"I'm as busy now as I was when I was forty, the difference is now I spend my time doing things i want to do, not just things I have to do!"
To many, "retirement" doesn't mean leaving the workforce altogether – it just signifies a lifestyle change regardless of how the days will be spent. Whether the retiree chooses to continue work on a part-time basis, switch to volunteering, dedicate more time on a favourite hobby, or quitting a long-standing job, retirement is a time to celebrate a change in pace.
Here are some good retirement gift ideas to help you share this momentous occasion with a soon-to-be retiree:
Sentimental Retirement Gift Ideas:
a framed photo of the retiree at work, signed around by their team. A coin indicating the year they started at the company may also be included (check post office for availability). Otherwise include a penny (or loonie) for each year worked.
A new birdbath with signatures and well wishes from the family members, staff from work and friends (you can buy the permanent ceramic markers at most craft stores).
A wall clock engraved with the date or person's name (these are items most people love but never dedicate themselves to purchasing!)
Silver and Gold is a full-colour gloss magazine distributed throughout Ontario in print, and globally online. It features stories which are of specific interest to adults over 55, and focuses on their specific needs, values and interests.
A new pair of running shoes with a note or card stating: "welcome to your new change of pace!"
A set of their favorite tv shows or movies, with a new comfy pillow and a note which may read: "unplug the alarm clock and plug in the movies!"
A membership to the nearest YMCA or local Seniors' Centre, along with their activities program booklet. Keeping fit and staying connected is key for any retiree!
The Spa: everyone loves a gift to the spa… however, make this one unusual and fun by ensuring the gift includes unusual treatments they may have not tried before, such as mud-baths, a mani-pedicure treatment for 'him', a couples massage, etc.
Practical / Useful Retirement Gift Ideas:
Of course we have to recommend our great magazine as a great retirement gift idea! A subscription to Silver and Gold, the magazine especially published for Adults over 55. As a gift, not only will they receive a full year of Silver and Gold delivered to their home, but also the new "Passport Savings Guide" with potentially hundreds in boomer and seniors savings on travel, insurance, shopping, health & vitamins, etc. Click here to subscribe them today! http://www.sngmagazine.com/subscribe.aspx
a book on ideas of to how to work from home. It may seem contradictory, but many individuals are fearful of losing an outside income entirely.
if you have a group of people pitching in, you can each contribute a "gift certificate" toward a retirement gift basket. Each certificate can be minimal, but accumulate to many savings in restaurants, drug store shopping, shoes, an so on.
Make the package count!
Wrap the gift in a box-within-a-box, set-up clues in the retiree's household so they have to "chase and find the gift", wrap the items in a bathrobe or in a new set of towels… opening the gift is part of the fun!
