Joanne and Ron Hurst of Lawrence were presented with the 2007 Service to Mankind Award by the Lawrence Sertoma Club on Tuesday night at the Lawrence Country Club.

The list of past winners of the Lawrence Sertoma Club’s Service to Mankind Award may look long, but it’s not as long as the list of boards and commissions that Ron and Joanne Hurst have volunteered for.

Because of that, the longtime Lawrence couple made the list of Service to Mankind Award winners longer by earning the distinction this year.

It’s the third time two people have shared the award given annually by Lawrence’s chapter of the nationwide civic organization.

“Ron says that volunteerism is contagious: Once you start, it becomes a habit,” said Sandra Studley, chairwoman of the award selection committee. “Well, if community service is contagious, I hope we all catch it.”

Ron worked at Kansas University’s civil engineering and physics departments for 39 years, but still found the time to serve on various boards, including terms as president ofthe Bert Nash Center and Lawrence NAACP chapter.

Joanne, who worked for former governors John Carlin and Joan Finney, turned her attention toward helping to establish the Children’s Hour Nursery School and the Holcom Park Recreation Center, among other things.

For a couple busy enough with their jobs, they found time to collectively serve on more than 40 volunteer organizations.

“We’ve always felt it’s important and it’s part of our routine,” Joanne said.

She said the most rewarding volunteering she’s done was the eight years she served on the Lawrence Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees.

She served when LMH started planning its recent expansion.

“We were just beginning to discuss the expansion,” she said. “It’s overwhelming to see the growth of that building.”

Ron said there’s no slowing the couple’s interest in volunteering in the community, at least not for the foreseeable future.

“Right now,” he said, “that’s not part of the plan.”