Honoring Champions of Healthy Aging at the 61st Annual Older Americans Recognition Day Awards

On May 29, 2026, outstanding older adults whose dedication and spirit inspire communities across L.A. County were honored at the 61st annual Older Americans Recognition Day (OARD) Awards.

Hosted by the L.A. County Aging & Disabilities Department (AD) in partnership with the L.A. County Board of Supervisors and the L.A. County Commission for Older Adults (LACCOA), the event was held during Older Americans Month (OAM) and celebrated older adults whose service, leadership, and compassion are making a lasting difference in communities throughout Los Angeles County.

This year’s theme, “Age Well: Champion Your Health,” highlighted the importance of prevention, wellness, and personal responsibility as essential elements of healthy aging. Each honoree reflected that message, not only by prioritizing their own well-being, but by inspiring others through service, leadership, and everyday acts of kindness.

Take Elpidia Turpin of the Santa Clarita Valley Community Center, for example. Since 2014, she has welcomed new members into the center’s art, sewing, and quilting clubs, always with a smile and a helping hand, according to her nominators.

When asked what the award meant to her, Turpin replied, “I feel so excited because it’s my first time. It’s new for me.”

For Turpin, aging well is a daily practice. “I do a lot of exercise. I go to the gym, and I go to the senior center for tai chi and yoga.” Her enthusiasm for community and welcoming spirit have made the center a warmer, more inviting place.

Laird McClure, a familiar face at the LA LGBT Center’s Senior Services, was also honored for his dedication to helping others. Each week, he welcomes hundreds of older adults to the center, helping them access services such as laundry, showers, and daily meals.

According to Gerry Walker, the LA LGBT Center‘s Associate Director of Participant Engagement and Equity, McClure greets everyone with empathy and humor.

“Whether you’re a 90-year-old donor who lives out in the [Hollywood] Hills or a 52-year-old homeless person, Laird sees you and makes it his purpose to recognize you and get you engaged in ways that you may not have thought you’d engage with us,” Walker said.

For McClure, aging well goes beyond physical and mental health. It also means finding purpose through volunteer service.

“To be seen,” McClure reflected, “that’s important. For so long, older adults are not seen. The most important thing I do is make sure they’re acknowledged.”

Another OARD honoree, Barbara Johnson, embodies that same spirit. A volunteer instructor at the Altadena Senior Center, Johnson has been leading strength training, tai chi, and yoga classes since she was 65 years old. Now 84, she continues to teach several days a week despite losing her home and everything she owned in the Eaton Fire in January 2025.

For Johnson, aging well means “eating properly, exercising, and helping others.” Her classes include participants in their 90s, proving that fitness and connection have no age limit.

“It was very unexpected,” Johnson said of receiving the award, “because I’m just doing what I’ve always done.”

In addition to remarks from LACCOA President Ted Smith, attendees also heard prerecorded video messages from all five County supervisors. Keynote speaker Tia Delaney-Stewart, Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the Alzheimer’s Association California Southland Chapter, reflected on the importance of healthy aging and community.

She emphasized that healthy aging includes physical, emotional, and mental well-being, and that access to resources, early detection, and community support are all essential.

“Today’s celebration declares that older adults are not separate from the future. Rather, they are central to it,” Delaney-Stewart said, urging everyone to “be champions for change” and to reimagine aging through a lens of humanity, equity, and belonging.

Director Maral Karaccusian reinforced that message, reminding attendees that “this day is dedicated to you all. Eat, network, join each other. Thank you for your commitment to community.” She also emphasized the importance of building strong support networks as L.A. County’s older adult population continues to grow.

The stories shared throughout the day served as a reminder that healthy aging is about more than physical well-being. It is about staying connected, giving back, and finding purpose at every stage of life. That message is also at the heart of AD’s “Age Well: Champion Your Health” video series, which features older adults from across Los Angeles County sharing what aging well means to them.