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y Nancy ivan Sometimes snowbirds are honored as ther City of Brecksville’s Senior Volunteers of the year, but the two chosen this year, Sylvia Fowler and Bob Petrushka, have stayed here throughout a fierce Ohio winter. “We laugh about Bob because we think he puts more hours in as a driver for Human Services than the number of hours we employees put on our time sheets,” said Ted Lux, human services director. Patrick Coleman nominated Petrushka, his neighbor since 1986. “I immediately felt like I knew him,” Coleman said. “He is always helpful with whatever I am doing and with lending yard equipment. He took good care of his mom, and it was no surprise when he volunteered for the city. He is a great guy!” Petrushka grew up in Parma, then a rural area with only seven houses and lots of fields on his street. His big excitement was riding the streetcar to see the big buildings downtown. He served in the U.S. Army Financial Corps calculating travel pay. After twoand-a-half years at Ft. George, he was 42 Over 20 Years Experience Licensed • Bonded • Insured Member ONLA people l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l volunteering Comes Naturally sent to Korea, Camp Howze, the First Cavalry Division administration headquarters. “We were all armed. It was 1962 during the Cuban Missile Crisis. We had to move the camp to the field for security, and we kept trying to get news broadcasts. We knew there was a crisis but had no clear picture of what it was. It was a scary time,” he said. After the war he worked at Jones and Laughlin Steel Company in operations, metallurgy and quality control. He holds three steel-making patents. He started volunteering as a Boy Scout advisor at St. Mary’s Byzantine Catholic Church in Brooklyn; then he led a Junior Achievement group that made and sold cookie sheets made from Jones and Laughlin steel. The group was so motivated that the company asked him to do that with its employees. After 41 years, he retired in 2001 and took care of his mother. After she died he was looking for a hobby. His mother Landscape & Irrigation, Inc. • New Lawn & Shrubbery • Brick Patios and Walkways • New Decks • Retaining Wall Systems • Garden Ponds and Waterfalls • Irrigation & Drainage Systems • Outdoor Lighting Systems • Spring Clean-ups & Mulching • Lawn & Landscape Maintenance • Excavation & Dozer Services Professional Services • Reasonable Prices Jeff Sprungl: OSU Graduate in Landscape Horticulture CALL 440 838-5006 for an Estimate Sylvia Fowler and Bob Petrushka devote their lives to volunteering. Photo by N. ivan had used Brecksville’s Human Resources transportation, and he decided it was payback time. He volunteered to drive, taking people to appointments, the beauty shop and the grocery store. “It got me out of the house. I got to meet people and I was helping others; it made me feel good,” he said. Ben Jeremiah said that Petrushka drives one or two days a week right through the winter. He is someone who has contributed to Brecksville, being named number one by the Western Reserve Agency on Aging for outstanding service to seniors. Petrushka just finished three years as an usher at Cleveland Playhouse, rang the Salvation Army bell at Christmastime and served on the Human Services Advisory Board. Sylvia Fowler’s grandfather urged her to volunteer when she was 5 years old. “In my very early years, during World War II, my mom and I were with my grandparents. He was a great man – always helping others. We (once) saw a woman carrying bags of groceries and he said, ‘Sylvia, go and carry those for her. your legs are stronger than hers. Some day you will be old and you will want someone to help you,’” Fowler said. “Sylvia epitomizes the kind of individual who does much for others without The Brecksville Magazine, July 2011
calling attention to herself,” said Ted Lux. She has headed the Brecksville Historical Association for 16 years. She and her husband, Tom, a captain in the fire department who died in 2009, were a public service team. “I got to meet people and I was helping others; it made me feel good.” bob Petrushka Fowler was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., and graduated from Cleveland’s John Marshall High School. She belonged to y-Teens, a service club. She had a 28-year career as a legal secretary. “I came in contact with many philanthropists and I saw what they did,” she said. One month after she and her husband moved to Brecksville in 1970, he became a volunteer fireman, and Sylvia joined the ladies’ auxiliary. The women would make sandwiches and coffee for the firefighters late at night. Her son, Christopher, 37, serves in the U.S. Coast Guard in California. As he was growing up, she was involved with his activities. Fowler taught Sunday School, helped with Christopher’s swim team, and served on his Montessori school’s board of trustees, helping it become a state-chartered school. In 1979, she found her niche when she joined Brecksville Historical Association and has functioned as trustee, secretary, and, since 1995, as its president. She is revered as a woman who will graciously help seekers of family history and researchers. Her friend Ben Jeremiah called her the heartbeat of the historical association. “She has kept it going. She published a leaflet for the bicentennial that supplies people with information. At families’ requests, she takes pictures of tombstones and e-mails them to far-off relatives. She gets the museum cleaned up every spring for all the people who will come through it.” “It’s a great opportunity to do some- The Brecksville Magazine, July 2011 people l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l thing for other people while helping yourself,” stated Fowler. As a Bicentennial Committee member she worked for two years on the project committee that produced a commemorative deck of playing cards. She has worked on other committees as well, noting, “We need the support of every board member.” Fowler also substitutes as a “Meals on Wheels” driver. “you get to know people; they will invite you in. you may be the only live person they see all day,” she explained. ∞ ALL STOR SELF STORAGE Brecksville’s Storage Solution CLIMATE CONTROLLED UNITS U-HAUL DEALER MOVING & PACKING SUPPLIES 10117 Brecksville Rd. BRECKSVILLE N 77 80 First Month Free! FEATURES • Residential & Commercial Storage • Auto, Boat & RV Storage • Fully Fenced & Gated • 24 Hour Video Recording • Climate Controlled Units • Indoor & Outdoor Units • Office Suites Available 82 Miller Brecksville Rd. (Rt. 21) ALL STOR Snowville 10117 Brecksville Rd. www.allstorss.com 440.526.1677 43
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