Having the experience to know what makes a difference is one thing; having the opportunity to make a difference is another. The Third Age Initiative enables older/retirement-aged people to have the opportunity to channel their wisdom and experience in ways that give back to the community. Since the program began, about 350 older adults have brought their unique socioeconomic, ethnic, educational, and cultural perspectives to the group.

Third Age Initiative participants share experiences during workshops and a retreat, and work collaboratively to create community action projects.  More than three dozen team projects have addressed issues such as children’s literacy, hunger, arts and heritage education, intergenerational mentoring, neighborhood redevelopment, reentry of formerly incarcerated into the community, financial literacy, and more.