Time was when our work and retirement worlds appeared better defined. As that 65th birthday approached, a flurry of activity and paperwork transferred job earnings to pension or Social Security and health care benefits from private to public. A celebration and perhaps a gold watch marked the transition, and rest, relaxation and no responsibilities beckoned.

Today, there is largely no mandatory retirement age. Early retirement in some work arenas is outright encouraged, and phrases like "civic engagement," "reinventing retirement" and "encore careers" speak to possibilities of full- or part-time work and meaningful post-retirement volunteer work activities. We are encouraged to plan for such transitions while still fully employed.

All this is happening while the largest group of retirees ever, the baby boom generation, enter their retirement years. Boomers would be forgiven for questioning why everyone is now so intent on taking retirement away and acting like society is doing them a favor by doing so.

The intent is not to take retirement away, but to better ensure that it will be enjoyed. Retirement is still a period to which we look forward, but the popular view of the retirement years -- no responsibilities, no worries, no involvement -- is unrealistic and for most people unfulfilling after the first few months.

This is not a new realization. The University at Albany -- as administrator for the last 35 years of the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program, supporting 700-800 volunteers in local not-for-profits -- has a long standing relationship with people in retirement. Whether the retirees participate in literacy programs for children, teach favorite courses on film appreciation to other retirees or help manage the tasks that not-for-profit agency staff just never get to, we see many examples of them making contributions that are valued by the individuals and agencies they touch, and by the volunteers themselves.

Retirees in the university's programs are not unique. The local PBS TV 13-week series "It's An Age Thing: Our Communities," developed by the Albany Guardian Society, features example after example of such contributions. Tuesday, the Capital District Senior Issues Forum will honor, as it does each year, a large number of peoples age 85 and older for life-long and current assistance and leadership in communities, agencies and faith communities throughout the Capital Region.

Many concerns drive a re-examination of retirement. Fiscally, we worry about the viability of the funds backing Social Security and Medicare; the impact of longer life on savings and other retiree resources; spiraling costs for Medicaid driven in part by nursing home expenses; and a decline in the availability of defined benefit pension plans. All this, coupled with a low savings rate among current and potential retirees.

Socially, new retirees are often the new "sandwich" generation, with continuing responsibilities for children and grandchildren as well as responsibilities for parents in their 80s and 90s.