It's a pretty common scenario in our society—upon reaching age 65, it's time to retire, to travel, to take life a little easy. Well, maybe that's true for some, but not for many of the senior citizens living and working in Los Gatos and Monte Sereno.
Working? That's right. While many seniors may have retired from their chosen vocational fields, they remain very active working harder than ever in the community.
And never was that more evident than when The Terraces of Los Gatos, in conjunction with the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, sponsored the eighth annual Seniors of Distinction awards on May 27. The event, held each spring, is designed to recognize the outstanding contributions that seniors make to the community. And judging from the information provided on the nomination forms this year, those contributions are as abundant and they are admirable.
There was Dr. Philip Ernstrom, who works almost full-time for Habitat for Humanity, only taking time out to donate one of his kidneys to his sister; and Emma Hopp, the co-founder of both the No One Wants Program, which helps distribute boxes of food and other essentials to needy families, and the Los Gatos Art Docent Program; and Phyllis Hardin, under whose leadership the Los Gatos History Club raised $25,000 to benefit philanthropic and community organizations. And they were just the honorable mention winners!
The Seniors of Distinction for 2004 were Leon and Joann Milburn, whose volunteer efforts range from disaster response work for the American Red Cross, service to the Museums of Los Gatos and serving as coordinators for LOVE Inc., which connects volunteers with people in need. As if that's not enough, Joann even takes time to cuddle with babies in neonatal intensive care.
Those were just a few of the remarkable stories of service told by the award nominators this year. And each year brings tales of community service more impressive than the last.
"I really love this," said Pamela Bancroft of The Terraces of Los Gatos. "It just always gives me such pleasure to read about these seniors who make such a big difference in their communities."
Of course, for any program to be successful, it takes solid leadership. And Brancroft provides that for annual Seniors of Distinction awards. She recruits members of the selection committee (that annually includes the mayors of Los Gatos and Monte Sereno, the editor of the Weekly-Times, the reigning Senior of Distinction, two members at-large and Bancroft), she organizes and chairs meetings leading up to and including the selection process, and she coordinates the annual awards ceremony. It's safe to say that without Pamela Bancroft, there would be no Seniors of Distinction awards.
So while we praise senior citizens for their outstanding contributions in the community, we should also raise a toast to Pamela Bancroft for her efforts in providing seniors the recognition they so richly deserve.
