Reveling in Retirement: Lamorinda Group Proves There’s Plenty To Love About Leaving The Corporate World Behind

http://www.lamorindaweb.com/articles/community-highlights/1468-reveling-in-retirement-lamorinda-group-proves-theres-plenty-to-love-about-leaving-the-corporate-world-behind

Written by Jennifer Seelig
Sunday, April 17, 2011 6:02

Retirement can – at least initially – seem like a dream come true.  No rush hour commute, no confining neckties or stiff and uncomfortable shirts and blazers.  Office politics and watercooler gossip become things of the past, and you suddenly have time to tackle those languishing projects around the house.

But, is the grass really greener on the other side of the fence?  Might retirees realize there are some things they actually miss about the boardroom?  Is it possible to grow nostalgic about those business trips and mid-day lunches with clients and new hires?  Some retirees may even be thinking twice about their decision to call it quits every December, when those swanky corporate holiday parties are taking place.

Rest assured, retirees - and those who are on the fence about taking the leap into the post-working world.  There’s no need to ask for your old job back, let alone bother with that pesky corporate ladder all over again.  Abandoning retirement would mean missing out on all the fun taking place amongst Lamorinda’s retirees, who are in many cases busier than ever before, and loving every minute of it.

So Long, Socializing Co-Workers.  Hello, Sons In Retirement

Anyone who’s done the math already knows that employees spend a remarkable amount of time at work – usually 40 hours a week, if not 45, 50 or even 60.  So, it should come as little surprise that so many friendships develop between colleagues and co-workers – especially “lifers” who stick with one company for the course of their careers.  But, what tends to be a bonus of the job during employment can leave an incredible void once a worker retires.

“A lot of people, when they retire, they lose their social group,” summed up Lamorinda retiree Phil Arth.  Arth is member of the nonprofit group Sons In Retirement, a northern California organization for retired gentlemen from Bakersfield to the Oregon border.

Sons In Retirement boasts a membership roster of more than 20,000 across the region’s 150 branches.  Arth currently serves as president – or “Big SIR” – of Branch 171, one of two Lamorinda SIR branches.

“SIR is an organization of retired men over 55.  It’s a fraternal organization.  We don’t sell light bulbs or anything.  And the cost is kept very low to the members for the services we provide,” he explained.  “We have monthly meetings with speakers and we have activities that we sponsor, such as hiking, pinochle, poker, tennis and golf.  We do field trips to museums and railway museums, military sites and what have you.”

“It’s a very active group,” he continued.  “We keep men over 55 occupied in Lamorinda.”

Branch 171 formed in Lamorinda in November 1993.  The original gang of 32 retirees swelled to 285 by December 2008, leaving dozens more on a waiting list.  The group’s monthly meeting spot, the Holy Trinity Cultural Center in Moraga, simply couldn’t accommodate any more gentlemen.

Ultimately, in 2009, Lamorinda’s second SIR branch – 174 – was formed to meet the needs of the many local gentlemen eager to participate in the organization.  Adding a second branch in Lamorinda has helped to ease the backlog of retirees on the waiting list.  And, there is plenty of congenial movement back and forth as the gentlemen try out each branch to determine which is a better fit – usually based on schedules and activities.

171’s monthly meetings and luncheons are the first Wednesday of the month and 174’s gatherings take place a week later, on the second Wednesday of every month.

“We still have men changing back and forth,” said Larry Thompson, branch 171’s membership chair.  “They join 174 then go to 171, now they’re transferring back.  Or, we have people transferring to 174.  We’re not in competition.”

Instead, the goal is about providing social opportunities for members of both branches.

“When you leave the corporate world, it’s stunning how fast your social group moves on without you,” Arth said.  “It’s like you’ve been thrown under the bus and nobody thinks about you anymore.  Well, that’s not entirely true, there are some people you have a special relationship with, but generally speaking you’ve lost your social group.”

Making Those Non-Corporate World Connections

If retirement means losing your social group, Sons In Retirement will help you find it – and then some.

“It’s a very popular organization in the area,” declared Arth.  “We have 320 members, broken down into the 2 branches.”

“When you retire you think, what do you do now?” Thompson reasoned.  “You’re sitting there saying I want to play golf.  Well, you don’t want to go to the golf course by yourself.  You come here and you’ve got a group to play with.  Instant friends, 70 friends in our golf group to play with.  It’s good.”

No doubt about it, golf is a big draw for prospective members.  But, it’s not the only draw - and knowing how to swing a club certainly isn’t a prerequisite for joining the group.

“You’re required to attend, once you become a member, six out of the twelve monthly luncheons,” Thompson explained.  “Some people just want to hear speakers.  They don’t want to be involved in the activities.”

