Dismissal Riles Aarp Volunteers

The American Association of Retired Persons can point with pride to the efforts of its volunteers.

Unpaid volunteers instruct classes that enable older drivers to earn lower insurance rates. Volunteers help solve the mysteries of health care options. Volunteers assist the elderly with their taxes, and so forth and so on.

But increasingly AARP has experienced difficulty attracting quality volunteer leaders.

The problem, say many disgruntled volunteers, begins with paid staffers who are uncommunicative, unsupportive, and unappreciative. State and regional officials are quick to admonish, discipline or dump even the most talented, energetic, and dedicated of volunteer leaders who don’t adhere slavishly to the “lock-step” policies of AARP management, critics charge.

Some former volunteer leaders complain they were forced out in an effort to silence any who dare question or suggest improvements in operations of the giant advocacy organization, with 30 million-plus members.

If that is so, it was probably inevitable that the nation’s largest lobby and Frank Yuse of Spokane would part company.

But dismissal of Yuse as head of voter education in Eastern Washington has caused a major flap in the volunteer ranks. The former high school humanities teacher and career educator has long been a very energetic and visible spokesman, and, many testify, a highly effective and valuable volunteer leader.

“During the past eight years,” Judith Ross of Spokane wrote in a letter to AARP, “I have seen Frank at every public hearing that involved senior issues. His presence was always influential.

“He is very articulate and clearly understands the complexity of senior issues,” added Ross, community education coordinator for Aging & Long Term Care of Eastern Washington. “I have found him to be a passionate advocate and the best AARP has to offer in terms of volunteer commitment.

“I would think, at a time when volunteers are difficult to recruit, hard to retain, and almost impossible to educate, AARP made a huge mistake in not reappointing Frank Yuse. I would think AARP would value the diversity of its membership and reward the commitment that volunteers like Frank make to the organization.”

All with whom I have talked - those who know and worked with Yuse - voiced similar sentiments. All except AARP’s paid staff in Seattle. There, officials have various explanations for why Yuse was, in effect, fired.

“It’s kind of a technical thing,” John Peterson, this state’s top AARP official, told me. “Volunteers have a total of six years that they can be in the position Frank Yuse held. He tenured out.”

But the record suggests otherwise. Yuse occupied the position only two years - not six.

The paid executive in charge of Washington voter education, Betty Means, told me, “Frank’s term was over. It wasn’t anything more than that.”

Why was he not reappointed to a post which still stands vacant after several months? “That would be inappropriate for me to discuss,” Means said.

She did, however, emphasize that, “AARP is a nonpartisan organization. We do not endorse a candidate or take any kind of position for or against a candidate. Frank Yuse has believed we should change that policy.”

Marie Hindery, who resigned as volunteer head of voter education in Western Washington, said she and Yuse “experienced many of the same frustrations.

“But I burned my membership card and sent them the ashes,” fumes Hindery.

“They suppress what you say. You have to say exactly what they tell you to say. And if you challenge them the least little bit on anything, they just turn you off and turn their backs.”

Yuse feels misunderstood. “I’ve never pushed for partisanship,” he says. “But I do think AARP is ineffective.

“We ought to set forth the issues as clearly as possible, help members understand where their interests lie, publish voting records, and let voters take their pick,” he says. “That’s not asking too much of an advocacy organization. Is it?”

, DataTimes MEMO: Associate Editor Frank Bartel writes on retirement issues each Sunday. He can be reached with ideas for future columns at 459-5467 or fax 459-5482.

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Frank Bartel The Spokesman-Review