By Mary M. Anderson
Coordinator of the MnSf prescription drug programs

This past winter and spring I had the unique experience of giving a few presentations titled “Unleashing the Power of Grey” and “How I Flunked Retirement” at senior venues throughout Minnesota. 

“Unleashing the Power of Grey” is a faith-based presentation, stressing the importance of seniors continued participation in the church as leaders, counselors and active members. A primary message is that seniors are no longer just “church basement ladies” or the”usher squad.” Though these are very important aspects of service, seniors need to recognize, by longevity alone, they are a vital part of the church family and have the ability to make a unique contribution.

“How I Flunked Retirement” (or “This is Not My Father’s Retirement”) emphasizes how very different our retirement years are today compared to retirement of years ago.

One of my greatest memories is how happy my father was to retire. He loved his garden and worked on it all spring and summer and then spent fall and winter planning for the next year’s garden, intermingled with a nightly game or two of solitaire.

In 1993, when I first retired, I had every expectation of sitting back in an easy chair and reading and reading with an occasional lunch or dinner with friends.

In that year I also discovered I had breast cancer and after a complete recovery decided I needed to do something different. My father’s retirement was definitely not my retirement. As a result, I have managed to “retire” five times, return to school to get certification from the University of Minnesota Continuing Education in Leadership in Vital Aging, work at the Minnesota Senior Federation as coordinator of prescription drug programs and participate in a variety of senior-related organizations. Oh yes, and continue to hot air balloon twice a year.

One of the surprising things I learned traveling our state is that “senior issues” throughout the state are much the same. It had been my understanding previously that rural issues were considerably different than urban ones. Whether I was in Baxter, Brainerd, Duluth, Rochester, Willmar or Alexandria, prescription drug costs, health care and property taxes were all of great concern. The biggest difference I noted was that senior housing does not seem to present much of a factor in decision making outside of the metropolitan areas.

I was also surprised at how few conference participants were aware of the  existence of the Minnesota Senior Federation. Though I wasn’t out traveling for the Senior Federation, I took copies of Health Care Choices as well as membership applications to distribute to anyone who expressed an interest.

My conclusion from all of this is to say that as active members we all need to put our best foot forward and follow the leadership of the Federation to make not only seniors, but the next generation aware of our missions.

Anderson is a Senior Federation member, volunteer, part-time employee and an accomplished public speaker.