Getting to know: Retired teacher spends time volunteering

Isabel Zupanciz is a former Portales Municipal Schools employee who worked most of her 31 years in the system as a first-grade teacher and an elementary school counselor. Since retiring in 2002, Zupanciz has stayed busy volunteering for an array of local groups — including Habitat For Humanity, Parents Reaching Out, Ready To Learn, Meals On Wheels, CASA  and the Roosevelt County Literacy Council.

She lives in Portales with her husband of 39 years, JimZupanciz, and they have a son, Steven, who lives in Lubbock.

How many hours a week do you spend on volunteer projects?

I think my husband would tell you 23 hours, but I don’t see it as work. Activity is what keeps me well. Everyday is an adventure, everyday is Christmas - opening a new package.

Is there one organization where you think the work particularly challenging?

I would say CASA, which is court-appointed special advocates. There are real live children for whom I have to focus my energy and my time — and their welfare before everything else. Their vulnerability really, really strikes me.

What other current volunteer projects are you finding rewarding?

With the Literacy Council, I have four adult students who are learning English. I’m working with individuals who have medical degrees, so they’re highly educated. It’s absolutely very rewarding.

So what’s your favorite meal you like to make at home?

You would ask that. I do not cook. The joke around my friends and my family is that I have a potted plant on my stove. My next home will not have a kitchen. It’ll have a refrigerator and a microwave. We eat vegetables, grains and fruit.

What do you like to do in Portales?

I like to go to Wal-Mart and encounter individuals who are willing to share with you their hardships. You hear a lot of stories if you’re receptive to that. I just like meeting people — they’re the most unique thing on earth.

Do you like to watch TV?

I like to watch TV with the sound off, because that way I can make my own interpretations. I’m pretty good at matching the pictures with the behavior. I don’t do the same things all the time; spontaneity and a sense of humor is very important to me.

— Compiled by PNT Staff Writer Eric Butler