All through his childhood, Tom Eckelkamp didn’t have to go far to see countless examples of unselfish commitment to one’s community through volunteerism. He only had to look across the dinner table.
“My mom and dad were both big into volunteering,” he said. “I can remember every summer my dad would go through and weld any of the metal desks up at the Catholic school that needed repair. He was a super handyman and almost to the day he died, he was always looking at things thinking, ’How can I make that better?’”
For the past 38 years, Eckelkamp has himself become the model of service to which his fellow parishioners at St. Theresa Church in Little Rock may aspire. In return, his church formally recognized him as such, naming him the 2012 Tom Mattingly Volunteer of the Year.
Eckelkamp’s nomination for the award read, in part, “Tom is instrumental in keeping things going around St. Theresa’s … Tom embodies the spirit of selflessness and giving.”
“I felt really honored just to be nominated,” he said. “To receive this award means a lot because I see other people who are doing all kinds of things at our church and a lot of it.”
Some of Eckelkamp’s activities have included time as an extraordinary minister of holy Communion and as an officeholder in the Men’s Club and parish council, and he has been active in staffing and promoting their sponsored activities. He is also a fourth degree member of the Knights of Columbus. Away from church, he is a former volunteer youth baseball and softball coach and, this past January, retired as a volunteer firefighter after 32 years.
But his commitment to others goes beyond organizations and their scheduled events on the calendar. For Eckelkamp, who has been married to Cathi for 38 years and has two children and two grandchildren, every day is an opportunity to make his spiritual home a better, safer and more welcoming place. When the church office was broken into recently, Eckelkamp gave up his day to help repair the damage and secure the building. He’s spearheading a new project to clear fence lines around church property and is a liaison with local law enforcement to improve security.
Still, the retired 62 year old from Wichita Falls, Texas, doesn’t see anything special in what he’s doing. He’s simply taking care of what needs to be done.
“When I see something in need, I like to go ahead and take care of it to keep things looking nice and running smoothly,” he said. “People ask me for something, I just say yes. I guess I’ve never said no.”
Eckelkamp’s example, and that of his peers, has inspired a true parish-wide culture of volunteerism. Church events, like the twice-yearly cleanup of the grounds, routinely draw a crowd these days. More than the work that gets done on such occasions, the human connections that are made among parishioners are what brings him satisfaction.
“We have a lot of Hispanics in our church now,” he said. “There’s hardly a one of us longtime parishioners that speaks a word of Spanish. But when we work together we learn more and more about each other. It’s good.”
Other St. Theresa volunteers nominated for the 2012 award included Nick and Betty Wirzfeld, John Swillum, Mildred Toon, Tonda Gresham and Marj Hunecker.
The Tom Mattingly Volunteer of the Year award is presented each year to a member of St. Theresa Church to the individual who has devoted extraordinary time and effort to the benefit of the parish. The award’s namesake, Tom Mattingly, exemplified the attitude of service to others through his many volunteer hours coaching youth teams, working in the concession stand during games, volunteering in the classroom at St. Theresa School and serving as a mentor for young people.
The award was established following Mattingly’s death in 2005 and its first recipient was awarded the following year. In addition, the Tom Mattingly School Fund was established. Donations to this fund help support St. Theresa School by helping to fund athletic teams, provide capital improvements and keep tuition affordable.
