DAILY NEWS PEOPLE : MEL AND GLADYS ROSEMAN.

Mel and Gladys Roseman both volunteer their time to the Los Angeles Free-Net, a nonprofit interactive medical and general-interest bulletin board and Internet service based at Encino-Tarzana Medical Center.

Mel Roseman has been a volunteer since the program started on May 10, 1994. He spends at least 40 hours a week developing new user special-interest groups, expanding resources, maintaining the World Wide Web pages, giving technical support, helping with training of new users and general problem solving.

Gladys Roseman is the director of volunteers for Free-Net. She coordinates the duties of the 90 volunteers, transcribes voice-mail messages, serves as a mentor, helps people register, activates accounts and even schmoozes with the public about Free-Net.

AGE: Mel is 67 and Gladys is 62.

RESIDENCE: Encino.

BORN AND RAISED IN: Mel was born in Los Angeles, and grew up in La Crescenta and North Hollywood; Gladys was born in Pittsburgh and came to Van Nuys in 1948.

OCCUPATION: Mel is a retired Los Angeles Unified School District teacher who taught special education, English, and English as a second language. Gladys is a retired preschool teacher.

MARITAL STATUS: Married 44 years.

CHILDREN: Four children - Marcia Sarka, Barry, Barbara and Sara Eve.

BIGGEST DILEMMA: Mel's biggest dilemma is ``helping new users, many of whom are inexperienced with computers and Internet access,'' and finding ways to get people online who don't have money or computers. Gladys says her biggest struggle is ``not having enough time to do all that I want to do; I feel rushed.''

MOST DIFFICULT DAILY TASK: Mel says exercise is his daily chore. ``I absolutely have to, but I don't enjoy it,'' he says. Gladys says the most difficult thing she has to do every day is ``coordinating and communicating with my husband so we both know where each other is.''

FAVORITE DAILY TASK: Mel enjoys ``helping others use the Free-Net - because I want to, not because I have to.'' Gladys says she has ``always enjoyed teaching, and (volunteering) allows me to do this on my own terms.''

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: Mel says that ``teaching did not give me the financial security I needed most of the years I taught. I was vastly underpaid.'' Gladys is disappointed that ``more of our family is not together on special occasions.''

GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT: Mel's greatest accomplishment was ``surviving 35 years in the LAUSD and raising four wonderful children.'' Gladys is proud of her teaching. ``I thought I was a pretty good teacher,'' she says. ``I was able to bring information back to fellow teachers from the workshops I attended.''

GOALS FOR THE FUTURE: Mel wants ``to maintain my health and to continue participating in Free-Net.'' Gladys plans to ``exercise more and be more active physically.''

WHO RELIES ON YOU THE MOST AND WHO YOU RELY ON: Mel says he has relied on his wife for 44 years; and Free-Net users rely on him. Gladys, likewise, relies on her husband. ``He is there for me,'' she says. ``And my husband relies on me for support.''

ROLE MODELS: Mel's role models were President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who ``led our country through a terrible depression and war,'' and Dr. James D. Taylor, his former principal at Frances Polytechnic High School in Sun Valley. ``He had exceptional leadership (skills) and had respect and concern for students, teachers and parents,'' he says. ``He was the kind of teacher I wanted to be.'' Gladys chose Eleanor Roosevelt as her role model. ``She was a big figure when I was growing up.''

HOW DO YOU DEFINE SUCCESS?: Mel says ``earning respect of those who associate with me'' is his marker for success. Gladys said success is achieved when you have ``satisfaction with your status and accomplishments in life.''

DO YOU HAVE ANY GUILTY PLEASURES: Mel feels guilty about ``eating anything good.'' Says Gladys, ``I love eating candy, and it is not really allowed because I am a diabetic.''

FAVORITE FOODS: Mel says he enjoys ``almost anything with protein, (except) lamb chops, I would guess.'' Gladys loves ``ice cream, anything with chocolate in it.''

FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: Mel likes to listen to music; Gladys enjoys ``taking walks in the mountains and reading.''

HOBBIES: Mel enjoys ``working on the computer and exchanging e-mail with my acquaintances around the world.'' Gladys likes ``gardening and experimenting with new things.''

LAST MOVIE YOU SAW: Both saw ``Shine.''

FAVORITE TV SHOWS: Mel watches ``The News Hour With Jim Lehrer,'' ``Pearl,'' ``Murphy Brown,'' ``The Simpsons'' and ``Remember WENN.'' Gladys watches ``The Simpsons,'' ``Mad About You,'' ``Relativity'' and ``Remember WENN.''

WHAT MUSIC DO YOU LISTEN TO?: Mel primarily listens to classical music, both chamber and orchestral. ``It has been a part of my life all of my life. I studied piano for 10 years, and I was a music major in college,'' he says. ``(Music) gives me a real joy, pleasure and satisfaction. I can't imagine life without it.'' Gladys says she likes classical, country, jazz and folk music, though she really only listens to classical at home.

WHAT WOULD BE A PERFECT DAY FOR YOU?: Mel's perfect day ``would begin by flying to San Jose, then a drive to Monterey for the aquarium and Point Lobos State Park. A drive up the coast on Highway 1 to San Francisco; going to the museums and botanical gardens; and having dinner at one of the finer restaurants. Then fly back in the evening.'' Gladys' perfect day would include ``cooking a family dinner with all my family, having a chance to relax, read, and to take a morning walk and work in the garden.''

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Photo

Photo: Mel and Gladys Roseman

Tina Gerson/Daily News