Anyone imagines themselves at 80 years old living off a full retirement. However, more and more people are delaying their retirement from work: either because they cannot survive financially, or because they prefer to remain active. Sue Miller, 83, is in the latter group, stating that she likes to work and wants to do so until she is 90.
She lives in Wisconsin and, in addition to taking care of her three children, she did the same with her two grandchildren and her two great-grandchildren. She currently works part-time as a cook and, despite all the difficulties she has had to face, she claims to feel “lucky”: “even when things got really difficult, something always seemed to come up to give me a hand. There was always some work for me. I have been a fighter,” she tells Business Insider‘.
Part of that resilience is seen in raising their children, which, if it is already complicated with three, was even more so because the middle child, David, has autism: “He was extremely hyperactive. He was lucky if we managed to sleep four hours a night.” Thus, he indicates that raising them all “was crazy.”
In 1976 she divorced and moved with two of her children to Arizona, while David stayed in Wisconsin: “At that time, Arizona did not have adequate facilities for him, and he was in very good hands where he was,” as he was attending a training center where he was making great progress, such as learning to follow a routine.
“We didn’t have everything, but we lived comfortably”
After two years in Arizona, Sue was able to buy an apartment: “We didn’t have everything, but we lived comfortably.” In this sense, he confesses that he avoided getting into debt and was content to go shopping in second-hand stores. A sense of responsibility that he taught his children: “When the kids stayed with me after high school, they paid me rent. It wasn’t much, and it depended on what they could afford, but I thought they had to learn to be responsible.”
Today, his family is scattered: his oldest son lives in Minnesota with his two children. His youngest daughter lives in Arizona, in his other home, and has two children. Of the latter, one lives in Las Vegas and the other, Christie, moved in with Sue at age 16, when she had Jaidden, her first child. Six years later, she also had Jeremiah (her two great-grandchildren).
“Paul stayed with me until he was 24. Christie came home with me from the hospital with her baby. They both went back to school and got their degrees,” she tells the aforementioned media, explaining that these grandchildren actually saw her more as a mother.
“In my house, grandmother’s rules applied, and they had to be followed. Everything had to go back to its place. They had chores to do every weekend. The same thing happened when my great-grandchildren lived with me. There has always been a lot of love,” she explains, ensuring that this situation taught her to be very thrifty.
“I’ve always worked and paid for my house early. I’ve helped everyone when they needed it,” says Sue, adding that, as a result, “a lot of people owe me money.”
When he turned 65, he spent 7 years without working
Sue took forced retirement at age 65 after being made redundant, working at the time as a factory accountant. “I didn’t work for about seven years, until January 2014. My stepmother had a minor stroke, so I came back to Wisconsin to take care of her,” he says, explaining that by not having to pay rent (since he lived with his stepmother), he was able to continue helping his daughter Christie.
Returning to Wisconsin also allowed him to spend more time with his son David, who lives in a nursing home. “Now he is 62 years old. On the weekends I go pick him up and we go out to eat or go shopping,” he says. Likewise, he confesses that he goes to Arizona often: “I wish I could be in both places at the same time. I especially miss my great-grandchildren because they are very far away.”
In this situation, she decided to work again to earn extra money: “I started as a volunteer and ended up working in the school cafeteria. I have been working part-time in a local school district for six years. I work between four and five hours a day,” she says, proudly stating that, for the first time, she has “considerable savings.”
“I don’t have many bills to pay, just insurance and public services,” she says, indicating that, really, her Social Security pension is enough to “live without needing additional income,” but that she “likes to work.” In fact, he is not going to stop doing it even if he has been diagnosed with cancer, stating that he wants to work until he is 90, when he hopes to retire.
“I have to reach 100 for my grandson, because I always tell him that I am going to be here for a long time,” he concludes.