Champions of Aging
Here are 10 Americans who helped to build a nation that respects and protects its oldest citizens
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AARP
Our Hall of Fame
They came from divergent backgrounds but shared a common cause: fighting for the interests, rights, financial security and overall well-being of older Americans. Learn more about these movers and shakers in this virtual hall of fame.
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AARP
Ethel Percy Andrus
The founder of AARP was an educator who never stopped teaching. Read Andrus' story.
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Courtesy of the Social Security Administration
Robert M. Ball
The lifelong civil servant (pictured upper right) oversaw the creation of the Medicare system in the mid-1960s, which may have been the largest government undertaking since D-Day. Read Ball's story.
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Courtesy of Worth Blaney
Warren W. Blaney
Many compete in the Senior Olympics, but few can name the movement’s founder (pictured far right).
Read Blaney's story. -
Courtesy of the International Longevity Center USA
Robert N. Butler
Butler was raised by his grandparents, became a doctor and fought prejudice and discrimination against older Americans. Read Butler's story.
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Jim Harrison/The Heinz Awards
Elma Holder
Are nursing homes "over-regulated?" she asked rhetorically. "Well, are the schools in your town over-regulated?" Read Holder's story.
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Keystone/Getty Images
Lyndon B. Johnson
The son of a failed cotton farmer engineered the passage of Medicare, Medicaid and the Older Americans Act. Read Johnson's story.
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Alain Keler/Sygma/Corbis
Maggie Kuhn
The Gray Panthers founder weighed only 95 pounds but packed a big punch as a crusading activist. Read Kuhn's story.
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Ed Clark/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images
Patrick V. McNamara
As a senator, the one-time pipefitter helped lead the charge for Medicare. Read McNamara's story.
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Shepard Sherbell/Saba/Corbis
Claude Pepper
Mr. Senior Citizen’s concern for those in need may have grown out of his own early struggles. Read Pepper's story.
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Wisconsin Historical Society
Edwin E. Witte
Witte, raised in hardscrabble Wisconsin, invented Social Security, the program that millions of retirees depend on. Read Witte’s story.
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