You’ve devoted all of your adult life to your job or jobs; your career. It sometimes required spending time away from your family, and now your children are adults and you’ve been missing quality time with grandchildren.
You’ve reached the Mecca of retirement and you want to make up for some lost time. At last, you can sit back and relax. Maybe take that tour of Ireland you have talked about for so long. Your dream may be a cross-country auto trip and an opportunity to spend time in other parts of the country you’ve only heard about from others.
Such undertakings may or may not keep you busy and fulfilled throughout your retirement years. If that is true, there is one source of satisfaction and fulfillment just down the street, across town or in your state. During your working life, you may not have had the time to become involved in community activities, volunteering as a member of civic organizations, service clubs or just reaching out to help neighbors in need. Even if retirement means moving to a new town or city, getting involved in your community, whether as a long-time resident or newcomer, is a great way to enhance the quality of your retirement years.
Senior Corps – Use Your Skills to Help the Community
One option, no matter what your circumstances, is through the Senior Corps. Whether you want to volunteer so you can put your lifetime skills to use or learn new ones, there is just about every demand you can think of among a multitude of Senior Corps programs. You may want to respond to natural disasters on a relief team, become a Foster Grandparent, help renovate homes or tutor disadvantaged youth as a RSVP Volunteer. The bottom line is making a positive impact on the lives of others. Qualified volunteers help save money for local organizations struggling to build resources to meet their respective missions.
Connect with your community, or someone else’s, for just a few hours here and there to up to 40 hours a week in the RSVP Program. You choose “how, where and how often,” and there will be orientation and training for whatever you do as a volunteer. You’ll even be covered by supplemental insurance while on duty.
Helping others may actually improve the quality of your life, possibly even your mental and physical health, as you proceed through your retirement years.
If you are 55 or older, the Senior Corps and its programs take care of the logistics for you. The Seniors Corps website provides a list of state offices of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) with links to all state offices and their contacts. That includes American Samoa, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico & Virgin Islands.