Civic Ventures – a think tank on boomers, work and social purpose and publisher of Encore.org – created the 2011 Launch Pad contest to help budding social entrepreneurs in the second half of life get a start on their dream encore careers.

More than 1,000 people entered the contest, demonstrating a deep interest among those over 45 in helping to solve a serious social problem in their community or in the world. More than 30,000 votes were cast for the 25 finalists. The top five vote-getters each won $5,000, plus an invitation to the 2011 Encore Careers Summit and support from the Encore.org community.

Launch Pad is part of an effort to build a movement to help people transition from midlife careers to encore careers that combine social impact, personal fulfillment and continued income – purpose, passion and a paycheck.