Worlds oldest Volunteer Manager?
Posted by Greg the explorer on September 20, 2006
LONG BEACH – Mathilda Karel Spak’s formula for her longevity is simple: volunteerism, indulging her sweet tooth and “to keep breathing.”
“I’m not ready to die yet,” said the 104-year-old Long Beach resident. “So I better keep volunteering.”
Spak on Thursday celebrated her 104th birthday surrounded by friends, and Long Beach Memorial Medical Center staff and patients, for whom she had volunteered 20,650 hours of service in the course of 45 years.
“She never stops smiling,” said Westwood resident and best friend Richard Lewis, 78. “She never complains.”
Long Beach Memorial also renamed its Myasthenia Gravis Foundation clinic after Spak, who volunteered at the center to honor her mother.
Spak has lived a varied life of firsts. Despite losing a lung to cancer at the age of 21, she went on to graduate from Northwestern University. She was one of the first women to receive a real estate and broker’s license, as well as one of the first women to travel around the world on a tramp steamer.
At the advice of her mother, Spak began giving to charities at a young age – a practice that evolved to philanthropic works that saw her start three local clinics for myasthenia gravis, a neurological autoimmune disease.
She also established two programs at Long Beach Memorial. She created the Children’s Clothing Closet after seeing infants of the underprivileged clothed in towels after birth. Today, the program helps provide two outfits for tykes treated at the hospital. Spak also distributes teddy bears to patients – young and old – during the holidays.
“Being of service to others and making them happy … to make them smile is the best thing you could do,” Spak said.
Spak’s 90s were filled with various recognition. At 92, she was recognized by former first lady Barbara Bush for her 25,000 hours of volunteer work. When she was 99, the 99 Cent Only stores made her their honorary spokeswoman. At 100, Spak ran for gubernatorial office.
These days, she coordinates hospital volunteers from the Volunteer Services Room, fielding some 85 incoming calls a day and coordinating volunteer tasks.
Teen volunteers see a role model in her, said Deborah Downing, Long Beach Memorial’s director of volunteer resources.
Throughout the morning, well-wishers visited Spak at her desk for hugs and to sing “Happy Birthday.”
“I don’t think I deserve these honors,” Spak said, after being presented with three boxes of See’s chocolates, a special commendation and a large birthday cake. “I’m only doing what I love to do.”
Samantha Gonzaga can be reached at samantha.gonzaga@presstelegram.com or (562) 499-1284.
If I’m still managing volunteers at this age – I expect a whole hospital to be named after me! Manging volunteer programs is one fo the greatest jobs that a person can have – I am helping people help people! I am making it possible for others to do things that help them to be in touch with their own humanity.
Worlds oldest volunteer and Jesus’ most important command « Exploring Emerging Embracing said
[...] I’ve written a little bit over here about Mathilda Spak, who at 104 is still coordinating volunteers for a hospital program over in the US. She qualifies I would think as the worlds oldest volunteer coordinator and seeing as thought that is what I do for living I am pretty impressed with that effort. [...]
ali spak said
she is my great great aunt