Encore.org’s new website launched on December 2. Our fresh design makes the encore idea more accessible to new friends and established allies, and provides multiple points of entry for anyone interested in learning more about the encore movement, from individuals and community leaders to employers and potential partners. Much credit for our new look is due to Encore Innovation fellow Karen Sughrue and Encore Senior VP Jim Emerman, whose dedication, smarts, hard work and attention to detail awed our team.

We’re particularly proud to share one new feature, Stories from the Encore Movement, which showcases the first-person experiences of people in encores across the U.S.

Encore.org believes in the power of storytelling to kickstart social change, and that those in the second half of life represent a vast, untapped human resource with the potential to contribute time, talent and energy – and make a real impact. Their stories make clear that encores are everyday reality for millions, and that encores can take many different shapes. Each story shows what happens when experience and wisdom meet crucial social issues: Lives change for the better, again and again.

We hope these storytellers will inspire others who seek a purposeful alternative to retirement but may not know where to start – and will also fuel new thinking about how encore talent can be tapped to solve social problems. We plan to add to our stories over time, and we invite you to contribute your own story, via this easy link, and to invite others to do the same. Some of the other features we’re excited about:

• The new “Who We Are,” section describing our vision, mission, history and FAQs;
• A new ‘front door’ for each of our programs – The Purpose Prize, the Encore Fellowships Network, our research and EncoreU, our higher-education initiative;
• Blogs by our CEO and founder Marc Freedman and other prominent encore voices, as well as the latest media coverage of the encore movement;
• Special sections for encore-seekers and employers; and
• New resources for network leaders and others building the encore movement.

We trust you’ll agree that our new site is a big improvement – and that it sets the stage for continued growth.

We invite and welcome your comments; please write us at [email protected] and put the word “website” in the subject line.