+
upworthy
Awards

100-year-old man has worked at the same company for 84 years, taking dedication to a new level

Can you fathom working for the same company for almost your entire life? Walter Orthmann can.

Walter Orthmann, 100-year-old Brazilian, RenauxView, Guinness world records

Walter Orthmann, still working at 100.

Would you want to work for the same company for most of your life? Usually, after a handful of years, people are ready to move on to something new; it's a perfectly normal occurrence. But for one Brazilian man it wasn't. That's right, there's a man out in the world who has spent the vast majority of his life not only working, but working for the same company. Guinness World Records shared the story of record breaker Walter Orthmann, who has been working at the same company for 84 years and 9 days, verified on January 6, 2022.

It's important to note that Orthmann broke his own record, first set in 2019 when he had been working for 81 years and 85 days. Can you imagine?


Orthmann, who turned 100 years old in April 2022, started working for Industrias Renaux S.A. (now known as RenauxView), a textile company based in Santa Catarina, Brazil, in 1938. He was 15.

His family had fallen on tough times and young Walter was tasked with finding a job. Because he was born in Brusque, a small town in Santa Catarina with a large German population, he could speak pretty good German, which made him stand out to his future employer.

"Back in 1938, kids were expected to work to help support the family. As the oldest son of five, my mother took me to find a job at the age of 14," Orthmann said.

Even though he got a job out of absolute necessity, he was eager to get started. His willingness to learn and prove himself led to him moving swiftly up the ladder at RenauxView. He started as a shipping assistant, then was promoted to a position in sales and eventually became sales manager.

Obviously, Walter Orthmann has seen a lot in his life—not just at his job, where you can imagine a lot has changed since 1937, but also in the world around him. He credits his long tenure at the company to his willingness to adapt with the times.

Interestingly, it seems that Orthmann continues to work because he wants to and not out of any necessity. Why would a 100-year-old man still need to work? He loves what he does and doesn't really see the point in stopping if he's still able to do it. Although the idea of working until the age of 100 seems absolutely ludicrous to most of us, some older people like to find ways to keep busy. Personally, gardening sounds like a better option, but if Walter's happy, I'm happy for him.

"I don’t do much planning, nor care much about tomorrow," Orthmann said, sharing his belief in remaining in the present. "All I care about is that tomorrow will be another day in which I will wake up, get up, exercise and go to work; you need to get busy with the present, not the past or the future. Here and now is what counts. So, let’s go to work!"

True

After over a thousand years of peaceful relations, European semi-superpowers Sweden and Switzerland may finally address a lingering issue between the two nations. But the problem isn’t either country’s fault. The point is that the rest of the world can’t tell them apart. They simply don’t know their kroppkakor (Swedish potato dumpling) from their birchermüesli (a Swiss breakfast dish).

This confusion on the European continent has played out in countless ways.

Swedish people who move to the United States often complain of being introduced as Swiss. The New York Stock Exchange has fallen victim to the confusion, and a French hockey team once greeted their Swiss opponents, SC Bern, by playing the Swedish National Anthem and raising the Swedish flag.

Skämtar du med mig? (“Are you kidding me?” in Swedish)

Keep ReadingShow less
All images by Rebecca Cohen, used with permission.

Here’s a thought.

Self proclaimed feminist killjoy Rebecca Cohen is a cartoonist based in Berkeley, California.

Here’s what she has to say about her role as an artist taken from her Patreon page.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joy

Mom tells 9-year-old daughter to 'smile more' for school show and instantly regretted it

'Afterward, I regrettably said the one thing that no female *ever* wants to hear. "Try to smile more."'

Anniesgotabun Tiktok screenshots

Mom tells her daughter to smile more and instantly regrets it.

There is one request that unites all women and girls no matter their political affiliation or socioeconomic status, and that's telling them to smile when they're just minding their business. Think of it like a fairly universal "don't" when interacting with women, unless you're a photographer hired to take their photo.

A mom on TikTok found herself reaping the consequences of telling her 9-year-old daughter to smile when she was rehearsing a performance for her school. To say her daughter was not amused would be an understatement. The mom, whose TikTok name is Anniesgotabun, shared a video before and after her daughter's performance.

The caption of the video read "mistakes were made" complete with the facepalm emoji and the hastag #parentingfail. In the first part of the video you can clearly see her daughter going through the motions of the musical production looking unenthusiastic. The mom explains her error via text overlay explaining "my daughter had her final rehearsal for the school musical yesterday."

Keep ReadingShow less
Family

Heartwarming comics break down complex parenting issues with ease

Lunarbaboon comics tackle huge, important subjects with an effective, lighthearted touch that you can't help but smile at.

All images by Christopher Grady/Lunarbaboon, used with permission

Writing comics helped a father struggling with anxiety and depression.

Christopher Grady, a father and teacher from Toronto, was struggling with anxiety and depression. That's when he started drawing.

He describes his early cartoons and illustrations as a journal where he'd chronicle everyday moments from his life as a husband, elementary school teacher, and father to two kids.

"I needed a positive place to focus all my thoughts and found that when I was making comics I felt a little bit better," he says.

He began putting a few of his comics online, not expecting much of a response. But he quickly learned that people were connecting with his work in a deep way.

Keep ReadingShow less
Democracy

Australia is banning entry to anyone found guilty of domestic violence anywhere in the world

"Australia has no tolerance for perpetrators of violence against women and children." 👏👏👏


Australia is sending a strong message to domestic abusers worldwide: You're not welcome here.

Australia has recently broadened a migration law to bar any person who has been convicted of domestic violence anywhere in the world from getting a visa to enter the country. American R&B singer Chris Brown and boxing star Floyd Mayweather had been banned from the country in the past, following their domestic violence convictions. Now the ban applies to all foreign visitors or residents who have been found guilty of violence against women or children.

Even convicted domestic abusers who already have visas and are living in Australia can be kicked out under the new rule. The government is using the rule, which took effect on February 28, 2019 to send a message to domestic violence perpetrators.

Keep ReadingShow less

The Preussen Munster square off against the Würzburger Kickers

As a soccer match between German teams Preussen Munster and Würzburger Kickers went into its final minutes, a defender from the Kickers, 23-year-old Leroy Kwadwo, stopped to point out a problem in the stands.

A Munster fan was making monkey noises at Kwadwo, a black player of Ghanaian descent. It was a clearly racist heckling—an issue that has publicly plagued the international sport in various venues, even as recently as last week. But this time, the response from the crowd far outshined the racist in the stands.

Keep ReadingShow less