AARP awards recognize 2 ‘hard working’ volunteers

Matt Bower
Posted 12/18/14

Two of Warwick’s hardest working volunteers were recently honored and recognized for their efforts at the 2014 Rhode Island AARP Andrus Award and Volunteer Recognition Luncheon held on Dec. 5 at …

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AARP awards recognize 2 ‘hard working’ volunteers

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Two of Warwick’s hardest working volunteers were recently honored and recognized for their efforts at the 2014 Rhode Island AARP Andrus Award and Volunteer Recognition Luncheon held on Dec. 5 at the West Valley Inn in West Warwick.

Charles H. Dress was selected as the 2014 recipient of the Ethel Percy Andrus Award for Outstanding Community Service and Verteal Patterson was selected as the 2014 recipient of the Volunteer Engagement Award.

“Ethel Percy Andrus was a retired teacher from California who got involved to help herself and others because teachers didn’t have benefits at the time,” Patterson said. “The awards are named after her.”

According to the community service award Dress received, “AARP’s commitment to community service can be traced back to the life and vision of our founder, Dr. Ethel Percy Andrus. From the beginning, her motto, ‘to serve, not to be served,’ has shaped our community service efforts at the national, state, and local levels.”

Dress said he feels humbled to be selected for the award.

“I never expected it. I volunteer because I enjoy getting involved,” he said. “When I was told about it, I said it’s the first time I’ve ever been speechless. It puts pressure on me to continue doing what I’m doing.”

Dress said after retiring in 2000, he began working at the Pilgrim Senior Center.

“Working and volunteering kept me going after I retired,” he said. “Volunteering gives me a reason to exist after retirement. When you reach retirement, you say, ‘What will I do tomorrow, now that I don’t have to get up and go to work?’ It’s a challenge to stay active and involved, but it’s been my credo all these years.”

Dress mentored kids in Warwick and got involved with state legislature issues before joining AARP, “and it’s grown from there.”

A former human resources executive, Dress has kept himself busy in his retirement with many volunteer opportunities.

Dress is a member of AARP Rhode Island’s State Legislative Committee and is an advocacy volunteer for AARP@TheStateHouse.

“Charles has volunteered for many AARP Rhode Island Community Outreach events such as Backpack Celebration RI and manning the phones for our Tele-Town Hall events,” reads the program bio. “He was an especially fitting choice for the ‘Life Reimagined’ panel during the International Tennis Hall of Fame Tournament Week, contributing his special outlook on the benefits of tennis and keeping active.”

More than a longtime volunteer at the International Tennis Hall of Fame Tournament Week, Dress is an avid tennis player and coach, works part-time at Tennis Rhode Island in East Providence and Warwick, and is a member of the United States Tennis Association.

Patterson said she was very happy and pleased to receive the Volunteer Engagement Award.

“I try to do a lot for the community and be involved and bring news to the people,” she said. “This is the second time I received the volunteer award. The best part about it this time was that I received a citation from the mayor for my work in the community; it meant a lot.”

Patterson said started volunteering at the Pilgrim Senior Center with the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) in 2001 and has also worked with the Department of Elderly Affairs “and doing things to keep me going and assist people with knowing where they can get help.”

In addition to membership at the Pilgrim Senior Center and RSVP, Patterson’s community involvement also includes a seat on the Warwick Mayor’s Commission on Aging.

According to her bio in the program from the award luncheon, “She is an ambassador encouraging people to volunteer in the true spirit of the Ethel Percy Andrus story of how AARP began.”

Patterson is also an active member of the AARP Rhode Island State Legislative Committee “and is the first to volunteer for community events.”

Patterson said volunteering can be fun because it gives you a chance to meet a lot of people.

“I don’t always have the information they’re looking for, but I can point them in the right direction,” she said. “Volunteering gives you something to do and something to look forward to, and it keeps you aware of what’s going on in the world and in your community.”

Perhaps the best example of both Patterson and Dress giving back to their community is their establishment of a local AARP Community Action Group “that engages Warwick residents in lively discussions and civic debates” after the AARP Warwick Chapter closed its doors.

“We established the Warwick AARP Community Action Group to get more people to come out and get involved,” Dress said. “A lot of people feel their one voice doesn’t mean anything and this is a way to show them it does.”

Dress said there are a tremendous amount of seniors in Rhode Island that have no idea about where to go and where they can call if they have questions about things.

“Vertie is out there and visible to bring information to the people and facilities,” he said of his friend and co-founder.

Dress said the local AARP group has held a few presentations at the Pilgrim Senior Center and the Buttonwoods Community Center, including a meet and greet for candidates running for office in the recent election.

“That was held at Buttonwoods and we had a big turnout,” Dress said. “Then we held another on people knowing what they want their last days to be like, how and where they want to be buried. It provided those who came a person or place to call if they had questions.”

Dress said he and Patterson are in the process of planning a meeting in January called the Winner’s Circle, in which they will invite all the winning candidates from the election to come and talk about what they promised in their campaign and how they’re going to follow through on that.

“A lot of people don’t want to know about what’s going on and they don’t pay attention to the news,” Patterson said. “We encourage people to get involved and contact their state representatives and senators. Let them know what you would like to see happen with bills, whether you want them passed or not passed.”

When it came to awarding the Ethel Percy Andrus Award for Outstanding Community Service, Patterson said she was told it was a close call between herself and Dress, and he ended up getting the extra vote that put him over the top.

“I have to say I’m glad that he won it because he’s out there more than I am,” she said of her friend.

Patterson said another reason she was glad Dress won the award is because sometimes she can’t find the right words when it comes to speaking in front of a large audience.

“You had better start practicing your speech because next year you’re winning it,” Dress told his friend.

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