Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1962-03-15
GOLDEN YEARS
Retire.
Reviises
Views
BY THOMAS COLLINS

ny InOMAS COLL1NS
Maybe you have written
something like this before,
but it would have been back
a few years when I thought
the sort Of column you write
was silly.
Its funny how suddenly
you can discover, along about
SO, that advice about retire
Inent is very serious business
indeed. Well, it's serious to
me now and ! need advice on
setting up a retirement course
in an Adult Education School.
Can you give me guidance?"
Try this:
Determine first whether
= YOU want a course for people
already retired or for people
about to retire. If the former,
your pupils will be mainly
lonely oldsters who attend be-
cause 1t is somewhere to go.
+. The 60-to-65-year group with
the pension still to come, is
busy looking under the bed,
and will be more apt students.
p Start your course by dis
carding sentiment. People
! are now realizing that retire.
ment is not necessarily a tea
party and will prefer the
hard, practical approach.
Have classes two evenings
a week If you can. Once a
week doesn't hold together.
Six weeks is too short. Three
months would do better.
Two-part courses of three
months each would be fine,
and effective. --
Make the major" course
the What To Do" lessons.
You could divide these into
three segments: Jobs; volun-
teer civic activities, and loaf
ing.
In the Jobs category pupils
would be assigned to find
job openings in the commun-
: ity-by contracting employ
ment agencies, personnel
managers, bosses Of small
business houses.
The jobs to be sought
should be evening or week.
end jobs so the pupils, since
they are still working, could
take them. They should do
: this as part of their course,
to see If they can stomach
the downgrading.
For the volunteer civic &C
tivities, the instructor, with
a few phone calls, can find
spots in charity work, ETC.,
for as many pupils as he has.
Evenings when the pupils
\ do not attend classes, they
should fill the volunteer jobs
to see if they think it's
worth the candle.
T: For the loafing candidates,
it is suggested that they be
: seated at the rear of the
room to do nothing and be
asked nothing. They will just
> watch the others. It will be
quite practical indoctrina-
ton for what lies ahead.
Il The minors" in the course
:, might be these:
Wills-A half-dozen lessons
will be needed, showing who
needs a will, what wills can
and can't do and the State
laws governing them. A
F, member Of the local bar asso-
s citation may be guest instruc-
tor =: probably for free.
Life insurance - Maybe
three lessons will be Suffi-
cient, with local insurance
executives-again for free
telling the many ways to con-
vert policies into methods
2 more appropriate to pension
years.
Observation-Disclosures of the
pupils wouldn't be bothering
with a retirement school if
they had more than $4,000
or so. Therefore, a savings
executive Of a bank or saw
sings and loan association
would make the best instruc'
tor. For free. Probably three
evenings should be devoted to
this.
Health - Seek as inStruc-
tors officials of Blue Cross
and Blue Shield, any insur-
ance company dealing with
health insurance or any Fed
: eral Government official who
can tell you what the Gov
= eminent is likely to do about
. health insurance. In brief,
tell the pupils how to pay for
III health-which you can do
instead of telling them as
"a class how to stay we'll
(which you can't do.
(Copyright 1862, General Features
~ Corp