|
|
Join the more than 60 people like you whose stories appear here. We'll send you an all-cotton T-Shirt with our new logo.
|
True StoriesJames V.
Gambone, Ph. D.
My professional portfolio includes: educator, community organizer, investigative reporter, award winning film and TV writer, producer and director, expert on intergenerational relationships, marketing consultant, author, speaker, trainer and now, national TV personality. In each of these fields-with the exception of educator for which I have a Ph.D., I have taught myself and succeeded by convincing people to allow me to acquire the experience "on the job." ReFirement began as a very small idea in 1994. Roy Fairfield and I were discussing the state of education. After he secured his Ph.D. from Harvard, Roy’s life and educational career was all about educational reform. He believed that many intelligent and capable adults were denied access to higher education because it did not value their work and life experiences as worthy of academic credit. Roy, along with others, created the concept of University without Walls. Following this idea, working men and women were taught how to translate their life experiences into college credit. Their goal was to produce educational portfolios that would be recognized by universities, colleges, and community colleges. Millions of working men and women now have undergraduate and even graduate degrees because of people like Roy Fairfield. At the time Roy and I were talking about our lives, our work, and our passions, Roy was in his early seventies. He told me about one of his current assignments, developing an interdisciplinary program for a start-up Internet company that was creating a virtual university on the Web. During our conversation Roy mentioned something about "refiring" in his older years. I interrupted, "Excuse me Roy, but don’t you mean retiring?"He replied, "No, I said ReFiring!" He had long ago stopped using the word retiring because to him it literally meant to get tired twice! The word "ReFiring"stuck in my mind, and looking back, I think I have been ReFiring most of my adult life. One on the foundations of ReFirement is the ability to be flexible, to have a continual hunger for life-long learning, to challenge yourself personally and professionally and to stay connected and relevant to all living generations. At 55, I am seriously asking myself what I want to do with the rest of my life. How do I best use an excellent education, worldwide travel, amazing national and international networks and an incessant curiosity to make the world a better place for future generations? I'm glad these questions are coming up for me. Sure I'm worried about the fact that I'm getting older, that I am not as financially secure as others I know, but I go back to a discussion with a mentor of mine nearly 25 years ago. The man was Myles Horton and the conversation took place on a warm summer evening at the Highlander Folk School in the Smoky mountains of eastern Tennessee. I was really frustrated and feeling burned out because I didn't know what I really wanted to do. I was organizing welfare mothers, doing some investigative reporting and film work and making just enough money to live on. Was this how a Ph.D. should be feeling at age 30, I asked Myles. Myles was 70 at the time and probably
one of the most important educators of the 20th century. He started Highlander in the 30's
and grew the school through the early textile and industrial union organizing struggles in
the South, the Civil Rights movement Myles gave me some simple advice. He said that if a person really committed themselves to trying to help others, they would never be without personal and financial support in their lives. He also said that everybody needs to find the true passions, what you really, really like to do and then just go and do it. "If you can't be happy with yourself, you will never be happy with somebody else," he said. I guess that's how I have come to look at transitions and passages in my own life. At some level, I actually look forward to them. And I know my work and my life needs to help others if it is going to be truly meaningful to me. Getting Started For more information about James Gambone's workshops and speaking schedule, check out his website www.pointsofviewinc.com
Home | True
Stories Copyright 2000 2Young2Retire.com, All Rights Reserved
|
James V. Gambone, 55, educator
and expert on intergenerational relationships, has added two more accomplishments to an
impressive list of careers. He is author of a new book, ReFirement: A Boomer’s Guide
to Life After 50 (KirkHouse Press, 2000) and national television personality on PBS. His
story, which he tells below, is a powerful endorsement of intergenerational wisdom and the
value of mentors.