Advertorial – After 25 years as a teacher, Marilyn Farmer was not ready to stop sharing her knowledge with the world and instead of retirement, chose an unconventional path to continue following her passion for education.
Marilyn has always had an interest in social development. “To have a more immediate impact and far reaching benefits, education is central to change”, believes the retired teacher. Considering her excellent health and positive energy, Marilyn wanted to continue her life adventure in education, while re-inventing herself internationally.
So, in 2017, she packed her sandals and years of experience, and went on an adventure of a lifetime, to Laos, where she volunteered with Cuso International as an ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher for six months.
Marilyn was excited to be part of this community of experts like her in Laos. She developed a strong, social network while doing meaningful work with a purpose. “You develop yourself but you’re there because of the people you are working with”.
Marilyn never worried about being far from home. Technology made it easy for her to maintain contact with her daughter. And, costs are covered when volunteering with Cuso International, including airfare, accommodation, health care, permits or visas, and volunteers are provided with a stipend allowing Marilyn to live as the locals do.
And, Marilyn loved her experience volunteering with Cuso International so much, she decided to volunteer again for another six months in Myanmar this year.
Retirement and the need to escape the cold Canadian winters offers Marilyn the opportunity to reinvent herself while continuing to pursue her career passions internationally and making a positive difference. “Re-creation”, not retirement!
To learn about non-retirement opportunities with Cuso International and how you can volunteer and change the world, visit our website at Cusointernational.org.
