Special Volunteer Retires After 30 Years

By Mike Bush

(©KSDK) - When it comes to important events at the Old Courthouse in downtown St. Louis. History often frowns, cries or raises its eyebrows.

On Friday, though, it smiled.

Cake and compliments were served at Chester Bold's retirement party.

"He did anything you asked him to do," says co-worker Maureen Hanlon. "Always ready, willing and able." While your children will never read about him in school, he's been a fixture at the Old Courthouse since the day he started working there.

"February 18th, 1978", recalled Chester.

30 years in any job is pretty impressive but it's even more impressive when you consider that Chester faces some unique challenges.

When he's not at the Old Courthouse, he spends most of his time a few miles away at Places for People.

"We're a support center for individuals who have severe and persistent mental illnesses", explains case worker Rachel Mrozewski.

A few minutes with Chester and you'll learn how much he enjoyed working for the National Park Service.

"That's who I was working for, good old Uncle Sam," says Chester. "He's the greatest man you'd ever want to know to work for."

Or why he couldn't mess up when he had to shred documents with important information on them.

"You know what would happen," he says. "It would be my job! I would be out the door!"

"Gives me a good warm feeling," says Chester's sister Charlene Street. "Even though he has a disability there are people out there willing to sit there and listen to him and hear all his amazing stories."

Chester says now that he's retiring, he'll spend more time relaxing but he hopes to come back from time to time to give a little advice to the new volunteers.

"You can do anything," he says he'll tell them. "And you can do everything!"

Chester Bold, he didn't make history but around here he will certainly be remembered.

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