Volunteers

Reinventing Retirement

By Charlene Israel
CBN News

CWNews.com–-For many people, retirement means plans for travel or to spend time on their hobbies.

But many folks today don't see their golden years as a time for fading into the sunset. They're using this time in their lives to make a more lasting impact.

To the naked eye, a special construction site in Orlando, Florida looks like any other. But if you look a little closer you'll notice something different about the workers. They're all well past retirement-age.

In fact, the average age of the workers is 72. What's even more amazing – they're working for free and they are constructing a 10,000 sq. ft. building.

“All the design work, all the architecture, all the engineering, all the ground preparation-- is the work of volunteers,” said Bruce Smith, president of Wycliffe Associates.

More than 150 volunteers live in an R.V. park at the Wycliffe compound in Orlando, Fla.

They're working on the construction site or serving in the offices. They've come from across America, donating their golden years to help the ministry fulfill its mission of translating the Bible into every spoken language.

“We knew that when we retired we didn't want to just do shuffling and playing golf. We felt that we just had too much energy and life in us and that we wanted to do things for the Lord until he says, 'no more,'” one volunteer said.

“The first 60 years God blessed me with a lot of work, a lot of experiences, a lot of challenges, and pretty much took care of a silly sinner for 60 years,” another volunteer said. “And I thought the opportunity came to pay Him back, to dedicate the rest of my life in service to Him and my wife and thought this would be the best way to finish.”

This volunteer labor has saved Wycliffe about $3 million in construction costs. That's only fitting because this building is the new volunteer mobilization center for Wycliffe Associates.

From here, the ministry aims to recruit, train and send thousands of volunteers to provide practical support for missionaries overseas.

“Now many of these volunteers are gonna say, ‘Well, I'm not a translator, I'm not a linguist. I'm an accountant, I'm a teacher, I'm a plumber, I'm a carpenter,’” Smith said. “That's great, because those are exactly the people that we need.

Smith says the contributions of volunteers are invaluable to helping Wycliffe Bible translators do their jobs.

“If they don't step up, then they have to ask this absurd question that I hear around the world, which is, 'Who is the best translator to fix the car? Who is the best linguist to do the accounting?'” Smith said.

But with 3,000 volunteer positions unfilled worldwide, they might ask another question: Where will they find the people they need?

Smith thinks he has the answer: baby boomers.

“The baby boom generation is actually one of the first generations in the history of the world that is retiring without being physically worn out and exhausted,” he said. “They're retiring younger, they're healthier, they're wealthier, and they're actually a very idealistic generation.”

As baby boomers begin to reach retirement age, Smith sees a huge pool of potential volunteers. The first wave of boomers began turning 60 last year. About 76 million will reach retirement age over the next 20 years.

"We're absolutely targeting them directly in our sights,” he said. “Statistics I read tell me every day 12,500 boomers are turning 60. So that means if 20 percent of them are Christians that means that every day there's 2,500 new prospects of people that could be part of the Bible translation team."

Volunteers who have reached retirement-age have a lot to offer. Most are living off their pensions so they don't have to raise support. And they have acquired a lifetime of skills and experience.

“When you go to a generation like the boomers or the builders, to people who've spent their whole life in business and industry and providing professional services, they bring all of that experience that someone else paid for,” Smith said. “They bring (that) to work the very first day.”

Couples like Bob and Cynthia Myers. After Bob retired from the Air Force, they sold their lakeside home in Washington to serve Wycliffe Translators in Papua New Guinea.

Bob ran a store that provided western goods and food for about 600 missionary families. He said the ministry extends far beyond meeting practical needs.

“The people on those foreign fields have such respect for the folks that come over to help them in that area. They really appreciate it, they really need it,” he said. “They know they need it, many of them. And you can fulfill bringing part of God's kingdom into their life by going.”

The couple had to return to the United States after Cynthia became ill. Now they plan to serve at the Orlando headquarters because they believe that retirement or not, service to the Lord is a lifelong commitment.

“People can easily take the road of leisure, sitting home having a fire going in the fireplace, having a very safe environment around them,” Cynthia said. “But you know, I think that accepting the truths that God has presented to us in the Bible with the challenge to go out and tell others about Christ means taking a risk.”

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