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PODCAST

Retire-To Volunteering

Host Ed Zinkiewicz uncovers engaging—sometimes surprising, but never dull— volunteer opportunities available to retirees. Interviewing volunteers and volunteer coordinators each week, Ed highlights the meaningful contributions volunteers make and also the rewards volunteers receive. Imagining a retirement that matters starts here. Sign up for Ed"s free, weekly newsletter at retire-to.com and get listings of coming episodes.

All Episodes

22:05

080 Chris Lovingood—Nations Ministry Center

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/08/08

080 Chris Lovingood—Nations Ministry Center Huge Challenges/Great Opportunities—Nations Ministry Center They have fled persecution, violence, war, hunger, life in makeshift and overcrowded camps. As refugees coming to America, they have been given a chance for a new life. But now they face a new set of ordeals having to navigate the complexities of daily life in a new culture and do so with minimal language skills. Resettlement agencies assist newly arrived refugees for three to four months with

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20:12

079 Bill Martin—Scouting

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/08/01

079 Bill Martin—Scouting Preparing Better Grown Ups—Through Scouting Laid off and laid up—two unexpected setbacks in life forced Bill Martin onto a different course, one that 18 years later he is still happily following as a volunteer in Scouting. His wife had been helping with their young sons' first two years in the program, but without a job, Bill suddenly had time and took his turn in leadership. Shortly after, he broke his leg in a biking accident. Always a hands-on doer, Bill could have simply

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18:28

078 Laura Valentine—Penuel Ridge

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/07/25

078 Laura Valentine—Penuel Ridge Away From It All—Penuel Ridge Retreat Center Helicopters, sirens, traffic, deadlines, quotas, to-do lists, demanding devices—noise, noise, noise, pressure, pressure, pressure—the hallmarks of everyday life! Where is the escape, the safe space away from it all, a place to simply to be, to renew, to reconnect? Laura Valentine knows. Laura is the executive director of Penuel Ridge, a small retreat center not far from bustling Nashville, yet nestled in 135 acres of

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15:16

077 Wayne Schmidt—Special Olympics Coaching

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/07/18

077 Wayne Schmidt—Special Olympics Coach Scoring a Strike—Special Olympics Looking for a way to connect with his son who was learning disabled, Wayne Schmidt remembered the fun he had bowling when he was growing up. He began teaching his son the sport. Soon the son was playing better than the father—and others were noticing. "Who's his coach?" they would ask. With his answer Wayne's life scored a strike! Soon he was coaching Special Olympic athletes in bowling for his community. As his teaching

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11:20

076 Jennifer Crews–Desert Sounds Performing Arts

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/07/11

076 Jennifer Crews—Desert Sounds Volunteers and Music—Making a Difference for Students A 14 year old voluntarily helping a friend has inspired a movement that now reaches nearly 600 students each year and is growing. Jeremy and his friend played in the high school band until the friend’s parents divorced and he no longer had a trumpet to play. In their school district, funds were tight and consequently parents had to provide most of the instruments. Jeremy convinced his friend to switch to a

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12:16

075 Mary Katherine Rand- The Mary Parrish Center

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/07/04

075 Mary Katherine Rand—The Mary Parrish Center From Surviving to Thriving—The Mary Parrish Center When women and their children arrive at the Mary Parrish Center, they are survivors. Pummeled repeatedly by domestic violence and sexual abuse, wounded emotionally and physically, they have nevertheless found a place of shelter and hope. They have escaped. The beater has been beaten. But now what? How do these women and their children move from merely surviving to truly thriving? They do so with the

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17:04

074 Johnson, Lee-Red Cross

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/06/27

075 Lee Johnson—The American Red Cross Never Resting, Always Ready—The Red Cross When the weather forecast shows the beginning of a hurricane, the whole nation waits. Except the Red Cross. Everyone there is in high gear, preparing. Shelters to line up, food to arrange for, supplies to transport. Relief teams, mental health workers, technology whizzes—volunteers are readying to go, to be the first on the scene—and the last to leave. Lee Johnson, who retired from his role as general manager of a large

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16:29

073 Michelle Colee–Be Your Haven

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/06/20

073 Michelle Colee–Be Your Haven No One Dies Alone, Thanks to Volunteers—Be Your Haven The diagnosis is terminal. Efforts switch from cure to comfort. It's time for hospice care. Often in the initial conversations with hospice staff, new patients will express their fears. Not wanting to die alone is a one of their biggest concerns. Be Your Haven, a hospice-care provider in 18 counties of Florida, has set up a program as part of their services called, No One Dies Alone, to provide volunteers to be

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13:16

072 Kerber, Bruce - MN Landscape Arboretum Research

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/06/13

072 Bruce Kerber—Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Digging Into the Past, Creating the Future—Minnesota Landscape Arboretum After 38 years of helping people grow through his career as a clinical social worker, Bruce Kerber wanted something different in retirement. He found his niche by looking to his past. Bruce remembered playing on his Uncle Tony's farm as a child. During his college years Bruce had worked for his dad in the family's nursery business. He also did some research projects as part of his

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12:16

071 Kim Carrier—People and Pets Together

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/06/06

071 Kim Carrier—People and Pets Together Not Just Another Mouth to Feed—People and Pets Together Have you ever been sick or emotionally down and had your pet climb up next to you, loving you completely and easing your distress? Kim Carrier attributes that unconditional love from her two dogs with helping her heal. They were her "saving grace" in very difficult time. Kim also recognized that others were not so fortunate. Job loss and medical crises, especially, can so easily push a family to the

