The Boomers Are Coming, The Boomers Are Coming

These days Paul Revere would probably have tweeted this alert rather than hanging lamps in the church steeple. Instead of information about the British, he would be telling us that in the past decade the number of people over 65 in our country increased by almost 20 percent. And this trend is going to continue. What, you may ask, does this have to do with T’ai Chi Chih?

These Baby Boomers are the youth of the 1960s and 1970s who were involved in the Summer of Love, Transcendental Meditation, Ram Das, the Age of Aquarius and dozens of other spiritual paths. Careers and family diverted them from those spiritual paths and now they are retiring in droves. With time on their hands, these Boomers are seeking in their retirement, to reconnect with this sense of purpose, with something beyond themselves.

TCC resonates with this search and positions us perfectly to expand our TCC classes. I teach TCC at a local YMCA and my class has increased from 20 students to more than 30 in the past 18 months. And it continues to grow. A year ago the building was remodeled and a wing was dedicated to “Older Active Adults,” focusing on the 55+ demographic bringing in lots of people in our student demographic.

Anyone who wants to teach more TCC classes needs only to contact local YMCA’s and other health clubs in their area. These organizations are very aware of the demographic trends and are actively seeking classes to meet the interests of this rapidly growing group. Community education programs are also looking for programming; I have well attended day and evening classes through these. And don’t forget the senior living facilities such as assisted living and apartments marketing to older active adults. These are prime locations to expand our teaching.

Anyone who wants to increase their TCC teaching can ride this wave of Boomer retirees. We can serve this growing community and honor the memory of Justin who gave us this gift.