Longtime public servant Elaine Szymoniak, 89, passed away last night.

A state senator and Des Moines City Council member for more than 20 years, Szymoniak dedicated her life to health, education and human resources concerns.

Among her most proud accomplishments, according to friend Judith Conlin, was helping bring the World Food Prize to Iowa. But she was involved in many other organizations as well, including the Chrysalis Foundation, On With Life and the Terrace Hill Foundation. Her lifelong dedication to public health issues and commitment to the Girl Scouts was recognized when the group named its Health and Administration Building at Camp Sacajawea near Boone after her.

Szymoniak was born in 1920 to Hugo and Pauline Eisfelder in Boscobel, Wis. She earned a bachelor’s degree in education and speech pathology from the University of Wisconsin and, inspired by her parents’ deafness, began a career in speech therapy and rehabilitation.

She married Casimir “Chuck” Szymoniak in 1943 and raised five children with him. In the 1950s, the family moved to Des Moines, and in 1977, Szymoniak received a master’s degree in family environment from Iowa State University. That year, she also won a seat on the Des Moines City Council, where she served for 11 years before becoming a state senator. In 2001, she retired from that post.

In an interview with the Business Record in 2006, Szymoniak said she had no regrets about her public service. “I don’t think I did anything I wish I hadn’t done,” she said, but also expressed a desire to do more.

A visitation will be held tomorrow from 5 to 8 p.m. at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, with a vigil at 8. Funeral services will be held on Saturday at a still to be determined time.

If you have photos of Szymoniak, please take them to Westover Chapel, 6337 Hickman Road, Des Moines or send them by 10 a.m. Friday morning to Kathy at kskeeley@aol.com or Martha at zmaniacs@aol.com. They will be shared at the visitation.