My father never retired--he worked until he died at the young age of 73. Dad didn't know how he would fill idle time, so he kept working because it was all he knew.
If Dad were around today, I would reach out to him to manage volunteers at Generations Incorporated. He was a great "people person", with solid management skills and tremendous pride in his work. He owned a successful grocery store in our town, and he inspired and motivated his employees to get results every day.
Cash-strapped non-profit organizations could truly benefit by tapping into the growing numbers of retired and semi-retired persons who live in our communities. They can serve as volunteers to provide direct services and they can also serve in leadership capacities. Those who provide service can be most effective when they are well-supported, have clear expectations, good coordination, and feel appreciated. Often a busy organization doesn't have the staff capacity to provide this kind of support. What a great job for a volunteer!
Those who serve in leadership capacities (such as fundraising, marketing, management of volunteers, etc.) will need training in order to transfer the competencies that they have used in previous work. The potential return on investment for this kind of training could be huge.
