ANNAPOLIS, Md. , Oct. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Bruce Adams of Bethesda, Maryland is being honored selected by AARP Maryland with the 2024 AARP Andrus Award for Community Service, the Association's most prestigious and visible state volunteer award for community service.
Named for AARP's founder, Ethel Percy Andrus , the award recognizes an outstanding leader whose deep commitment to volunteerism and legacy of accomplishments leave a deep and meaningful impact in the community, while inspiring others to do the same. For decades, Adams championed community service, mentorship, and youth development in the Baltimore-Washington region. In 1998, he co-founded the Bethesda Community Base Ball Club to create Shirley Povich Field, home of the Bethesda Big Train, and raise funds to improve youth baseball fields in underserved communities.
The Bethesda Big Train, an amateur summer baseball team Adams helped establish, has become a vital part of the area, providing college players the chance to develop their skills and gain professional exposure. The team plays in the Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League, which Adams founded in 2005.
Since then, league alumni have been drafted nearly 400 times, including the Toronto Blue Jay's Brett Cecil , who was the first Ripken alum to play in the Major League All-Star Game. Proceeds from Big Train games support local youth fields, and the team is heavily involved in charitable efforts, including the Roberto Clemente Day of Service in support of.