Why retirees work for the fun of it

Often, retirement looks like nirvana from afar, but once you get right to it, it can lose its luster.

Formerly busy, productive people can get bored and lonely after a few months or years, and they start looking for something to fill their time and maybe even pad their pockets.

Rick Harmon of Bartlett retired from his job as a loss control and safety analyst at Aon at the end of 2015 and by the start of baseball season, he was already employed as a part-time usher for the Schaumburg Boomers minor league team.

"I have always loved baseball. In fact, I attended games in 55 different ballparks - old and new - all over the country when I was traveling for work," Harmon said.

So after retirement, he naturally wanted to work at a baseball stadium but the Chicago teams' facilities were too much of a drive, so he applied to work at the Boomers stadium in Schaumburg. And he was quickly hired and has been there ever since.

"It is a very flexible job. We just let them know when we are available and they schedule around our travel and other activities," Harmon explained. "And I try to schedule my travel and so forth around when the team is on the road."

Harmon generally stands near the third base gate, greeting fans, answering questions and helping people find their seats. During the game itself, he and other ushers either stand at the back of the top row or down by the front row, facing the fans.

"We each watch two or three sections and make sure everyone is safe from tripping hazards, fly balls, etc. Although, now there aren't as many foul ball issues since they made the nets higher," he said.

"It is really fun to both interact with the fans and watch the games, so I really enjoy the four or five hours I am working," Harmon continued.

He gets paid minimum wage but said he doesn't do it for the money. He enjoys being outside, seeing the games and meeting nice people.

"In my preretirement job, I implemented safety programs and for the Boomers, I am still helping with safety and accident prevention," he explained. "So, I am still in the same mode, but not as intense and this works well since I love baseball."

Michael Albrecht of Des Plaines spent 45 years in law enforcement and for the past seven or eight years has been working as a ranger at the Mount Prospect Golf Club, a facility of the Mount Prospect Park District.

"A friend of mine was working as a ranger there and when they needed additional help, he called me and I have been there ever since," Albrecht, a former mayor of Des Plaines, explained.

"My job is to look out for safety issues that might develop and to keep play flowing," he explained. "For instance, some try to play demolition derby with the carts and obviously, we can't allow that. And others who don't really know how to play can back up the whole course.

"But I really enjoy interacting with the players and spending my days outside," Albrecht continued.

"When I was a police officer, people usually didn't appreciate it when I showed up," he laughed. "That usually isn't the case when I show up as a ranger. Most players are receptive to what I have to say."

He usually works 10 to 15 hours per week and in return, gets paid and gets free golf for himself and a guest.

Sharon Marello has been a volunteer usher at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles for about five years and her husband, Mike, is the head usher.

"One night he was short of ushers and asked me to fill in and I have been on the schedule ever since," Sharon explained. "No one works all of the shows. You pretty much get to choose which shows you want to see."

Ushers at the Arcada check tickets at the door, show patrons to their seats, operate the elevator and so forth. All are volunteers and most are seniors.

"Ron Onesti, the owner, treats all of the volunteers to a dinner celebration each year during a quiet time like January and we get free seats at shows that we really want to see and enjoy without working," she said.

"And I really like meeting people, so I enjoy this," Sharon, a Glen Ellyn resident, added.

Sharon still works as a property manager and Mike is a retired newspaper press installation project manager. They traveled the country so he could oversee the installation of presses at newspapers from Las Vegas to North Carolina and everywhere in between.

Alan Jones of Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, recently took a job at the new American Place casino in Waukegan. He is an overnight security guard several nights each week.

Jones served 37 years in the U.S. Army - both active duty and reserve - and concurrently worked 22 years in law enforcement with the Wisconsin Department of Corrections. He retired from the Army in 2007 and from Wisconsin in 2011.

During retirement, he has kept himself busy teaching seminars on World War II history around the country, volunteering with three different area historical societies and staying active with a World War II re-enactment group.

But he was still getting bored, so about a month ago he applied for a security position at American Place and got it. Now he works the overnight shift, rotating around the casino checking IDs at the door, watching the front door scanner for people carrying weapons, roving the floor, distributing chips to playing tables and escorting big winners to their cars.

"Over the years, I have done all kinds of security work from warehouses to concerts at Alpine Valley to working for the Department of Defense at O'Hare," Jones said. "But working in a casino is different. You have to pay a lot of attention to detail and I am still learning. You really have to be a people watcher."

He only works two or three nights a week because of his other commitments, and is paid $18 an hour, with a nice package of benefits, he said.

"They have been bending over backward to accommodate me because I have nerve and spinal damage from my service and can't stand in one place for too long."

It bears noting that seniors who are receiving Social Security benefits need to be careful about their earnings.

If they have already reached "full retirement age" and are receiving Social Security benefits, there is generally no problem. They can earn whatever they wish from employment.

But if they have not reached their full retirement age (which now varies between age 65 and age 67, depending on when they were born) AND they are taking Social Security payments, there is a definite limit on their earnings without it affecting payments.

Talk to your financial adviser to make sure you don't get a penalty for earning too much.

Also, know that during the actual calendar year that you reach full retirement age and start drawing Social Security, the rules are a bit different. Be careful of your income during the balance of that year. The rules allowing you to earn whatever you wish don't kick in until the next New Year's Day.