Retiree Support Group* Mission: Using lifelong skills...

Retiree Support Group

* Mission: Using lifelong skills to inspire elementary school students to read.

The Retiree Support Group is helping youths grow accustomed to turning pages at Avalon Gardens Elementary School.

The group, founded by Virginia Smith after her 37-year career as a teacher with the Los Angeles Unified School District, started four years ago. Smith, now 73, and several other seniors from Avalon Gardens decided to use some of their retirement time to help students at the elementary school with their reading.

Since then, the group of about a dozen retirees has grown to include 20 seniors who have virtually adopted the elementary school. Most of the retirees are former teachers. Others are retired principals, corporate leaders and government employees.

They can be found reading to students in the classroom, telling them stories in the school library, and tutoring kids at the Reading Study Center they created for the school. Last month, the retirees held a read-a-thon to encourage parents and guardians to read to their children daily.

The retirees meet once a month to brainstorm about how they can improve student performance. Next on their agenda: raising money for books to give to the students.

* Quote: “Age brings about a lot of skills. All of us have many different kinds of skills, lifelong skills. Everyone in a sense is a teacher in my estimation. And everyone has a certain knowledge they can impart on other people. We’re helping [the students] to go a little bit further in life.”

--Virginia Smith, volunteer