THIRD ACT ENCORES

True tales from real people whose accomplishments most unreal came later in life

- BY Josh Sapan FROM THE BOOK THE THIRD ACT: REINVENTING YOUR NEXT CHAPTER

AS A BOY, John Kerr wanted to be a fireman or a park ranger. Looking back on that childhood fantasy, he says, "I think it was the hat."

Instead, he spent four decades at WGBH in Boston, one of public broadcasting's flagship stations. He retired in 2005 at the age of 65 without any particular post career goal in mind. After several idle weeks, he decided to drive his camper to visit family in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

En route, he casually stopped at the Yellowstone Park Foundation, which raises funds for Yellowstone, America's first national park. As it happens, the foundation was hiring people to educate park guests on wolves. Kerr signed on. Later, at the urging of his daughter, a forestry school graduate, Kerr applied to the Student Conservation Association for an internship.

To say that Kerr stood out in the intern crowd is a massive understatement. Most interns were college and even high school students. But, in a sense, he had been primed for this since his youth. His outdoor adventures with his grandfather had given him a love of nature, and, as an adult, he had helped out at the local fire department on medical calls.

He also had something else. There are 31 million Americans between the ages of 44 and 70-some retired and looking for a third act, some looking for a more fulfilling career-searching for something where they feel as if they're making contribution, a doing something to make their neighborhood, their country, their world just a  little bit better. Kerr also had that deep urge to do something more.