MARYSVILLE — The Marysville Care Center invited city officials, care center residents and physical therapists to celebrate the grand opening of its new outpatient therapy gym.

Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring took part in the gym’s ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 14, which was followed by an open house showcasing the facility’s benefits to the community.

“Our new gym will help allow us to see more patients on an outpatient basis,” said John Hovey, director of marketing and admissions for the Marysville Care Center. “It’s much larger than our previous gym, and is also located at the front of the building with its own private entrance, giving it easier access for outpatients.”

Hovey touted the new gym’s state-of-the-art equipment, weights and home appliances which are designed to aid patients with the activities of their daily living. It even includes a Wii system, which Hovey characterized as “a fun therapeutic tool” able to target different areas of the body.

“With our recent expansion of an additional rehab space, we have created an improved platform for comprehensive clinical service delivery, while promoting accelerated development to excellence in rehabilitation,” said David Landquist, one of the care center’s therapists. “The Marysville Care Center strives to remain the premier provider of rehabilitation.”

Landquist added that the new gym provides functional training with full kitchen and laundry facilities, bathroom tasks, aerobic conditioning, strength and cognitive training, neurological re-education, compensatory training, family and caregiver training, and wound care. The typical washer and dryer, refrigerator and countertops are designed to give recovering individuals a place where they can get re-accustomed to living in surroundings similar to their own homes, where they will return once they’ve gotten better.