Scott Whalen checks out the cooking lobsters Saturday just before the third and final lobster dinner during the Auburn Lobster Festival in downtown Auburn. Whalen was named Citizen of the Year by the Auburn Business Association on Wednesday evening. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal file

AUBURN— The Auburn Business Association named Gerald “Scott” Whalen the city’s Citizen of the Year during a ceremony Wednesday evening.

Whalen was ushered into the Hilton Garden Inn under false pretenses, in order to maintain the secret of his new title, but was greeted with fanfare and applause from well over 100 people.

Whalen was credited for his long history of volunteerism, sponsorships and commitment to the community. When he isn’t working as a distributor for McKee Food Little Debbie, he is manning the ticket booths or snack shack for Edward Little High School sports games or working various fundraisers for the Red Eddies. He also leads the Lewiston-Auburn Exchange Club, volunteers in various Auburn Police Activities League events, and volunteers groundskeeping at the Auburn Suburban Baseball Complex. In May 2017, he was even awarded the Community Service Award for the Lewiston-Auburn Sports Hall of Fame.

Many family and friends attended, including Whalen’s wife Louise; son Jerry, his fiancé Joanna and children Aiden, Liam and Josie; and daughter Kayla and her daughter, Sophia. Before Whalen made his entrance, Jerry said “it’s about time” he won the award. Kayla said she wasn’t surprised at all.

“We’ve always joked about him getting it because he’s done so much for this community and the high school, middle school, rec leagues,” Jerry said.

“It makes me feel good because he does a lot,” said Sophia, 13. “I’m surprised he hasn’t already gotten it.”

Gerald “Scott” Whalen is greeted at the door Wednesday by his son, Jerry Whalen, and his grandchildren, Sophia and Liam, at the Hilton Garden Inn. Whalen was named Auburn’s Citizen of the Year in a surprise ceremony. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal

Louise said she knew a couple weeks before everyone else, though it wasn’t official at the time, so she didn’t want to break the news immediately. Keeping the secret wasn’t so difficult until it came time to tell the kids.

“When I told Jerry, I said, ‘do you have any little ears around?’ No? Well, guess what,” Louise said.

“Yeah, (then) she said … “You can’t tell anyone,’” Kayla laughed. “And I was like good luck with that.”

Louise recruited family friends John and Michelle Higgins to help craft a plan to get Whalen through the doors. The Higgins’ told Whalen they won a raffle for dinner and a comedy show at the Hilton and wanted to invite them. But when the two couples pulled into the parking lot, Louise said Whalen recognized a couple cars in the lot.

“Then he looked at us and said, ‘I’m not going in,’” Louise said. “And John Higgins said, ‘you’re going in.'”

As part of the award ceremony, Mayor Jason Levesque presented Whalen with the Key to the City and Maine House Rep. Laurel Libby provided compliments from the legislature. The offices of U.S. Sen. Susan Collins and U.S. Rep. Jared Golden also provided compliments with a letter of recognition and the gifting of a U.S. flag. The Edward Little High School a capella group performed the national anthem to open the event.

“I’m elated,” Whalen said. “There are a lot of friends here I haven’t seen in a while. Everybody in this room? You surround yourself with good people and good things happen and they’re all part of the things I’m involved in.”