El Paso city council to discuss renaming of Grandview Senior Center

Correction: Bill Cowan and Gayle Vokes created the Gus and Goldie characters in 1979 to promote the Learn to Swim program, according to the city's website. An earlier version of this story used a city agenda summary to credit the Learn to Swim program as one of Thornton's creations. Thornton tells ABC-7 that the agenda summary is incorrect.

EL PASO, Texas -- On Tuesday, city council is set to discuss the renaming of Grandview Senior Center in Central El Paso to Wayne Thornton Community Center at Grandview.

The agenda item proposes the center be named after Wayne Thornton, a former employee of the Parks and Recreation Department.

Thornton worked for the department for 42 years until his retirement in 2020.

According to the agenda item, Thornton served as programming director at Lincoln Center and later as a marketing and special promotions director, where he developed events for children, seniors and the El Paso community.

Many of the programs he created still exist today.

The city council will meet Tuesday, February 7, 2023 at 9 a.m.