Positively 50+: One ‘smart driver’ at a time, local volunteer among best in the nation

SALT LAKE CITY — Every year, the American Association of Retired Persons in Utah honors a local volunteer who embodies the spirit of service. And we want to introduce you to him in this Positively 50+ report.

Driving in Utah is tough. Some surveys suggest we’re the worst in the country. But whether or not that’s actually the case, we do know that getting older makes it that much harder for all of us to get behind the wheel safely.

“We’re aging much better than our parents did, and so we need to keep active, keep up with changes, keep current with what’s going on,” Eric Wollesen, chief trainer and data manager with AARP driver safety, said.

Wollesen has taught a lot of courses on driver safety through AARP. He knows his stuff. So when he started sharing numbers like 2,080 students taught, 295 total classes, 58 last year alone, you know he had to be talking about something or someone special.

“Well it seems like to be like… wow… you don’t think about it at the time you’re doing it.”

Lloyd Blackburn, the Andrus Award for Community Service winner, is as shocked as anyone that his pace for teaching others over the last decade-plus has landed him at #2 in the country among AARP’s active instructors as far as number of courses taught.

“I’m really pleased to be able to do this because it’s been a major factor for me to do something in my retirement,” Blackburn told KSL TV.

Blackburn said he wants people to keep driving as long as they can. So he’s using his professional know-how from a long career as an aerial cartographer – yes, someone who literally charted the way for others to follow – to help senior drivers see down the road.

“I keep telling them there’s no such thing as a stupid question just the one that’s not been asked,” Blackburn said.

So we asked, what’s it take to be like Blackburn?

“We’ve got a lot of people who are sort of interested, but we’ve just got to get them into the training — he’s got to be a great example – absolutely,” Paulette Welch, AARP State Coordinator for the program, said.

And Blackburn is that great example of selflessness that all starts with taking the first step.

“Our volunteers are very precious because they give up some of their time, and some of their travels, and some of their retirement to teach the course to people in their communities,” Wollesen said.

This year, for 2024, volunteer Lloyd Blackburn is the AARP ‘Andrus Award for Community Service’ recipient.

“It’s really a phenomenal thing to know I’m getting through to people,” Blackburn said.

For more information, visit AARP.org, and the AARP Utah pages on Facebook and X.