Community revamps Aurora recreation center for differently-abled people

Keeping the doors open at Sēb's Recreation Center in Aurora hasn't been easy for Keithan Holiday. He opened Sēb's in honor of his late son, who dreamt of having a place where differently-abled people could gather and have fun. They opened as a non-profit in 2018, but they've hit a few snags along the way.

"Flooding, to where we've had to close for a period of time. Our first major snag was the pandemic. And then we had another snag, which was losing our tax-exempt status due to non-filing of taxes," said Holiday.

But they are still open today with a lot of help.

"The grace of God. And, you know, our supporting members, people that believe in what we're trying to do," Holiday said.

Some of those helpers were from the Aurora Chamber of Commerce's Leadership Aurora Class of 2026. One of the projects they decided to undertake was giving Sēb's a makeover, but it wasn't going to be easy with a limited budget and the long list of projects Holiday needed done.

"We walked into Sēb's and met Keithan, and it was an easy yes," said Kristen Smith, Co-Chair for Leadership Aurora's Project Committee. "Keithan and I met for hours at Applebee's. We just had dinner one night, and we were just talking all the ways that we could contribute to Sēb's."

In the end, thanks to a lot of elbow grease and some connections in the community, they were able to paint the entire facility in calming colors, give it new furniture and remodel its kitchen, plus make its fitness area safer.

"Leadership Aurora has done a superb job in providing the rest of the flooring that we needed so that we could avoid trip hazards," said Holiday.

Holiday says he couldn't have done all this work without them, but the Leadership Aurora class says the pleasure was all theirs.

"It's been 30-something years since I've had this intensive experience that I've enjoyed so much," said Chris Tombari, Co-Chair for Leadership Aurora's Project Committee.

Holiday says eventually he would like to move into a bigger space because he serves about 1,300 people at his current facility. But for at least the next two years, he is dedicated to staying in his current made-over location and continuing to serve his community in Aurora.