April 23, 1913 to November 8, 2020
Store to Door recently lost a cherished member of our community. Long-time volunteer Eleanore Rubinstein passed away November 8th at the age of 107, surrounded by her children and grandchildren. Matriarch to her large, close-knit family, Eleanore was an inspirational example of involvement.
Along with her Dachshund, Sophie, Eleanore was a regular fixture in the Store to Door office each Tuesday afternoon. Sophie, a Store to Door character in her own right, sat patiently in her own chair next to Eleanore if there was room, or curled in her lap if there was not. Since becoming a Store to Door volunteer in 2013, Eleanore gave more than 235 hours in service to Store to Door clients. She was a beloved fixture in the lives of the clients she took orders from, many of whom were younger than her. Eleanore was consistently recognized for her excellent volunteer work, receiving a Light a Fire Extraordinary Volunteer award, as well as being selected as Store to Door’s 2016 Volunteer Order Taker of the Year.
Eleanore and Sophie in the Store to Door office, 2015 
Eleanore and Sophie, 2018
In addition to her volunteer work with Store to Door, Eleanore regularly gave her time to the Red Cross, PTA, Girl Scouts, and the National Council for Jewish Women. In an interview with Store to Door in 2016, Eleanore spoke about giving others the benefit of the doubt: “Find the good in people. Everyone has good in them. It’s also important to make friends and keep them.”
Eleanore often acknowledged how lucky she felt for her life growing up in Portland (Irvington Elementary, Grant High School), her wonderful family, her ever-expanding circle of friends. Those of us who had the chance to get to know Eleanore through her involvement with the Store to Door community feel like the luckiest of all.
To read more about Eleanore’s life and legacy, her obituary is provided on The Oregonian’s site here.