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Peace Corps Wisely Turns To Boomers
By Ed Langlois
Journal & Courier
Lafayette, Ind.
November 30, 2007
In October 1960, John F. Kennedy, weeks before his election, visited the University of Michigan and urged students to give the benefits of their education to those in underdeveloped countries.
"How many of you who are going to be doctors, are willing to spend your days in Ghana?" he asked. "Technicians or engineers, how many of you are willing to work in the Foreign Service and spend your lives traveling around the world? ... I think Americans are willing to contribute. But the effort must be far greater than we have ever made in the past."
In March 1961, Kennedy signed an executive order creating the Peace Corps. Volunteers, Kennedy said, would "sacrifice their energies and time and toil to the cause of world peace and human progress."
On Saturday, as the holiday hubbub continues to escalate, Jim Lutterloh will do just that.
He will say good-bye to Hoosier hospitality and begin a two-year assignment with the Peace Corps. He is 64.
As Lutterloh takes his leave, he takes with him good wishes from friends, family and strangers, many of whom admire the path he's taking.
The Peace Corps.
The name evokes images of young, idealistic faces eager to change impoverished nations with hard work, education and attention to health care. Peace Corps sends most of its volunteers to work in education (36 percent) and health (21 percent.)
Yes, young people comprise the majority of volunteers. The corps average age: 27. But the Peace Corps is so much more diverse.
Older volunteers -- such as Lutterloh -- are a growing contingency. About 5 percent of volunteers are older than 50. Seven percent are married. And volunteers are an educated group: 95 percent have at least a college degree.
In January 2006, the first baby boomers turned 60. They make up 25 percent of Americans, according to a report by the Harvard School of Public Health.
As boomers age, retire and look for meaningful ways to fill their days, many have and will turn to volunteerism. And according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the percentage of retired baby boomers who volunteered increased steadily from about 25 percent in 2002 to about 30 percent in 2004.
The Peace Corps is smart to take advantage of that.
Lutterloh isn't a boomer -- not quite. But he has answered the Peace Corps' call. By doing so, he's leading the way for boomers to give up the luxuries of Western society to make a difference far away.
By doing so, he's setting an example of volunteerism we would all do well to emulate -- whether here or abroad.
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