BREWER – AARP Maine honored 51 volunteers at a celebratory luncheon held at the Maritime Museum in Bath.

The prestigious volunteer award, the Andrus Award for Community Service, was presented to Gerry Robertson of Brewer, a dedicated AARP volunteer. Others awards were given for work on AARP strategic issues, service to the community, noteworthy projects for AARP’s consumer initiatives and all-around excellence of service.

The Andrus Award for Community Service, named after AARP’s founder, Dr. Ethel Percy Andrus, recognizes outstanding AARP volunteers who are making a powerful difference in their communities in ways that are consistent with AARP’s mission, vision and strategic direction.

“We’re thrilled to bestow upon Gerry Robertson the most celebrated volunteer award given by AARP,” said AARP Maine State Director Jud Dolphin. “Gerry spends an incredible amount of time and energy representing seniors across Maine. He is very deserving of this award.”

Gerry Robertson has a distinguished career of serving his community, state and nation. He is a native of Maine and attended Beal College, Wheaton College of Accounting, and the University of Maine. For 18 years he worked at Eastern Fine Paper as a purchasing agent. After retirement, he served as manager of the General Electric Co. Credit Union.

Robertson organized and served for 18 years as executive director of Bangor Housing Authority. Currently, he is the chairman of the board of directors of the housing authority.

In the community, Robertson has been president of the Eastern Agency on Aging for 20 years. For 22 years he has been a corporator of Eastern Maine Medical Center. He is a member of the citizens advisory committee for EMCC and a member of the board for the Brewer Economic Development Corp.

Robertson has been a long-term volunteer with AARP. He is a member of the executive council with AARP Maine and serves as the member for grass-roots outreach. He has volunteered in many capacities including state legislative committee, local and state coordinator of VOTE and AARP ambassador.

Robertson also served for 47 years as Brewer city councilor, 22 of those years as mayor. He also served a term in the Legislature.

“This year, Gerry was even named Citizen of the Year by the city of Brewer,” said Dolphin. “He is certainly a force to be reckoned with in the community. We are delighted to have Gerry on board as a volunteer and proud that he is our Andrus winner for 2005.”