Sandy and Fred Robinson went right back into the classroom after retirement. But not to pick up a second language or learn new computer skills, like many retirees might.
These two 60-somethings, who split their time between homes in Palm Desert and San Diego, spend part of their golden years working with schoolchildren. Why would they devote their much-deserved spare time to kids, after having raised four of their own and working in the school system until they were 60 years old?
“Just the love of working with children, especially younger ones,” says Sandy Robinson, who, along with Fred, volunteers in their grandson Tyler’s kindergarten classroom once a week.
“They really have a hunger for learning — especially with this teacher,” she says. “Their eyes are just looking at her and drinking in everything she has to say. We love learning and teaching.”
The Robinsons aren’t unique in their choice of retirement activities. The face of the senior volunteer is changing as people live longer, stay healthier and want more to do with their time than hobbies and crafts.
“You have to have some fun, and exercise is important also, but you have to keep your mind alive too,” says Gordon Burgett, who has written 23 books, including “How to Create Your Own Super Second Life: What Are You Going To Do With Your Extra 30 Years?”
“People really want meaning and purpose in their lives,” adds Burgett, 63, who lives and works in Santa Maria. “And they usually can get meaningful activity by staying close to what they already know.”
That’s why a number of people in the Jewish community volunteer at local agencies such as Jewish Family and Children’s Services or aid such organizations as Volunteers for Israel, helping out at military bases and hospitals in the Jewish state.
Working with kids is definitely what the Robinsons know best. Sandy Robinson graduated with a nursing degree in 1959 and worked in a hospital for many years. But she was most comfortable and happy as a school nurse, which is what she did for her last 20 working years in Lake Arrowhead. Fred Robinson taught for 36 years before he and Sandy retired and moved to Southern California to be closer to their children and grandchildren. He loves helping the children with craft projects and reading to them.
“He has a great voice,” says his wife.
But not everyone has the direction and skills that the Robinsons have. What if you don’t know what to do after retirement?
Christy Langan has a few ideas. Langan, executive director of the Volunteer Center of San Diego County, helps match seniors, and anyone interested in volunteering, with a job that meets their skill levels and schedule requirements. The center, which is one of 38 in the state of California and one of 450 in the country, works with dozens of nonprofits, government agencies, schools and other entities. Langan says that senior volunteerism isn’t the way it used to be.
“A couple of changes are that people are retiring younger and opportunities are different,” she says.
The typical senior volunteer used to be someone who would come in once a week for four hours and they would maintain that schedule for years and years, says Langan, who has one volunteer who was worked in her center for 27 years.
“That type of volunteer is so helpful, but they’re fading,” she says. “Volunteers want to do things that are more project-based, with a higher level of thinking. They’re still young; they’re still wanting to play more of a role.”
The Robinsons’ role is to help thirsty young minds to soak up knowledge. They recently helped their students make Native American vests out of paper bags and with a flag project. They also help them with math or phonics, or “whatever the teacher wants us to do,” says Sandy Robinson. They feel that they can lead by example.
“Nowadays there are so many outside influences,” she says. “We can’t change their lives, but we can be a good influence. We just feel that’s so important as they grow older, for their self-esteem.”
Nothing is better for the Robinsons’ self-esteem than the greeting they get when they walk into the classroom. From their grandson Tyler, they hear “Hi Papa and Grammie,” and when those other 5-year-olds see their friendly classroom pals coming, they let out a loud, enthusiastic, and in unison, “Good morning Mr. and Mrs. Robinson!”