By Nicole Falco
She attends the 9 a.m. Mass at Holy Name of Mary Church every morning, not just to hear God's spiritual message but to deliver it herself as a Eucharistic minister and lector.
"I don't do anything that anybody else doesn't do," said Chvatal when asked to offer a more extensive summary of her volunteer work. She eventually opened up a little but remained reticent. After all, she remembers telling her son, Joe, now 52, to look up the word "humble" when he was being a little too boastful as a teen.
"Whatever I do, I do because I love to do it," Chvatal said.
For all she has contributed to the Valley Stream community, Chvatal was nominated by friends to receive the Town of Hempstead's sixth annual Make a Difference Award. Chvatal and 11 others accepted the award at Town Hall Nov. 25. The 12 recipients were chosen from among 150 nominations.
"I got a phone call one afternoon [about the award] and said, 'I don't know what you are talking about. Oh, you must have the wrong number,'" Chvatal recalled. "The woman on the phone said she'd check her list and get back to me. Later on that afternoon I got the letter [from the town].
"I got teary-eyed. I do it because I have been so blessed with so many friends and family. When I needed them they were there."
Chvatal is a 20-year member and past president of the Valley Stream Historical Society and a 25-year member and past president of the Central High School Alumni Association. She is a member of Holy Name's Centennial Anniversary Committee, which was responsible for planning dozens of celebrations this past year. Chvatal brings communion to homebound parishioners as part of Holy Name's "Renew 2000" initiative, and she's a member of the church's Ministry of Consolation, which offers comfort and support to families after the death of loved ones.
The only time Chvatal slowed down was when her husband, Bep, suffered a stroke eight years ago. Bep was in a wheelchair, so Marge took care of him while trying to do as much from home as she could. When Bep died three years ago, Marge began devoting more of her time to the community.
While she may shy away from boasting, those who nominated Chvatal for the award -- Hank and Karen Selah, Joe Bergen and Jim Buckley -- are more than willing to sing her praises. "Marge is whimsical and charming, tactful and funny, spiritual and practical, warm and caring," the Selahs wrote to the award committee. "Her diminutive four-foot-something frame doesn't seem big enough to hold the heart of such a special person."
The Selahs have been friends of Chvatal's for over a decade and have worked with her in the historical society and alumni association. Buckley, also a member of the historical society and alumni association, was a good friend of Bep's, and Bergen graduated from Central High School with Marge in 1939.
"I remember her being a cheerleader for Central High School," Buckley said. "She was a very vivacious girl then and she never lost it."
During the village's 75th anniversary parade, Chvatal marched as a cheerleader. She dresses up each year as Betsy Ross for the historical society's Presidents Day celebration, and she brings her extensive Raggedy Ann and Andy doll collection to the annual antique doll exhibit at the Pagan-Fletcher Restoration.
When asked about her friends, Chvatal said, "That's what's great about staying in the same town: You have all of these friends that you've known for years and years."
Growing up, attending school and raising three children in the same community has given Chvatal the opportunity to make friends with just about everybody. Despite busy lives, she has also managed to maintain friendships with those who have moved away, including a former Holy Name nun who now lives in Canada. The two have been pen-pals since 1939.
Town Supervisor Rich Guardino, who headed the Make a Difference Award committee, said, "I am assured that her caring and compassion will be felt in [Valley Stream] for generations to come."
