News

Frank Stary
Volunteer - Information Desk
The Importance of Caring | my journey into volunteering

Over the course of his lifetime, Frank Stary has excelled at a number of different careers. Each time he retires from one job, he unexpectedly finds another place where he truly belongs.

Most recently, it was volunteering that led him to his latest job. A friend recommended that he apply as a volunteer at Columbus Community Hospital, and his first “gig” was as an equipment monitor at the Columbus Fieldhouse. His role was to check rackets, balls and other items in and out as people used them.

“After a while,” Stary said, “the Y asked me to work there. I was told I couldn’t volunteer and work doing the same job.”

So, he decided to have his cake and eat it, too: He took the job at the Y and started volunteering at the hospital’s information desk, instead. “I work with a lot of nice people,” he said, “and we all take care of everyone who comes to the hospital.”

Stary grew up in Omaha, graduating from Omaha Central High School in 1968. He attended University of Nebraska Omaha for one year, then joined the U.S. Army, traveling between Virginia and Georgia to finish all of his training.

He was in Vietnam for one year, Germany for nine months, and then left the Army in January 1972. That was the end of his first career.

Career No. 2 began in 1973, when Stary began working for the United States Postal Service. He was appointed postmaster in Oakland, Nebraska, in 1983, and he stayed there for 22 years until he retired in 2005.

In the meantime, Stary was paying close attention to his personal life, too. He married the “love of my life,” Patty, in 1976. The two went on to have two sons — Kevin, who’s now 48, and Jason, who’s now 46. They moved to Fremont, Nebraska, in April 2006, which was where Stary started career No. 3 — an Auto Zone employee. He worked in various locations for that company until early 2025.

Patty experienced quite a few health issues later in her life, including heart problems. She passed away in November 2021, and Stary moved to Columbus, Nebraska, a few years later. That was when he got the idea to start volunteering. His first volunteer job at the fieldhouse was literally right across the street from where he lives.

Between working and volunteering, Stary keeps himself quite busy. But he still has time for his passions, too. “My main hobby is collecting Star Trek items,” he said. “And I like doing puzzles.”

To learn more about volunteer opportunities available at the hospital, visit columbushosp.org