SUNY Potsdam Honors Deputy Mayor Ruth Garner, (Nearly) 99 Years Young, with New Civic Engagement Award

The State University of New York at Potsdam Honors Ruth Garner, as Longtime Village Official Nears her 99th Birthday

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SUNY Potsdam’s First-Year Seminar Series will honor Deputy Mayor Ruth Garner with the inaugural Civic Engagement Award, just in time for her 99th birthday.

POTSDAM, NY (11/10/2014)(readMedia)-- The State University of New York at Potsdam is proud to honor a very special community leader who inspires students, alumni, faculty and staff-Deputy Mayor Ruth Garner. SUNY Potsdam's First-Year Seminar Series will present its inaugural Civic Engagement Award to Garner next week, as she prepares to celebrate her 99th birthday.

Garner will accept the award and speak to first-year students on Monday, Nov. 17 at 4 p.m. in the Knowles Hall Multi-Purpose Room.

This event is free, and all are welcome to attend. Birthday cake will be served in honor of Garner's 99th birthday, which actually takes place the next day, on Tuesday, Nov. 18.

The SUNY Potsdam First-Year Seminar Series recently created the Civic Engagement Award, as a new way to honor individuals who make a difference in their communities, and inspire others to do the same.

Known for her tenacious, rambunctious spirit, Garner walked from Potsdam to Canton to raise awareness during the civil rights and anti-war movement in the late 1960s. A long-time advocate for people living with HIV/AIDS, she helped to bring the AIDS Memorial Quilt to the North Country.

Garner was the first woman to be elected to the Village of Potsdam Board of Trustees in 1973, and six years later was elected mayor, a role she has held twice, for a total of 16 years. She is still a trustee, and as she nears her 99th birthday, may well be the oldest elected official in the country.

In 2003, CBS included Garner in a "60 Minutes" story about senior citizens who keep working well past the retirement age. An animal lover, Garner got her very first tattoo -- a small shamrock -- in 2009 at the age of 93, to raise hundreds of dollars to support the Potsdam Humane Society.

She has also served on the board for the Potsdam Public Library, Renewal House and the St. Lawrence County Historical Society. Garner continues to serve as the co-chair of the Managing Local Government Conference, held annually at SUNY Potsdam.

For more information about this year's First-Year Seminar Series at SUNY Potsdam, visit www.potsdam.edu/studentlife/services/FirstYear/civicengagement.

Founded in 1816, and located on the outskirts of the beautiful Adirondack Park, The State University of New York at Potsdam is one of America's first 50 colleges. SUNY Potsdam currently enrolls approximately 4,300 undergraduate and graduate students. Home to the world-renowned Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam is known for its handcrafted education, challenging liberal arts and sciences core, excellence in teacher training and leadership in the performing and visual arts. Empowered by a culture of creativity, the campus community recently launched Take the Lead: The Campaign for Potsdam, which aims to raise $27 million by the College's bicentennial in 2016.

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