“You have to be semi-retired or retired,” Thompson explained the easy-to-attain membership requirements.  “You do need a sponsor to be a member, but we’ll arrange for it or we’ll find you one.”

“We are strictly a social organization for our members,” Arth stressed.  “Our costs are low, we aren’t assessing members, and it’s just a low-key, friendly organization that enriches (members’) lives.  They don’t have to be worried about being tagged to cook at a BBQ.  They can come here kind of guilt free and pressure free.  They’re retired.  They’ve done their thing.”

The membership approval process is as an easy one.  Prospective members are invited to attend a luncheon and complete an application, before being considered by the branch board for induction at one of the monthly luncheons.

“I don’t think we’ve ever said no to anyone,” Thompson surmised.

Some of the new inductees find familiar faces waiting for them when they are inducted into SIR.

“Members recruit their friends and associates.  We also advertise in the papers and things like that, but mainly it’s by word of mouth,” said Thompson.

Life’s Not a Bore When There Are Activities Galor

Retirement, quite simply, has a tendency to become a lot more fun once you’re inducted into SIR.

“Very active, yes,” SIR member and branch 171 treasurer Don Merson described his experience in the group.  “Just doing this keeps you active.  And, all the activities I do, usually one or two each week, plus board meetings and monthly luncheons.  It’s a great organization.”

“I belong to many of the activities.  I play pinochle once a week.  We have a stamp club that meets once a month.  We have a model railroad group that meets once a month and we have an historical group that meets every two months or so.”

“We have monthly speakers that I find interesting,” Merson added.

Has this enhanced his retirement?

“Yes,” he said emphatically.  “Very much so, very much so.”

“It’s been very wonderful,” Chuck Healy described his six years in the group.  “I play golf with the group and wine taste, so it’s enjoyable.  I absolutely love it.  I’m doing more now that I’m retired than I did before.”

“I came to a couple of luncheons and then I felt this is where I wanted to be,” offered retired insurance broker Gene Amato, who was inducted two years ago.  “I like the camaraderie of the group.”

“It’s been over the top in a very good way,” added Dan Flower, who moved from Michigan to Lamorinda in August 1997 to be closer to his adult sons.  He joined SIR a year after settling in the area.  “I don’t know how I ever had time to work.  I have so many good friends and so many good activities.”

It’s a sentiment shared by many SIR members– the idea that life is busier, if not entirely better during retirement.

“Well you know, that’s the challenge of retirement,” said Jim Gibney, who joined branch 171 7 years ago and served as Big Sir about two years ago.  “Many of us in this organization had very responsible jobs, high level corporate jobs, professors at universities and so forth.  So people were used to very active lives.  When you retire, it’s like being on a treadmill and somebody comes and turns it off without telling you and you hit the wall.  So you’re filled with a lot of energy and you need to figure out what to do with that next phase of your life.  For many of us, we have a lot of years left.  We’re living longer.  And so an organization like this is just wonderful.”

Gibney took up bocce in retirement, thanks to his affiliation with SIR.

“I’d never played in my whole life.  I found it very rewarding.  It’s not sedentary.  It’s a mild sport but it just gave us another opportunity for camaraderie and getting together.”

Welcoming The Wives

Without question, retirement represents a radical change in lifestyle – and it’s one that impacts everyone in the household, not just the no-longer-working former employee.  Sons In Retirement is an organization that recognizes “the other half” – a move that’s welcome all around.

The wine group, for instance, hosts “spouses events.”

“We taste wine,” explained Healy, an active member of the wine group.  “Usually about ten wines, just about an ounce each and compare them.  Sometimes it’s blind, sometimes people know what the wine is.  It’s a fun group.  I enjoy wine and my wife also loves wine.  It’s nice to have a couples event.”

“I especially enjoy the Christmas function that we have,” added Amato.  “Because we get to bring our wives or best friends or what have you.”

Maintaining the Membership

The economic downturn has forced plenty of folks to reevaluate their retirement plans.  Specifically, the reality for many is they’re not hanging up their proverbial briefcases as early as they might like.  But rest assured, there’s a place for Lamorinda retirees when they are ready to call it a day – at the office, anyway.

“Oh yeah, I was living on airplanes worldwide.  A lot of our guys were,” Gibney reflected on his years in the working world.  “And you don’t just stop.  Retirement is the next phase of life and there are a lot of meaningful things to do.”

“There’s something about SIR that I think is important to know,” he said.  “I think that we provide a service to the community.  We give older gentlemen a purpose in life.  This is great.  It gives us purpose and reason and plenty of other opportunities.”

To learn more about Sons In Retirement, visit sirinc.org.  Branch 171 meets the first Wednesday of each month and Branch 174 meets the second Wednesday of each month.  Luncheons take place at the Holy Trinity Cultural Center, 1700 School St., Moraga.