THE CONNECTION BETWEEN LIFELONG LEARNING AND MEANINGFUL COMMUNITY SERVICE

THE CONNECTION BETWEEN LIFELONG LEARNING AND MEANINGFUL COMMUNITY SERVICE
by Nancy Merz Nordstrom - BB[KC] Lifelong Learning Columnist

The coming wave of Boomers are the “rebels with a cause” who brought enormous change to society in the 1960s and 1970s. Many of them, it is expected, will look to continue their pioneering social efforts into their later years.

The current population of older adults, most from the “Greatest Generation,” are already demonstrating their strong commitment to society by engaging in a wide range of civic endeavors. So, with that being said, let’s examine the connection between lifelong learning and meaningful community service-how lifelong learners get involved and help society better serve us all.

Lifelong learning, combined with meaningful community service, so engages all your senses that it produces a natural “high,” a feeling so unique and exquisite that you will find yourself looking for other ways to keep that exuberance a permanent fixture in your “After 50” years.
Meaningful community service, however, is different for each person. It’s all about engaging in whatever endeavor makes you feel complete and useful. It’s all about whatever activity enriches and stimulates you life.

Whatever it means to you, however, you can be sure that by using your wisdom and experience, you can soar to greater heights and deliver even greater impact in whatever project you undertake. Volunteers routinely encounter new perspectives and ideas that challenge as much as they enlighten. Your involvement in meaningful community service will help add yet another facet to your lifelong learning quest.

A 2008 estimate by the Independent Sector says that the dollar value for volunteer work is $20.25 an hour. Given that number, can you imagine what an incredible resource the 76 million Baby Boomers will be to our society, if only a modest number of them engage in community service work?

If that’s the case, than what this generation of older adults will give back to society far outweighs what they will take out, thereby negating the doomsday economic predictions of what the retirement of the Baby Boomers might mean to our society.

To set the stage for the further exploration of lifelong learning and community service, in coming columns we’ll give you concrete examples of how lifelong learners engage in meaningful volunteerism. We’ll also explore the many aspects of community service, and give you resources to help you decide how community service can fit into your life and your goal of being a complete lifelong learner.

About Nancy Merz Nordstrom
Nancy is the author of “Learning Later, Living Greater: The Secret for Making the Most of Your After-50 Years,” published by Sentient Publications, Boulder, CO; ISBN #1-59181-047-7 (available at http://www.amazon.com/)

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She is a frequent consultant to news organizations and outlets eager to discuss the redefinition of retirement for the Baby Boomer generation. Nancy is on the faculty of Computer School for Seniors (http://www.cs4seniors/) and blogs at http://www.computersavvyseniors.blogspot.com/, among others. She is one of lifelong learning's preeminent experts. Her website can be found at http://www.learninglater.com/ You may email Nancy at: learninglater@comcast.net

Nancy is a member of our Boomer Authority community of experts.