It was a busy year at Chicora Medical Center in 2006 as the average daily census grew to over 100. The facility also celebrated its 40th year of operation with a festival in August that attracted over 2,000 people.

The facility's Dream-A-Little-Dream program presented two residents with a shopping trip while another resident spent the day fishing on a pontoon boat at Lake Arthur for his dream.

Chicora Medical Center also hosted its first holiday open house in December, which was attended by over 300 residents, family members and staff.

The center also opened Quality Pharmacy on its campus during the fall of 2006 and has seen a steady rise in the number of daily customers. Pharmacist Tim Lowmaster said, "Most people initially only come in for prescriptions, but they are continuously amazed by all that the retail side of the store has to offer."

Quality Pharmacy offers gifts and collectibles including product lines from Willow Tree, Sarris Candies, Ganz Webkins, Milton Bradley and other merchandisers. It also offers seasonal items such as Steelers merchandise, Easter ornaments and greeting cards.

There is also a Pennsylvania Lottery machine and a Sony digital picture station to make prints directly from your own digital camera.

"Most people don't realize that we are up here, but when they come in, most tell us they never expected that we had this much to offer on the retail side," Lowmaster said.

This year looks to be just as promising as plans are in the works for the annual car cruise in August along with several other special events to be held during the year.

The facility also plans to continue staff development through advanced education to ensure top-notch care in both the skilled nursing and personal care side of the facility. Quality medical care and excellent personal service is always the goal at Chicora Medical Center.