Shaping Families

Volunteer All Your Life

You’re never too old to make a difference, say the guests on this week’s Shaping Families program. Four retirees discuss ways they are using their golden years as a golden opportunity to impact their communities and the world around them through volunteering.

Listen - Transcript - Study Guide

Frog Hollow

Sam Heatwole

“Too many people think happiness is having everything they want,” Ivy said one winter day as we sat by her Warm Morning stove, trying to get some January out of our bones. Ivy and her husband Raleigh had struggled through the worst part of the Depression on the meager wages a farm laborer might make in a 14-hour day. She mended clothes with old pieces of cotton until only the mends remained. She planted a garden with seeds saved from last year’s crop, and somehow she and her family survived; she doesn’t like to remember the details, but between God and good neighbors, they got by.

Embracing Aging DVD
A Third Way Media documentary featuring the couples on today's program and more.

If you missed the program from Feb. 6, “Innovative Aging”, check out that program page, especially the interview with Lynn Miller – available at Listen Online or Read Transcript.

Serving

I’ve had the privilege of encountering many volunteers. It began when I signed up with Mennonite Central Committee for an alternative service assignment during the Vietnam War. During that time, there were nearly 50 volunteers working at the Akron, Pa. headquarters.

Next week’s topic is on losing an infant. You’ll hear from a mother who lost her daughter 17 hours after she was born. This episode provides encouragement and support for those who have been touched by the loss of an infant.

Curried Green Tomato Sauce

Jodi Nisly Hertzler offers this recipe and a story about the year of the 52 tomato plants: “One year, in an attempt to find the perfect heirloom tomatoes, my husband cultivated 14 varieties from seed, and we filled our garden with 52 tomato plants. We knew it was too many, but we were on a quest.

• Shaping Families Update - May 19
• Shaping Families Update - May 12
• Shaping Families Update - May 5
• Shaping Families Update - April 28

The Shaping Families free offer from this week’s program is no longer available. Visit our online store at www.MennoMedia.org/store if you would like to purchase the item offered. Some items are not offered on the store.