How Older Volunteers Can Best Serve Arts Organizations

By M.J. Prest
Senior Editor, Solutions

March 23, 2006 | Read Time: 1 minute

Intergenerational Connections: Older Volunteers in the Arts and Humanities examines ways to persuade Americans approaching retirement to work or volunteer at cultural groups. The report recommends recruiting older people into volunteer roles through campaigns that tout the positive psychological effects of serving as a volunteer, such as enhancing self-esteem and adding structure to retired life. Five appendices summarize the recommendations and proposed resolutions from the 2005 White House Conference on Aging, as well as profiles of six programs that have established an intergenerational mentor program.

Publisher: International Longevity Center-USA, 60 East 86th Street, New York, N.Y. 10028; (212) 288-1468; fax (212) 288-3132; http://www.ilcusa.org; 46 pages; available free for download on the organization’s Web site.

About the Author

M.J. Prest

Senior Editor, Solutions

M.J. Prest is senior editor for solutions at the Chronicle of Philanthropy, where she highlights how nonprofit leaders navigate and overcome major challenges. She has covered stories on big gifts, grant making, and executive moves for the Chronicle since 2004. Her work has also appeared in the Washington Post, Slate.com, and the Huffington Post, and she wrote the young-adult novel Immersion. M.J. graduated from Williams College and after living in many different places, she settled in New England with her husband, two kids, and two rescue dogs.