By Fran Sisson / OWL - The Gateway chapter of OWL, the Voice of Midlife and Older Women, is seeking sponsors for a timely symposium for men and women who are pre-retirees or already retired. Along with OWL, the planning group includes representatives from Washington University School of Social Work, St. Louis Community College, Meramec Campus and Our Second Act, Inc.
When we talk about what leads to a sense of well-being in the years traditionally considered retirement years, we think of physical health, economic security, friends and family. But quality of life in the second half is more than this. Finding happiness, fulfillment and meaning past the middle years is the challenge we want to address in the symposium “What Are You Doing With the Rest of Your Life?” is planned to take place November 6, 2010.
With increased longevity, traditional retirement is already changing. Many people will live 20 to 30 years after reaching 65 and there will be many more of them as this group is expected to double between now and 2030.
The goal of the symposium is to open attendees’ minds to the many possibilities for making the second half a rewarding and significant period of time in their lives. Specifically, they will a) learn about re-wiring themselves for “encore careers” b) identify which activities are meaningful to them and bring a sense of purpose, c) identify what drives them, d) leave the symposium with an action plan on how to get there.
To connect people with community resources that can help them reach these objectives, our goal is to create a website for people seeking new careers, meaningful volunteer work, learning opportunities or other ways of adding value and meaning to the second half of life.
The symposium will be highlighted by a nationally-known speaker, the co-author of the book “Don’t Retire –Rewire” (www.dontretirerewire.com). She is Jeri Sedlar, and she has agreed to keynote the symposium and lead some of the sessions at a rate greatly reduced from her ordinary speaker’s fee. We believe that it is crucial to have someone of her caliber to set the bar high. Other presenters will be drawn from the St. Louis community.