Hope 7 Community Center came to be in 1968 as East Side Neighborhood Recreation Center, Inc. under the leadership of dedicated gentlemen from the community who saw the need for recreational programs for Troy’s East Side youth. When the City of Troy decided to disband the firehouse, known as Hope 7, the group was able to take over the use of the building, sharing it for many years with a branch of the Troy Public Library.

 

Today, the building remains much as it was when Troy’s brave firefighters inhabited the space, with minimal renovations made to accommodate our current needs for our children’s programs. An impressive painting of the original firehouse with photos of over a hundred firefighters from the turn of the 20th century proudly hails on our second floor. It will be cherished by all of us forever.