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12:25

070 Sara Everett-Wilmington Area Rebuilding Ministry,...

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/05/30

070 Sara Everett-Wilmington Area Rebuilding Ministry, Inc. (WARM) Warm Hearts, WARM Shelters—Wilmington Area Rebuilding Ministry When the hurricane blew out, the men from a local church rushed in to begin rebuilding, focusing on the storm-damaged homes of the community's low-income neighbors. But what they discovered changed their mission. The need for repairs had existed well before the storm, but the occupants did not have the resources to be able to make their homes safer for their day-to-day

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12:07

069 Jeff Hoffman – Project Transformation

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/05/23

069 Jeff Hoffman Project Transformation Catching the Enthusiasm—Project Transformation After three summers of listening to his wife's and his children's enthusiasm for their experiences in Project Transformation (PT), Jeff Hoffman took the plunge. He'd been reluctant because he knew his work schedule at the time would not allow him to make a regular or extensive time commitment, but with PT he found no pressure—just a welcoming of whatever he was able to share with the program. Project

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13:34

068 Ted Dreier – Children’s Kindness Network

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/05/16

068 Ted Dreier Childrens Kindness Network A Little Kindness Makes a Big Difference Want to make the world a better place? Start little. But with a big idea. Start with little children. Help them learn the big value of kindness. Start with a little cowor a big one! Moozie, to be exact. When Moozie speaks, children listen—and learn. The big talking cow (robotic or a costumed human) may visit a daycare, preschool, kindergarten, or first or second grade class to give a special Moozie introduction to

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13:21

067 Gail Atkinson-Special Olympics Lead Volunteer

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/05/09

067 Gail Atkinson—Special Olympics Lead Volunteer Taking the Lead So Others Succeed—Special Olympics With more than 27,000 volunteers in Florida's Special Olympics program, someone has to take the lead! Gail Atkinson began like so many other volunteers—helping out a day here and a day there through the service opportunities sponsored by her place of employment. That was 15 years ago. She got hooked! Now retired, Gail has stepped up her involvement to include making sure other volunteers experience

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15:21

066 Linda Stalters—American Red Cross

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/05/02

066 Linda Stalters – American Red Cross The Red Cross—On the Job Every Eight Minutes! I was bringing my stepmother home from the baptism of her great grandson. We rounded the corner to see 12 fire trucks and three ambulances blocking traffic. Her high-rise senior apartment building was billowing smoke from the fourth floor–her floor, her apartment! First responders gently led her to another truckthe Red Cross truck. There wonderful volunteers comforted her in her confusion and provided her aid for

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17:43

065 Bob Tigert—Ukulele Kids Club

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/04/25

065 Bob Tigert—Ukulele Kids Club Kids in Hospitals, Music, the Real Deal—What’s Not to Like? Bob Tigert just "sorta fell into" his volunteer position on the board of the Ukulele Kids Club. "When they asked me, I had never heard of it. 'What is that?' I had to ask." A ukulele (and guitar and bass) player, Bob quickly decided the organization was the "real deal"—grassroots, amazingly noble, and very effective in the execution of its mission, which is two-fold: To bring music into the lives of hurting

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19:18

065B Kimble, Sheri – Violins of Hope

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/04/24

065B Sheri Kimble—Violins of Hope Music From a Dark Past—Hope for Today and Tomorrow The lilt of beautiful music stirs hope in the hearts of listeners. But like any great gift it can be perverted for evil. The Violins of Hope experience tells the story and brings it full circle through the darkest of times and circumstances to hope again. Sheri Kimble, a volunteer docent, explains: During the Nazi years, many Jewish and other musicians were forced to play their music at first for the entertainment

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17:06

064 John and Elaine Berkheiser—Leader Dogs for the Blind

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/04/18

064 John and Elaine Berkheiser—Leader Dogs for the Blind Raising Puppies and Opening Doors! If you love dogs, you'll find kindred spirits in John and Elaine Berkheiser, who raise puppies (28 so far)—and give them away! The puppies ultimately go to work, serving persons who are blind, visually impaired, or blind-deaf. How can the Berkheisers give them away? Each puppy accompanies them wherever they go—to stores, through parking lots, in cars, on busses, in hotels. Raising these puppies is a 24/7 job

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15:13

063 Kim Carrier—Minnesota Landscape Arboretum

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/04/11

063 Kim Carrier—Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Sampling the Fruits of Volunteering With more than 900 volunteers each year, Volunteer Coordinator Kim Carrier knows something about what keeps volunteers coming and coming back to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum: "Enjoying the beauty of nature is its own lure. Even if they are not working in the garden, driving through the gate evokes an emotional and spiritual response. It's in our DNA to connect with nature and to support places like this." The

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16:36

062 Anne Huffman—Music & Memory

Retire-To Volunteering ·

2018/04/04

062 Anne Huffman—Music & Memory Bringing Back What Was “Lost” A hospice volunteer, Anne Huffman, was keeping vigil at the bedside of a dying woman. Seeing the Bible at the patient's bedside, Anne began reading it aloud and then singing "Amazing Grace" softly. The woman, who previously had been non-communicative, responded. The patient died later that night, but a spark was born that day in Anne. The spark was fanned when, in a subsequent training offered by the TLC program of hospice, Anne viewed

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