The Record

June 26, 2005

 

Retirees give new purpose to their lives after 60

By Jane Glenn Haas

Forget the endless boccie ball games, the daily rounds of golf, the wasted hours watching "I Love Lucy" reruns.

Boomers are writing a new definition of retirement, one that involves continued employment, meaningful volunteering, some playtime, plus a fresh approach to life after 60.

People know they will live longer and - if they have sufficient funds - they want the final third of their lives to have meaning and purpose, say gerontologists and experts on aging at a meeting here.

"Come to Mission Viejo [Calif.], and see the surge of volunteering as 'younger seniors' sign up to mentor students at [the local] middle school," says Nancy Herrmann, director of the Norman P. Murray Center.

"They are a new generation of seniors, and they want and need purpose in their lives."

Herrmann made her comments recently at the annual American Society on Aging meeting, where "civic engagement" has become an official study track.

Civic engagement is championed by Marc Freedman, head of San Francisco-based Civic Ventures, a non-profit dedicated to transforming the retirement for boomers.

"Civic engagement includes everything from volunteer activities to second careers that benefit the community to political activity," Freedman says. "It encourages people to think beyond the financial aspects of retirement.

"The coming generation defines success in this later phase of life through helping improve community lives, going beyond friends and family. Work will continue to be a prominent part of their lifestyle."

Freedman's conclusions are confirmed by a yearlong study by Ken Dychtwald of Age Wave Inc., which found 76 percent of boomers plan to keep working and reject the idea of a life of leisure in retirement.

"The number one choice is the ability to cycle between periods of work and leisure," Dychtwald said. "In fact, 56 percent of the more than 1,000 boomers we surveyed envision entirely new careers. The idea these people are writing new life chapters after 60 is extraordinary. These people want to be youthful longer and old shorter."

Many of the new old will work longer out of necessity or out of fear that they lack sufficient funds to quit, says Helen Dennis, a specialist in aging and employment based in Redondo Beach, Calif.

Orange County-based WomanSage, a non-profit organization for midlife women, also offers special-interest groups in topics ranging from workplace issues to retirement, says Marilyn Ditty, president of the WomanSage board and director of South County Senior Services.

"How do you just 'retire' today?" she asks. "We have corporate executives who retire from high-paying jobs and come to South County Senior Services to offer us their time and talents in fund-raising campaigns. They continually tell us what they want is something meaningful to do."