Contributed

The Moore District and the Occoneechee Council of the Boy Scouts of America have announced that George H. Atherholt is this year's recipient of the Distinguished Citizen Award.

A dinner and ceremony honoring Atherholt will be held Friday, Feb. 22, at the Country Club of North Carolina.

At age 94, Atherholt is a "remarkable man who continues to have the energy of people many years his junior," a news release said. The retiree, who lives with his wife, Sheila, at Pine Knoll in Southern Pines, has been active as a community volunteer during his retirement years.

He served as president of both the Chamber of Commerce and the Salvation Army in York, Pa., and was president of the Steel Club of Baltimore. He was a district governor of Rotary, was president of two Rotary clubs, and received a presidential citation from Rotary.

He was the chairman of the United Way in York, Pa., and has served as a board member of Junior Achievement in York, Pa., and in Moore County.

Atherholt has been involved in the Boy Scouts of America for 83 years. He is a recipient of the Boy Scout Silver Antelope and Silver Beaver medals. He presently serves on the board of the Occoneechee Council and the executive board of the Southern Region Boy Scouts. He also serves as an adviser for Boy Scout Troop 7 in Pinehurst, attending weekly meetings in support of the local Scout troop.

He is currently the chair of FirstHealth's Institutional Review Board, and serves on the ethics, facilities and advanced directives committees for the hospital. He also currently serves as a volunteer for Meals on Wheels and the N.C. Adopt-A-Highway litter cleanup program.

In addition, he is a director of the Sons of the Revolution, a 55-year Mason and a Shriner.

Atherholt went ashore in France on D-Day (June 14) as a first sergeant and got a battlefield commission to second lieutenant. He was called back for service during the Korean War, and later returned to civilian life as a captain in the artillery.

During his business career, he rose to the position of senior vice president of Edgcomb Steel Co. in York, Pa., and Philadelphia.

Atherholt is an active member of Community Presbyterian Church in Pinehurst and serves on the church's security committee and the property and grounds committee. He has four sons and a daughter. Two of his sons are Eagle Scouts.

Initiated in 2003, the Distinguished Citizen Award is the hallmark of recognition events for Boy Scouting in Moore County. Previous recipients include Dr. Bruce Warlick, Bill Samuels, Dr. Ward Oakley, George and (the late) Teena Little, Edward T. Taws Jr., Frank McNeill Sr., former Gov. James Holshouser, Don McKenzie, Don Van Roosen and Larry Caddell.

The award is given annually to a Moore County resident who exemplifies the Boy Scout Oath: "On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times; to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight."

Advance tickets for the Feb. 22 event can be purchased by calling Frank McNeill Jr., dinner chairman, at (910) 944-2329, or the Moore District Scout Office at (910) 986-3929.