recreational activities. For more information, call [phone]. Here is a sample:

RSVP - Conejo Valley Retired Senior Volunteer Program provides community programs and volunteer opportunities.

Tax assistance - RSVP members help prepare claim forms for the California Renter/Homeowner Assistance Program and property tax postponement Thursdays from 9 a.m. to noon through Aug. 29.

Senior Widows and Widowers Support Group meets Tuesdays at 1 p.m. for newly bereaved men and women.

Health insurance counseling offered Thursday mornings by RSVP volunteers.

Acting workshop from 3 to 4:30 p.m. on Mondays by the Conejo Follies Vaudeville Co., which teaches comedic tricks of the trade.

Tap dance open house from 10 a.m. to noon Aug. 5 tells visitors what tap dancing is all about. Beginning classes will start Sept. 9.

Water exercise and swimming from 12:30 to 1:30 Mondays and Wednesdays at the Thousand Oaks High School pool and Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Newbury Park High School pool. Swim on your own or participate in group exercise.

Beginning and intermediate ballroom and swing dance classes taught at the Arias Dance Academy in Thousand Oaks from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Aug. 20.

Thousand Oaks 50-Plus Dance Club presents two Saturday night dances a month at the Goebel Senior Adult Center.

Square dance classes from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Sundays.

Conejo Senior Golf Club plays different courses throughout Ventura County. The group meets from 7 to 8 p.m. on the first Monday of each month at the center.

Jazzercise Lite for adults 40 and older from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Monday and Wednesday evenings.

Musical chairs exercise class for adults 50 and older from 11:15 a.m. to noon on Mondays and Fridays. The class incorporates simple resistance exercises using rubber tubing and light, free weights.

Trips: Excursions this year include Lake Arrowhead, Marina del Rey, Portland, Ore., and the Columbia River, Ringling Brothers-Barnum & Bailey Circus, Ventura County back roads, the islands of New England, Myrtle Beach, S.C., and Dodger Stadium.

CAPTION(S):

Photo, Box

Photo: (CONEJO only--color) Cindi Nitrini sings a song from ``Finian's Rainbow'' with her arm around Harry Sonenklar, a Goebel Senior Center Commission member.

Jeremy Green/Special to the Daily News

Box: ACTIVITY SAMPLER (see text)