Lynn Brooks

Read more about her story
“Big Apple Greeter: We’re All About the Human Connection.”

Barbara Traynor

Her story is “She’s Got Verve!”

Our Contest

There was a substantial response to our Later Life Story Contest, and we’d like to share some with you.

The purpose of the contest was to demonstrate that people 50-55 and older can continue to live meaningful, purposeful and satisfying lives into their latter 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s. With 30 years added to longevity in the 20^th century, it is imperative that we change our view of aging in America.

The question may be whether we are staying younger or older longer. To resolve that dilemma, I have posted a blog on Huffington Post, which describes a new and fourth stage of adulthood to our gerontology. This is added to the new and third stage of adulthood, which was defined in a paper I co-authored with Dr. Elliott Jaques, “The Evolution of Adulthood: A New Stage”, who conceived the mid-life crisis in a paper published in 1965.

The four stages are:

• First stage of early adulthood–18-40
• Second stage of mid-life adulthood–40-60
• Third stage of mature adulthood–60-80
• Fourth stage of later-life adulthood–80-100

When we wrote the paper on the three stages of adulthood, I was 72 and thought that the third stage of adulthood from 62-85 was on target. Thirteen years later at 85, I have learned that an increasing number of Baby Boomers, as well as following generations, will be living and working into their 80s, 90s and beyond because longevity will continue to increase. We need to recalibrate our thinking about aging in America to accord with the realities of demographic change. I like to tell people that I’m over the hill (pause) and that I’ve learned you pick up speed going down the other side.

Bill Zinke
President