Curtis Jackson is 2009 Andrus Award Winner

Each year, the AARP Andrus Award for Community Service recognizes AARP volunteers who, in the last year, have made a difference in their communities in ways that support AARP’s mission, vision, and strategic direction and that inspire others to volunteer. Curtis Jackson, of Montgomery, is the recipient of the 2009 AARP Andrus Award, and the reasons are many.
   
In a society where most paid employees don’t stay at a job for 20 years, Curtis Jackson has done something almost beyond belief. He has held a volunteer position for 22 years. Jackson began volunteering with the AARP Driver Safety program in 1987, and he continues as an instructor today, teaching several classes each month and training other instructors.

But, he doesn’t limit his AARP volunteer hours to Driver Safety. Jackson is known as one of the “can-do” volunteers around the state office. When AARP needs representation at the statehouse, Curtis and other members of the Capitol Advocacy Team are the faces of AARP working to improve the lives of all Alabamians by advocating for laws to improve the lives of all Alabamians.
   
The Montgomery chapter has elected Jackson to a number of leadership positions during the last 20 years, and he currently serves as vice president and program chairman, and he is always on hand for special events, including a number of phone banks and “Divided We Fail” events.

In addition to his work with AARP, Jackson is a member of the Fleet Reserve Association; a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars; the National Association of Active & Retired Federal Employees; the Alabama Silver-Haired Legislature; the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program; and an associate member of the Alabama Peace Officer’s Association.

He is retired from the U.S. Navy and the Federal Aviation Administration where he was an Air Traffic Control Specialist.