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Diana McSweeney, 425.256.6167, diana.mcsweeney@symetra.com
SAN FRANCISCO and BELLEVUE, Wash. — (June 3, 2013) — Encore.org, a nonprofit organization working to engage millions of boomers in encore careers that improve the lives of others, announced today that Symetra will sponsor the $100,000 Purpose Prize for Future Promise in 2013.
Founder and Director
Sustainable Food Lab
Purpose Prize Fellow 2012
A child of the activist ’60s, Hal Hamilton spent decades in Kentucky as a farmer, rural community activist and nonprofit director. He helped pioneer alternative food and agricultural systems that are kind to the environment and provide a livelihood for small farmers – the hallmarks of sustainable food production.
Experience Matters' centerpiece program is Encore Fellowships, placing highly skilled executive retirees in half-time positions for a year (a $20,000 stipend underlines that it's a serious commitment). Fellows' accomplishments range from strengthening a museum's finances to developing a long-range plan to make senior centers more efficient and effective. (This story also appeared in USA Today.)
Experience Matters' centerpiece program is Encore Fellowships, placing highly skilled executive retirees in half-time positions for a year (a $20,000 stipend underlines that it's a serious commitment). Fellows' accomplishments range from strengthening a museum's finances to developing a long-range plan to make senior centers more efficient and effective. (This story also appeared in The Arizona Republic.)
The recent recession has forced boomers to stay employed an average of 2.1 years longer than they planned on before the downturn. Civic Ventures and MetLife Foundation says that around 31 million workers ages 44 to 70 are in the transition between midlife careers and more meaningful jobs, but these people may find themselves struggling financially.
“There’s a big payoff from encore careers, for individuals and for our entire society,” says Marc Freedman, founder and CEO of Civic Ventures. The nonprofit organization says that 9 million boomers who are already engaged in encore careers began thinking about encores by age 50. Encore careers can well be the crown jewel of a boomer’s entire career.
With the economy improving, you might be considering a career change. Maybe you'd like to quit your present profession and do something completely different, even start a business. You could be primed for a change but unsure what change to make. These books can help: The Big Shift: Navigating the New Stage Beyond Mid-Life by Marc Freedman, Civic Ventures founder and CEO and One Person/Multiple Careers: The Original Guide to the Slash Career by Marci Alboher, Civic Ventures vice president.
What is an encore career? That’s the new buzz phrase being used for people reaching the midpoint of their lives who no longer want to be just “doing a job.” They want a job or career that has more meaning for them.
An estimated 31 million people ages 44 to 70 are interested in transitioning to socially oriented encore careers, according to new survey findings from MetLife Foundation and Civic Ventures. But respondents’ answers suggest that about 40 percent are staying put because of financial problems.
Boomers apparently don't simply want to volunteer, they want to start and run their own nonprofits. In a recent study by Civic Ventures and MetLife Foundation, some 12 million boomers said they plan to start either a socially conscious business or a nonprofit during their "retirement" years. In other words, boomers plan to give back in a big way.
