Sunday, May 19, 2024
SPRINGTOWN — When 97-year-old Margaret Mottram attended the Springtown City Council meeting last month, she brought with her a sandwich-sized zip-lock bag filled to the brim with metal pop tabs.
Mottram collects them in the hope they will help sick children, specifically those on dialysis. The Ronald McDonald House of Fort Worth, which aims to offer a respite for families of ill or injured kids, collects these pop tabs and recycles them in exchange for cash toward general operating expenses, according to its website.
“People say they don't have nothing to do because they're old. They could save these and give them to me,” Mottram said with a laugh. “I guess it's kind of silly, but I'm proud of the fact that we do it.”
At the meeting, Mayor Greg Hood proclaimed April 15 as Margaret Mottram Day “in honor of her years of committed service and volunteerism to the Springtown community.” Hood said Mottram has resided in Springtown for almost 24 years and is dedicated to serving her community by volunteering at Neighbor to Neighbors, ringing the bell for Salvation Army outside the grocery store during the holidays and playing Mrs. Claus at Christmas events.
Mottram said she has served at Springtown’s Neighbor to Neighbors for at least 18 years and likes helping people.
“I love doing it,” she said. “I ride around with her and another girl to pick up the food that’s volunteered to Neighbor to Neighbors. It's fun. And I don't like to not do anything. That irritates me.”
Hood ended his proclamation by encouraging others in town to be like Mottram and look for service opportunities.
“Margaret, at the age of 97, continues to practice volunteerism in her community in a manner that should be held as a shining example of how neighbors can be of service to one another for the betterment of the community,” the mayor said at the council meeting.
When Hood presented Mottram with the proclamation, the council and the audience stood and applauded her.
For her part, Mottram said she felt honored but wasn’t quite sure why the council recognized her.
“It doesn’t seem like I've ever done anything,” she said. “I know I have, but it doesn't seem like a lot.”
On the contrary, Mottram’s daughter Lisa Morris-Pitts, who witnessed Hood’s proclamation, said her mother had done enough to earn the honor.
“I think it's pretty special,” Morris-Pitts said. “I think she deserves it.”
Despite her age, Mottram doesn’t plan to slow down anytime soon.
“I don't want to quit,” she said. “I can't do what I used to do ... but I still keep going.”
