Jon Springer

Photo: Courtesy Elders in Action

At an April fundraiser, extraordinary volunteer Jon Springer shares stories about his work as a personal advocate for Elders in Action.

View Slideshow » Photo: Courtesy Elders in Action

At an April fundraiser, extraordinary volunteer Jon Springer shares stories about his work as a personal advocate for Elders in Action.

View Slideshow » Photo: Courtesy Elders in Action

Springer consults with Elders in Action volunteer manager Mark Noonan, who works with the more than 150 volunteers who help power the organization.

View Slideshow » Photo: Courtesy Elders in Action

Springer dives into more paperwork in pursuit of a solution for one of his clients

View Slideshow » Photo: Courtesy Elders in Action

Part of the horsepower behind Elders in Action: volunteers Springer, Aldine King, and Will Fuller.

View Slideshow » Photo: Courtesy Elders in Action

Springer shows Portland Ombudsman Michael Mills around the Elders in Action office at an open house.

There is little glory in paperwork, unless you’re Jon Springer, an Elders in Action volunteer who last year helped one elderly Portland couple write off more than $300,000 in medical debt. The nonprofit works to provide seniors with a better quality of life. Sometimes that’s as simple as offering a sympathetic ear, and sometimes it means tackling complex issues like medical debt. Springer waded through boxes and boxes of benefit statements, bills, collection letters, and financial aid applications, spent hours making phone calls, leaving messages, even writing e-mails to the associate director of hospital finance at OHSU. “It can be overwhelming,” says Springer, whose seven-year stint as a state employee assists him in navigating the hospital bureaucracy. “You just have to be patient, persistent, and polite.” Find out more about the organization with our web exclusive slideshow.