Longtime Dunedin Volunteer Was An Inspiration, 'Driving Force'

Mathew Eberius scanned the front-row seats at in the and Rose Napp was not there.

Eberius knew Napp had died four days earlier, but he could now see — could now feel — her absence.

"Rose was always at the concerts and the plays; she'd call in advance to reserve front-row seats," he said. "She was a regular fixture. It was sad not to see her in the front row."

Napp, 84, had been a "regular fixture" — and fixer — in Dunedin for more than 25 years when she died Thursday, May 12, at Mease Continuing Care.

With Ted, her husband of 63 years, Napp was "interested in, and supported, everything going on in town," President Lynn Wargo said. "She was an amazing woman. When she got interested in something, she really took it to heart."

Napp, a Chicago native, moved to Dunedin with Ted and their three children in 1982. In 1985, she volunteered to be on the Dunedin Youth Guild. She'd serve twice as guild president over the next 10 years, while also working for a decade on the Dunedin Council of Organizations board, including one stint as president.

She was a 16-year member of Dunedin's Committee on Aging, helping the city become the first designated Elder-Ready City in the state. Since 1995, she'd been a member, and longtime chair, of the city's Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee.

Napp was also a popular volunteer in the library's bookstore. With Ted, they were Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus in the city's Christmas Parade; their house's Santa Claus collection was a highlight of the city's annual holiday "Tour of Homes."

The couple was elected to the Dunedin Senior Hall of Fame in 2003, which Rose helped found in 1999. She and Ted received the Delightful Dunedin Award in 2007, given annually to a citizen who has demonstrated extraordinary dedication to volunteer work.

"She was truly a kind soul," Dunedin Mayor Dave Eggers said. "She seemed to really love people, really love her community."

"She was awesome," said Kelli J. Edwards, who served with Napp on the Committee for Aging for more than 14 years.

The committee, which advises the Dunedin City Commission on senior-related issues and the quality of life of caregivers, provides education, recognizes contributions of seniors and sends people in the right direction for services.

Edwards said Napp's hard work was pivotal to the city becoming the first statewide to be certified as "elder ready" in 2007 under the "Communities for a Lifetime" program introduced in 2000 by Gov. Jeb Bush.

But when Edwards talks about Napp, she doesn't talk about her advocacy for seniors, she recalls her work for — and with — the city's youth.

"Rose was very interested in inter-generational activities," she said. "She really tried to foster that."

Edwards said Napp lobbied the school district to participate in the Youth Guild's essay contest, "My Favorite Older Person." She coordinated with the schools and collected donations for contest prizes from local businesses.

"The kids who won that were the kids who didn't win many things," Edwards said. "It was nice, heart-warming, to see that."

Layle Kremske, who has served on the Youth Guild board for 31 years, said Napp gave the organization's scholarship program a boost when she convinced the Dunedin City Commission to be a sponsor.

"She would go before the council," Kremske said, "and she would just get them to listen to her."

Eggers said he learned to listen to Rose Napp when he first got involved in city and community affairs in the late 1980s.

"She was a good lady, one of the first people I met," he said. "She went to every event, every council meeting, whatever activity that was going on. When she walked into a room, all attention turned to her."

Eggers said Napp exemplified the spirit and substance necessary to make a city into a community. "When people get involved — be it for a month or for 10 years — they take ownership in so many ways of their community. Not so many people take the time to do this," he said. "Rose did; Rose was such a wonderful lady."

As a high school freshman, Eberius volunteered for the city's Youth Advisory Board and served as the board's representative on the Parks and Recreation Committee with Napp.

Too young to drive, "Rose would always offer to take me home, to give me rides to meetings," he said.

Eberius, now a fulltime city employee, said his experiences working with Napp on the board, and getting rides home from her, would prove influential.

"She was a role model for me," he said.

In fact, Eberius said, Napp influenced many things in the city, some more subtly than others.

"I will think of this for the rest of my life," he said. "Among Rose's big concerns was the quality of the restrooms in the parks. She would come in with stacks of pictures of the restrooms and how they looked. She was a driving force in the restoration of the bathrooms."

Napp was so active in so many organizations and events, Wargo said, it seemed as if she was always winning door prizes and other gifts donated by sponsors.

"She was incredibly lucky," Wargo laughed. "Her name was always being called at every drawing. We used to kid her a lot about that."

"It will be very strange not seeing her with Ted around town," Edwards said.

"We in Dunedin feel pretty special. She made us feel special. She certainly loved this community," Eggers said.

"She really will be missed — by young and old alike," Kremske said.

In a 1999 St. Petersburg Times article, Napp said that she was compelled to volunteer.

“I think not much will get done without volunteer work,” she said.

In July 2001, Napp explained just why she was compelled to volunteer when the Times asked residents to write about "What they think of when they think of Dunedin."

Napp wrote:

"A city of caring people. A city with great recreation facilities. A city with culture: fine arts program, , Art Harvest Festival, . A city with a deep Scottish heritage. A city of committed volunteers. A city with an exciting downtown. A city with a wonderful causeway offering a view of the sunset. The first elder-ready city in the state."

SERVICES

A memorial Mass will be celebrated in honor of Rose Napp on Thursday, May 19, at noon at in Dunedin. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to The Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired or a charity of your choice.