How You Can Be the AARP Benefits Badass

Now the 66-year-old Denver resident drives a vintage 1956 Porsche 356 A and does rally racing on roads, often competing for days or weeks at a time. She’s one of few female rally race drivers and has used her platform to raise close to $700,000 for charities.  

“I never would have imaged, ever, ever, ever that this is what I would be doing,” Brinkerhoff says. “And if it’s meant to be, I will continue to do this until my last breath.”

​Mattie Lawrence Johnson

Chesapeake, Virginia

In the surgical waiting room at her local hospital, Johnson knows emotions run high. People are anxious, scared and worried about those they love. That’s why Johnson volunteers there — to help people get through that challenging time. ​

She welcomes family members, helps them keep track of their loved ones’ progress and escorts them to the recovery room. “I love moving and interacting to help get the families through,” says Johnson, who is a member of AARP. ​ ​

Johnson, 67, takes the idea of service seriously. She volunteers through AARP on a variety of projects, including acting as expert speaker on AARP issues and making holiday cards for veterans in her state. She leads an Alzheimer’s caregiver support group — something she felt compelled to do after watching her father suffer with the disease. ​ ​

“Each person talks about what’s up and how they’re dealing with it,” she says. “We don’t give advice; we listen.”​

​Doug Prentiss

Waltham, Massachusetts

​When he was teaching his teenage daughter to drive, former traffic engineer Prentiss had an epiphany: Learning safety behind the wheel is a rite of passage for teens, but older adults may not have the latest information on navigating the roads. Prentiss realized that his 93-year-old father — still driving at the time — hadn’t had any road safety education since he began driving.

So in 2014, Prentiss became an instructor with AARP’s Driver Safety program. Since then, he’s taught more than 50 courses and reached nearly 500 participants. He has worked to keep the streets safe in other ways, helping to implement the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Complete Streets program throughout Massachusetts to focus on safety for drivers, pedestrians, cyclists and public transportation users.

Prentiss, 74 and an AARP member, says he “lives and breathes safety.” His work with older drivers ensures they are “current with all the changes on the road.” ​