Helen Gressett

Honored May, 2001

Helen Gressett

Gressett calls herself one year younger than God, but the 84-year-old is not close to acting old yet. On a recent early morning, she answered the phone slightly out of breath: She was in the middle of her pushup routine.

"I stay very active because I think that's the way to live your life," she said. "Be informed and involved."

As a volunteer for the Santa Fe Rape Crisis Center, Gressett helped start the court monitors, a group of trained women who attend and record data about rape trials in the First District Court. Eventually, the 18-member group will publish their results to create awareness about sexual assaults in the area.

For a former social worker in California, volunteering for the crisis center seemed like a natural step once Gressett retired and moved to Santa Fe 12 years ago. Jess, her husband for 51 years, died last year.