I am in my early 70's, in good health and willing to work. The only problem is I have no education beyond high school, and the last job I had was back in the 1950's when I took down orders by hand for a catalogue company in Chicago. Everything has changed so much, and I don't know where to begin to look for a job. Yes, things have changed dramatically since you were in the workforce, but if you're willing and able to work, in time, you will find a position suited to you. You'll be in good company - with the number of older people growing at a phenomenal rate, employers are increasingly turning to older workers.
Employers know that life experience is an extremely valuable asset.
They also know that older workers are as productive as younger counterparts and often serve as role models to them. And, older workers like yourself are very capable of acquiring new skills. For older people who have low income and very poor prospects of finding work, the Illinois Department on Aging administers a special training program to teach them job skills. Participants are assigned to host sites, which are either a nonprofit agency or unit of government, where they work an average of twenty hours a week and are paid minimum wage. They are assigned to any number of settings such as a day care, hospital, park district, office, or other venues in which to learn how to deliver care, use a switchboard or computer, file or perform other tasks.