19 Reasons AARP Is Proud of 2019

It’s been a busy year at AARP, and while our actions speak for themselves, we figure it isn’t bragging to share accomplishments we feel good about. Our Fraud Watch Network has helped millions of people avoid scams. We began voter education programs that’ll run though the 2020 election. And we had fun with programs like Movies for Grownups. Here are just a few of the things we did this year that we hope make you proud to be a member of AARP.

1. AARP’s Stop Rx Greed campaign: Launched in March, led the charge for 39 new state laws and regulations to curtail drug costs, and it’s pushing for measures Congress is now considering.

2. Campaign Forums: AARP members got a chance to size up 17 presidential candidates in Iowa.

3. Fighting Fraud: The AARP Fraud Watch Network has become a leader in preventing scams. The Fraud Resource Center has given more than 5 million visitors tips on how to spot scams.

4. Movies for Grownups: The program expanded to more than 1,200 free film screenings, attended by more than 135,000 people.

5. AARP Resume Advisor: The program offers members résumé-writing services at a deep discount.

6. Social Security Resource Center: More than 5 million people visited the Social Security Resource Center on aarp.org in 2019.

7. The Global Council on Brain Health: A council report exposed many “brain boosting” supplements as bogus.

8. Day of Service: At our Celebration of Service event in September, volunteers packed more than a million meals.

9. AARP Studios: AARP launched several video series, including Road to Wizdom, Fishing for Advice, Letters From D-Day narrated by Bryan Cranston and School of Talk, and won Google’s Silver Creator Award.

10. Member Publications — The Bulletin, AARP The Magazine and aarp.org won scores of writing and design awards in 2019.

11. AARP Rewards: Our newly updated loyalty plan has hundreds of good-for-you activities.

12. Fitness Parks: In collaboration with FitLot, AARP opened outdoor fitness parks in 15 states; there are plans to build similar parks in every state.

13. Prepare to Care Guides: AARP distributed 2 million of the booklets that are designed to help with the challenges of caring for a family member or friend.

14. Local grants: AARP spent $1.6 million to fund 159 “quick action” projects in cities to improve housing and transportation.

15. AARP Foundation Tax-Aide: The program served more than 2.5 million taxpayers, and 35,000 volunteers helped secure $1.4 billion in income tax refunds.

16. Volunteers: AARP Foundation Experience Corps spent 386,395 hours helping more than 24,000 students improve reading skills.

17. Oregon Saves: The program, passed with the support of AARP, marked its two-year anniversary with over $25.5 million in retirement savings.

18. Disrupt Aging: We joined with Getty Images to launch the Disrupt Aging Collection, with more than 1,600 photos challenging aging stereotypes.

19. Caregiving Campaign: AARP fought for passage of 139 new laws or regulations that helped the cause of 38 million family caregivers.