5 Core Benefits of Volunteering for Seniors—and Ideas for Getting Started
October 28, 2024Many of us look forward to the day we can retire—when we can devote more of our time and energy to checking off the items on our bucket lists. For some, after spending decades working and/or focusing on their family’s needs, retirement presents the chance to see what else life can offer.
Yet retirement isn’t always what people imagine it will be.
A recent study by T. Rowe Price looked at why older adults are repurposing or going back to work. Considerable proportions of the respondents said they were either working or looking for work in retirement for the following reasons:
- They needed more social engagement.
- They sought more mental stimulation.
- They wanted the meaning and fulfillment work provides.
- They had nothing else to do with their time.
While going back to work is one way to address these perceived shortcomings of retirement, there’s another option: volunteering.
Help Others, Help Yourself
For many seniors volunteering is an excellent choice because they’re doing something good for their community while deriving benefits themselves. Below are five compelling reasons to consider volunteering in retirement.
1. It can increase your physical activity.
Staying physically active might be more of a challenge after retiring—especially if you don’t have a set schedule to follow. Committing to a volunteer activity for a couple of hours at least once or twice a week motivates you to get out of the house.
And, depending on what kind of volunteering you do, you might get a good workout while you’re at it. Working at a community garden, walking dogs for a local animal shelter and packing boxes at a food pantry are a few ways to get more movement as you volunteer.
2. It’s good for your brain.
A recent study from UC Davis Health found that seniors who volunteered had better baseline scores on tests of executive function (which includes problem-solving, planning and being able to stay focused) and verbal episodic memory (the ability to remember a list of words or recall a story) than seniors who did not volunteer, even after adjusting for various factors such as age and education. Seniors in the study who volunteered several times a week had the highest level of executive function.
If you want to challenge your brain, choose a volunteer activity that provides mental stimulation—like working as a docent at a museum or teaching a class on smartphones, tablets or computers at the local senior center.
3. It can boost your emotional health.
For many, work provides much more than income. It’s a way to stay engaged with other people and the world at large. Work can also provide a sense of purpose and accomplishment, as can raising a family. While retirement can bring an abrupt halt to all of that, seniors can derive all of these benefits from volunteering.
Doing something that makes you feel like you’re making a difference can increase your feelings of self-worth. Try something like helping children develop their literacy skills by volunteering as a reader for story time at a nearby library.
4. It provides social opportunities.
For various reasons, older adults may spend more time alone—which can lead to loneliness and social isolation and both are associated with higher rates of depression, according to the National Institute on Aging.
Volunteering brings you into contact with others, sometimes with people from age groups and backgrounds you wouldn’t normally interact with, and everyone can benefit. Try being a mentor or tutoring students, who will gain from your knowledge and experience. In return, they can help you stay current. You may even find yourself becoming a surrogate grandparent.
5. You can brush up on old skills and learn new ones.
Is there something you love to do or something you’re particularly good at? There’s a good chance you can put your skills and talents to work helping others (or teach them how to do it, too). For example, if you’re good with numbers, you can look into becoming a tax-aide volunteer with AARP Foundation®.
Maybe there’s a specific organization you’d like to give some time to. You’ve nothing to lose by checking into potential volunteer opportunities, and you may discover they’re willing to invest in training you to do something you hadn’t even thought of!
Unsure of Where To Begin?
If you’re looking for the best ways to volunteer and give back in retirement, you can try national organizations like Habitat for Humanity®, AARP® or AmeriCorps Seniors.
You can also search online for local organizations that align with your interests. Schools, churches, libraries, animal shelters and hospitals almost always welcome volunteers.
Don’t be afraid to get creative. If you have time and energy to spare, there are plenty of retiree volunteer opportunities available, and you don’t have to limit yourself to your local community. If you enjoy traveling, explore these volunteer abroad opportunities for older adults suggested by Volunteer Forever.
Emerald Heights Residents Love Giving … and Giving Back
Many who live at Emerald Heights volunteered before they joined us, and some still devote their time and effort to those same charities and organizations. Others have found new ways of contributing, both to the Emerald Heights community and the greater community that surrounds us.
There are dozens of ways to volunteer at Emerald Heights, from maintaining our nature trail (which, incidentally, was built entirely by resident volunteers!) to making hundreds of handcrafted toys throughout the year in the woodshop to donate during the holidays.
Our residents also express their generosity through charitable giving—like supporting Hopelink’s annual food drive.
Earlier this year, the City of Redmond and the Redmond Senior Advisory Committee honored one Emerald Heights resident as a Volunteer of the Year for her leadership of the Redmond Senior Quilters Group. For almost a decade, she has led and coordinated donations to those in need. The group makes and donates quilts to the YWCA and donates other items to the Ronald McDonald House in Seattle and to local animal shelters.
The Benevolence Fund, which was created to assist residents who’ve outlived their resources, is another popular way Emerald Heights residents help others. Each week, trained residents work at the coffee shop here in our community during designated “Benevolence Brew” hours, and the proceeds are donated to the Benevolence Fund.
Volunteer Appreciation Event
While we appreciate our residents’ generosity all throughout the year, we make a point of recognizing those who’ve contributed their time, skills and expertise within and outside of the community at a special volunteer appreciation event each spring.
This year, staff members from all departments at Emerald Heights, including the executive team, served breakfast to a roomful of dedicated resident volunteers. Guests from one of the local organizations that has benefited from our residents’ efforts attended the event, adding to the joyful spirit of the morning.
If Emerald Heights sounds like the kind of community you’d like to be part of, we encourage you to contact us and set up a visit!
Featured Image: PeopleImages.com – Yuri A / Shutterstock
