The Second Retirement (Copy)
Maine is the oldest state in the nation. That means we are living the future before the rest of the country. And here’s the truth most people don’t want to face: by 75, most people are living a second chapter of retirement. I call it the Second Retirement.
The first retirement is about freedom. You cash the pension, travel a little, maybe downsize, enjoy the life you built. But the Second Retirement? That’s where the harder questions surface. Where will you live if the stairs become a challenge? Who will you trust to drive when you can’t? What happens when questions of independence and safety start to appear side by side?
Most families aren’t prepared for that moment—not because they don’t care, but because no one told them retirement was really two chapters. And when the system is already strained, the cost of being unprepared falls hardest on the middle class.
Why It Matters in Maine
As the oldest state, we don’t have the luxury of waiting for Augusta or Washington to catch up. The binders are thick, but the solutions aren’t keeping pace. Facilities are closing. The workforce is burning out. And families are left to make impossible choices with limited options.
Maine can drift like the rest of the country, or we can lead—by being honest about what the Second Retirement demands and preparing for it before crisis hits.
A Plan That Works
The Second Retirement demands clear, practical planning:
Housing that won’t turn unsafe overnight.
Money that stretches without gutting the next generation.
Care that respects dignity without breaking a family apart.
A community network strong enough to catch people when systems fail.
Families that make these decisions early are steadier. Families that don’t often find themselves in crisis.
My Belief
This is my philosophy: programs and policies matter, but they are not enough. Families, workers, and communities together are stronger than any binder in Augusta.
The family that plans for the Second Retirement—the one that steadies itself, honors its values, and faces the hard questions—is the family that endures.
And in Maine, the families who endure will set the standard for the rest of the nation.
