When Dr. Marjorie Blank retired in 1987 as dean of Student Services at Kansas City, Kansas, Community College, it seemed only natural for her to begin volunteering at Shepherd's Center in Kansas City, Kan.

"I liked the Shepherd's Center philosophy and interfaith approach, and their idea of offering lifelong learning experiences for older adults," Blank explained. "Their programs emphasize that people don't stop learning because of age."

Blank especially liked Shepherd's Center's use of the term "older adult" rather than "elderly" or "senior citizen."

"I also felt I owed something to Kansas City, Kan., because it had been such a large part of my life during the 30 years I was at the college," she said.

In March, Blank, 85, received the Elbert C. Cole Jr. Legacy Award, created by the George H. Nettleton Home, Inc., to further the values and beliefs of Dr. Cole, a United Methodist pastor. Cole was nationally recognized as a leader in the field of aging. He served on the Nettleton board of directors and founded Shepherd's Center in 1971.

In presenting the award, Susann Riffe, chair of the Nettleton board, said, "Dr. Blank exemplifies the work and values that Dr. Cole was so passionate about by sharing her knowledge, talents, skills, and passions for the good of the community."
She noted that Cole "was particularly well-known for his belief that some of life's best, most important, work takes place in the later years."

Blank was among a group of candidates nominated for the award by organizations and individuals throughout the metropolitan area. She is the first recipient of the award, which includes $5,000 and a trophy. She immediately donated the money to Shepherd's Center.

During her nearly 25 years of volunteering with Shepherd's Center, Blank chaired its board, led fund-raising drives, wrote grants, and chaired the Strategic Planning Initiatives program. She has also served on community boards and is a recognized leader with the Presbyterian Church USA, moderator of the Heartland Presbytery, and a member of the General Assembly Council.

Blank grew up in Kansas City, Mo., worked at the Pratt Whitney plant during World War II, and attended the University of Kansas City (now UMKC) and the University of Missouri, majoring in psychology. She later earned a master's degree in guidance and counseling. At MU she met her future husband, Don Blank. They married in 1947.

"Before I joined the community college—it was called 'junior college' then—I taught first grade for a year," she said. "We were doing in the first grade what they do in kindergarten now."

When Blank moved to college-level instruction, she taught psychology, child development, and marriage and family logic.

"I'd had one three-hour class in logic at MU, so while I was teaching marriage and family logic, I was just trying to stay ahead of the class!" she added with a chuckle.

Blank later was a full-time counselor but continued teaching a marriage-and-family course.

"We had a lot of good discussions," she recalled. "One man believed in love at first sight because it worked for him. I told him he was lucky."

Counseling was challenging, she said, but she enjoyed it because she felt she could make a difference in someone's life.

"If I could go back to college, I'd want to be involved in counseling," she said.

When Blank became dean in 1975, she started a child care center for children of students.

"I saw a real need for it," she said. "There was some concern as to whether it would be accepted. We did a survey that showed if day care were available, it would be used. It's still going strong."

Among the programs Blank instituted were a nursing course that offered an RN degree and a program for students, especially divorced women, who lacked skills to obtain a good job. She also established a women's resource center.

"The community college system greatly expanded during those years," she remembers. "It was said that during the late 1960s, a new community college was opened someplace in the United States every week. And more specialty courses were added that helped students find good jobs."

Blank believes that the expansion of community colleges was a boon to education, especially when students learned that if they did well, they could transfer to a four-year college without losing any credits.

"I think the name change from 'junior college' to 'community college' also had a positive effect, particularly in the way the institutions were perceived," Blank said. "Enrollment at KCK increased from 250 students when I started to about 5,000 when I retired."

It's easy to understand why moving from teaching to volunteering at Shepherd's Center would seem natural for Blank. She is still involved in education, meeting new people and helping them continue to learn—and both endeavors are very satisfying to her.

Blank's husband died unexpectedly in 1987. Earlier this year Blank moved from Overland Park to Lakeview Village in Lenexa. She has three sons, two in the area and one in Houston.

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