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A self-proclaimed "friendly guy," a couple who never slow down, a woman who volunteers in some way every week and a tireless advocate for the aging are Montgomery County's newest members of the Maryland Senior Citizens Hall of Fame.

The five were inducted into the Hall of Fame, designed to honor the state's seniors for their extraordinary contributions to their communities, at a ceremony in October. The Maryland Senior Citizens Hall of Fame inducts 50 worthy seniors from across the state each year, according to Parker Koons, president of the organization said. The Hall of Fame was founded in 1986, and is based in Towson.

Working toward a ‘suburbia for the elderly'

By 1986, Bethesda resident Austin Heyman had accomplished what most people would consider a fulfilling career: degrees from Harvard and Johns Hopkins universities, a certificate from the Academy of International Law at The Hague, and a 20-year run at the United States Agency for International Development.

Even Heyman himself couldn't have known that his legacy in Montgomery County was only beginning to grow.

After leaving USAID, Heyman, now 78, founded Interages, a nonprofit created to build bridges between people of different ages and cultures. He was twice appointed as a delegate to the White House Conference on Aging. In his most recent position, he serves as a senior fellow in the county's Office of Community Partnerships, assisting County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) on all things having to do with aging.

And for his efforts, he was inducted into the Maryland Senior Citizens Hall of Fame, a group founded to recognize the good work of seniors across the state.

"I have worked a long time to try and make our community a better place," he said. "It wasn't all me though; I really have been blessed over the years."

Heyman credits his upbringing in Manhattan—and having wonderful grandparents—with his interest in senior issues. In addition to his induction to the hall of fame, Heyman was also awarded the group's GERI Award, given to inductees for extraordinary humanitarian community service, said Koons.

Heyman said he wasn't even aware of the hall of fame until a friend was nominated a few years ago. He was honored by the recognition, but said things still need to be done to help the seniors in the county.

"Seniors are one of the only naturally renewable resources in the country," Heyman said with a laugh. "But suburbia was not made for the elderly, and we need to find a way to fix that."

‘I can't believe I was one'

Kenneth E. Huff may be retired, but the 80-year-old White Oak resident keeps busy by serving his church and county youth.

He was inducted into the Maryland Senior Citizens Hall of Fame for his more than 50 years of service to St. Luke Lutheran Church in Silver Spring and his extensive involvement with the nonprofit Montgomery County Public Schools Retirees Association.

A self-described "people person," Huff said he is the head usher during St. Luke's first service Sunday mornings and has been ushering at the church for more than five decades. He is also a greeter and serves on the music and worship committee.

"I'm a friendly guy, so greeting people and ushering is a perfect fit for me," he said.

Over the years, he has been a member of the church's council and also ran a youth bowling league.

Huff said he believes it is important to help children in and out of the classroom, which is why he has stayed involved in causes that help young people. As a member of the Retirees Association, one of his most important tasks, he said, is serving on the organization's scholarship committee.

"That's our future," Huff said of the students he interviews for the scholarships. "The kids that we're educating are going to decide what happens next in this country."

Before retiring in 1987, Huff served in several teaching and administrative positions in the county's school system. He began his career in 1951 at the former Takoma Park Junior High School teaching English and social studies. Huff said he only taught at the school for six months before being called away to serve in the U.S. Army for two years during the Korean War, but he resumed teaching when he returned home.

His last position was as assistant principal at Earle B. Wood Middle School in Aspen Hill, but Huff said he has been called out of retirement about a dozen times to help fill in as an administrator at various schools.

He said he is also a longtime member of the North White Oak Civic Association and a member of the Montgomery County Coin Club, which supports the county's Boys and Girls Clubs.

Richard C. Ahlberg, a fellow member of the Montgomery County Public Schools Retirees Association and St. Luke's, said he nominated Huff for a spot in the Hall of Fame because of his commitment to community. The retirees association also supported the nomination.

"I felt he deserved it based on his character, of course, and his wonderful volunteer work," the Rockville resident said.

Huff said he feels "very honored" to join the ranks of the Maryland Senior Citizens Hall of Fame.

"I'm tickled to death," he said. "I can't believe I was one of the ones selected, but I'm very happy they picked me."

‘Not a moment when

we're not busy'

Ken and Larocca Jones are always on the go.

Parties, traveling the world or riding old, refurbished trains, the couple of 17 years enjoy being out of the house.

"We are never idle," said Ken Jones, 90, of Gaithersburg. "There's not a moment when we're not busy."

But the couple took time out of their busy schedule on Oct. 22 for the induction dinner as new members of the Maryland Senior Citizens hall of Fame in Glen Burnie.

The Joneses said they were surprised to find out that they had been selected for the Hall of Fame. Larocca Jones, 79, said they feel honored to be inducted and "don't plan on slowing down with volunteering."

Aside from volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, Faith United Methodist Church in Rockville and the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, the Joneses are active volunteers in local political campaigns.

And it's the one thing the two do not agree on.

"I'm the chairman for the Democratic Party's 28th Precinct," Ken said as he showed off a handwritten Christmas card he received from former President Jimmy Carter this year. "I just try to keep her from the lies the Republicans tell about all kinds of things."

His wife, chair of the Republican Party group at Asbury Methodist Village in Gaithersburg, where they live, said the two have a good time joking about their political views. Ken said he was a Republican until he was 21 years old.

"That's when he went wrong," Larocca joked.

‘It's our responsibility

to give back'

Dr. Joyce A.M. Thomas says she's had a busy life. But now that she's retired, will she kick off her shoes, sit back and relax?

"It's still busy, but it's also exciting," said Thomas, 73, who lives in the Colesville area of Silver Spring. "...It's our responsibility to give back in some kind of way.

That's what leisure life is: volunteering, graduating to a new career."

"What is your passion, now that you have the time?" she asks of her peers.

Thomas retired in 1995 after working 30 years as an educator in Maryland, most recently as assistant superintendent of Prince George's County Public Schools. But rather than revel in her retirement, free of night meetings or angry parents, Thomas rededicated herself. She has continued educating students, teaching second-graders how to read through the Interages tutoring program in Wheaton and helping high school students prepare for the Standardized Achievement Test.

But she also works with the last demographic most seniors usually think to help: seniors.

Through Senior Leadership Montgomery, Thomas meets with seniors throughout the county, alerting the needy residents of what services are available to them and getting the others involved in volunteer work and valuable ways to spend their retirement.

"We try to make Montgomery County not only the best place to work and live, but also the best place to retire," Thomas said.

Even Thomas's hobbies — writing poetry, gardening and knitting — are integrated into her volunteer work educating students, working at Brookside Gardens in Wheaton and knitting blankets for soldiers and the needy.

"I'm doing some kind of volunteer work every single week," she said recently after a rare week off from volunteering that she spent on a Mediterranean cruise. "It's good for us to get up in the morning and have a schedule."