After the first few months of retirement, many retirees are left with a lot of time on their hands. We have taken the trips long dreamed of. We have completed the projects that needed finishing. Now we are faced with the dilemma of what's next.

Bill Deans, Mustard Seed International, offers thoughts on what to do instead of just "retiring"...

"Whether on a full-time basis or a few hours a week, most retirees have time and the expertise that can help charitable organizations.  A Cornell University study has concluded that volunteer activities by adults age 55 and older can improve their mental and physical health.  With the baby-boomer retiree population increasing daily, this largely under-utilized workforce has years of business skills and wisdom which can impact their communities and the world.

In far-away and often forgotten places around the globe, Mustard Seed International (MSI) ministers to the "least of these" by sponsoring kindergartens, elementary, middle and high schools; orphanages and a home for abandoned children; Bible college and seminary training of pastors, lay leaders and church planters; medical care in clinics and hospitals and reaching out to impoverished street children and homeless families in some of the most desperate places on earth. MSI does this with a 100 percent volunteer administrative staff at our headquarters here in the United States. We could not exist without our volunteers, many of whom are retired and using their time and skills to benefit the less fortunate and suffering of this world.

Do you have talents and abilities that are not being used? Do you have time and experience which can help others if only channeled in the right direction?   Over the years, I have found that real joy in life comes when serving others.  Volunteering provides you with an enjoyment that cannot be measured."

"Life is like a coin.  You can spend it any way you wish, but you can only spend it once."  Lillian Dickson (1901-1983), founder - Mustard Seed International

Since 2000, Bill Deans has volunteered with relief ministry Mustard Seed International. Over the years, Deans has additionally volunteered his time with Samaritan's Purse, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, Habitat for Humanity, Salvation Army and Medical University of South Carolina Children's Hospital Fund, among others.