Inspiring Opportunities is a newsletter from Coming of Age:Bay Area for people 50+ who are making a difference in the world, in their communities and in their lives.

 

If you hear a voice within you say “you cannot paint,” then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.

                                                ~Vincent Van Gogh

 

  

Keep up-to-date on news and tips on low-cost and free Bay Area events: please LIKE us on Facebook! Click HERE.    

What’s Next in Your Life? “Explore Your Future” workshops help you create your own action plan for a fulfilled future! Upcoming sessions:

February 2012

San Francisco "Explore Your Future" (Four Sessions)

Wednesdays, February 15, 22, 29, and March 7

3:00 to 5:00 p.m.

Coming of Age Office

881 Turk Street (at Gough)

March 2012

Berkeley "Explore Your Future" (Four Sessions):

Tuesdays, March 13, 20, 27, and April 3

6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

JCC East Bay

1414 Walnut Street, Berkeley

Click HERE for more info and to sign up today—space is limited. Reminder: if you have registered for an “Explore Your Future” workshop, please submit payment as soon as possible to hold your place!      

 

 

World Premier of “Counter Attack!” A play based on Candacy Taylor’s terrific book, Counter Culture: The American Coffeeshop Waitress. February 3 to March 4, at The Ashby Stage in Berkeley. Tickets $18 to $25. Click HERE for schedule, tickets and details about special talks and other events. Produced by Stagebridge Senior Theater Company.

 

 

The Board Match. Have you thought about serving on the board of a local nonprofit? Get your questions answered and chat with staff from a wide range of organizations at The Board Match, sponsored by the Volunteer Center. Admission is free. Thursday, March 8, 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. at the San Francisco Marriott Marquis. Read more….

 

 

Learn on your own schedule: The Goodwill Community Foundation offers free online tutorials on useful topics. From computer basics to Microsoft Office and Apple, and from Google to social media, there’s quite a range of subjects to choose from. Some are available as mobile apps as well. Read more….

What’s the best way to recruit and retain great volunteers? Find out at our Learning Labs for nonprofit staff. These intensive two-day trainings will help you rethink your volunteer program. You’ll deepen and strengthen your organization's ability to cultivate volunteers of all ages and provide meaningful opportunities for people 50+. Here’s what attendees are saying: “Great class! I will use many of the practices/processes I learned in the workshop…..” “It will change the way I run my volunteer program entirely!” Registration is now open for the next sessions, Thursdays, March 8 and 15, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in our San Francisco Training Center. The low fee includes all instruction, meals and comprehensive workbook. Registration is required. Click HERE to find out more, or call (888) 308-1767.

 

Applications are now being accepted for the Health and Aging Policy Fellow program, supported by The Atlantic Philanthropies in collaboration with the American Political Science Association Congressional Fellowship Program. There are two tracks—residential fellows who work full-time in Washington, and nonresidential fellows who work on a specific policy project. Deadline is May 15. Apply HERE.     

 

 

Where the jobs are: Even during the recession it appears there’s been job growth in at least part of the nonprofit sector, according to a report by the Center for Civil Society Studies at Johns Hopkins University. Read more….

 

Free online webinar: The Arts and Human Development. Hear Assistant Secretary for Aging Kathy Greenlee and National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Rocco Landesman in a discussion on the role of the arts and possible connections with cognitive, behavioral and social outcomes across the lifespan. Click HERE for an archive of the session. 

 

Make a BIG Difference. We’re excited to announce that later this month applications will be available for local organizations to apply for “Make a BIG Difference” Team Mini-Grants. The grantees will utilize teams of people age 50+ to help meet their project's goals. Note: only organizations who have attended the Coming of Age Learning Labs will be eligible for the grants. Questions? Please email us at comingofage@ncphs.org.

Everything you wanted to know about those service contracts: When are service contracts the salespeople tout worth the extra money? Yes to laundry appliances. No to TV sets. And more….

 

Is youth wasted on the young? Perhaps. Boomers are bringing their years of experience and knowledge to starting new businesses. In 2008, when 20-something entrepreneurs were making news, research showed the number of founders older than 50 was double the number of founders younger than 25.  Read more….

 

Community college degrees=jobs. Read about 63-year-old Alison Grazul who, having been laid off from a paralegal position, went back to a local community college to earn a human services certificate. She also earned a new job. Grazul is not alone. Increasingly community colleges are implementing certificate programs directed specifically to post-50 individuals who are struggling in a bleak economy. Read more…. Also find practical tips for those interested in attending a local community college.

 

 

Should boomers’ withdrawals cause symptoms? We’re talking investment withdrawals here. Forty-four percent of mutual-fund shareholders are boomers. What happens when they take withdrawals from their retirement funds? Will this affect the stock market? Read more….

 

 

Nice article about Coming of Age in Relocation Bay Area, a publication for newcomers to the Bay. As the story points out, volunteering can be the perfect way to quickly get involved in local activities and connect with new friends. Click HERE to see the online version of the magazine and the article, called “Exploring the Future, Discovering the Possibilities!”.

 

 

If you were unable to access the New York Times article mentioned in our last issue on how volunteering can help you find a job—and how even LinkedIn is paying attention--try clicking HERE (you may have to log in and click on the link a second time).

That’s a cool…pill case? Taking your meds discreetly because you’re embarrassed by those ugly, plastic pill boxes that announce the days of the week? Be embarrassed no more. A company has come out with pill containers that are practical and stylish. Read more….

 

 

Embracing technology. Recent research reveals that the percentage of Americans age 50 to 64 owning tablets like the iPad almost doubled during the past year. Ditto e-readers. Read more….

 

 

Some good news for Barack Obama. It’s possible that he will live longer than the rest of us--despite Congress. Read more….

 

 

From left: Coming of Age Program Manager Noreen McKeon, author Suzanne Braun Levine and Luanne Mullin from The Transition Network at Levine’s sold out speaking engagement at the Commonwealth Club last week.

And SAVE THE DATE for the next presentation in our Lecture Series:author and Civic Ventures founder and CEO Marc Freedman April 26! Watch this space for details, coming soon.

 

 

Happy Valentine’s Day!

 

Coming of Age:Bay Area celebrates the ability of all people age 50+ to continue to grow, transform their communities, and become a force for public good. Coming of Age:Bay Area is sponsored by Northern California Presbyterian Homes and Services (NCPHS), with additional funding provided by the Corporation for National and Community Service/RSVP grant, the Y&H Soda Foundation, Wells Fargo, other community grants, and in partnership with KQED.

Click here to hear/view Radio Portraits of people 50+ who have made exciting life transitions.

 

Become a Coming of Age Member

 

Subscribe to this Newsletter

 

Coming of Age:
Bay Area
881 Turk Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
(888) 308-1767
(415) 474-7787

Email Coming of Age

Editor: Bonnie Lawrence

Contributor: Arlene Silverman