Over 50s
When I came to this parish, we had an Over 60s Club. The membership were mostly in their 80s, like the lady who had faithfully run it for 40 or more years. It was all somewhat in decline. Winnie used to complain that no one else was willing to help her run the club, at the same time as making it difficult for anyone else to do so. Human nature and systems are the same all over, aren't they?
At last Winnie simply had to give up, and after the usual agonising about how the club could possibly continue, several good people came forward to take it over, in a real sharing of roles between those who could stand up and chair meetings, and those who dreaded doing that, but were really very good at organising and making things happen. They also took the opportunity to change the name to the Over 50s Club. This had the effect of making the present vicar eligible to be a member (!) and reducing the average age. Not to 50-something; but certainly to 60- and especially 70-something. Since then the whole thing has taken on a new lease of life and is thriving, with a membership of more than 60.
Today was the club's annual Christmas Lunch outing, to which I get invited. It's an occasion I wouldn't miss for the world, even though I'm by several years the youngest there. We go to the Mitre in the High, and I get a chance to do several weeks' worth of 'visiting' all under the same roof. And a good time is had by all.
In the mean time I reflect that it's all very well having clubs which are supposed to be for retired people (presumably?) You may then call them Over 50s, to reflect the fact that many people take early retirement, or are made redundant at this sort of age, and don't work again. But what's going to happen in this projected Brave New World future, when the pensions crisis means we have to go on working well up to and beyond the former retiring age? (I thoroughly agree with this in theory, of course. Why should people work for only 45 or 50 years - in many cases more like 40, if they go through tertiary education - and then have possibly as much as 30 years of doing nothing? It does seem a waste of human potential.) The result may be that only one short generation of Over 50s Clubs may exist. In a very few years' time, clubs for retired people will revert to being Over 60s, then Over 70s - and after that, who knows?
At last Winnie simply had to give up, and after the usual agonising about how the club could possibly continue, several good people came forward to take it over, in a real sharing of roles between those who could stand up and chair meetings, and those who dreaded doing that, but were really very good at organising and making things happen. They also took the opportunity to change the name to the Over 50s Club. This had the effect of making the present vicar eligible to be a member (!) and reducing the average age. Not to 50-something; but certainly to 60- and especially 70-something. Since then the whole thing has taken on a new lease of life and is thriving, with a membership of more than 60.
Today was the club's annual Christmas Lunch outing, to which I get invited. It's an occasion I wouldn't miss for the world, even though I'm by several years the youngest there. We go to the Mitre in the High, and I get a chance to do several weeks' worth of 'visiting' all under the same roof. And a good time is had by all.
In the mean time I reflect that it's all very well having clubs which are supposed to be for retired people (presumably?) You may then call them Over 50s, to reflect the fact that many people take early retirement, or are made redundant at this sort of age, and don't work again. But what's going to happen in this projected Brave New World future, when the pensions crisis means we have to go on working well up to and beyond the former retiring age? (I thoroughly agree with this in theory, of course. Why should people work for only 45 or 50 years - in many cases more like 40, if they go through tertiary education - and then have possibly as much as 30 years of doing nothing? It does seem a waste of human potential.) The result may be that only one short generation of Over 50s Clubs may exist. In a very few years' time, clubs for retired people will revert to being Over 60s, then Over 70s - and after that, who knows?
posted by Tony at 12/06/2004 06:02:00 pm
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home