Mary Rodriguez has been working at the Kosciusko Home Care and Hospice for nine years. Although most would immediately wonder if her job is depressing, Rodriguez does not actually work with patients. She is the organization’s record keeper, keeping files on all patients and faxing doctor’s orders. She also occasionally translates for Mexican patients thanks to her Hispanic heritge.

“I get to work with the best group of people,” said Rodriguez, who was born in Texas, but originally came to Indiana when her husband was stationed in Peru, Ind. with the Air Force. He is now a machinist. The couple has been married for 37 years, has one son and three grandkids, ages 6 years and 6-month old twins.

“The nice thing about my job is I work part time, so I have lots of time to spend with my grandkids. I want to stay at this job as long as they’ll have me,” said Rodriguez, who likes to cook flautas and tortillas from scratch. She learned the process from her mother when she was 12, but is the only one of her five siblings who still goes through the trouble of the elaborate process in making Mexican food from scratch.

When not at work or with family, Rodriguez is a serious runner. At age 57, she runs five days a week in the mornings and evenings. She has been a runner since 1979, and has run three marathons in Chicago.

“I wanted to run a marathon in five hours, but I haven’t gotten there yet,” said Rodriguez, who is a member of Sacred Heart Church and also enjoys knitting. “I hope I will before I hit 60.”

She has run up to 20 miles at one time and also participates in half marathons regularly.  Three times per week, she also exercises at the Wellness Center. Her best time is an hour and 45 minutes. Her son has also competed with her twice – the first time finishing slower and the second time beating her time.

“Honestly, I run because I really like to eat! Running burns a lot of calories,” said Rodriguez with a smile. One of her regular running routes is from Warsaw High School to Kmart and back. “I love to eat and cook. That’s why I keep it up – to be healthy.”