How to Throw A Great Retirement Party
Research tells us that around 10,000 baby boomers hit their retirement age on a daily basis. That’s a heck of a lot of parties to plan. While some people associate retirement with getting old, it’s also a great chance to celebrate everything you’ve accomplished over your career and plan a future of relaxation and fun.
If you know someone special in your life that’s about to hit retirement age, now could be the perfect time to start thinking about how you’re going to make their retirement special. A few speeches from loved ones, an excellent party, or just a great gift can make all the difference. Here are our top tips to get you started.
1. Choose a Fun Theme
The best way to start a retirement party off on the right track is to choose a theme. Your focus should be on getting the person in question to look forward to their future or reminisce about their past. For instance, you could make your theme about the industry that the person worked in, and how it’s changed over the years. A great way to celebrate here would be to show some of the pictures of the retiree moving through his or her career in the celebrations.
Another option could be to address what your retiree plans on doing in the future. Will they be spending their free time fishing? A fishing-themed party could be a bunch of fun, with guests all dressing up in their silliest fishing gear.
2. Create a Slideshow
Need a way to keep your party guests entertained? Why not perform your own “this is your life” celebration, going through all of the things that your retiree achieved over the years. You can start by showing pictures of him or her in fancy outfits, heading out to interview for a new job.
After that, you can have fun flipping through photos of the retiree growing up, making a life for themselves and achieving their goals. You could even invite a few old colleagues along to reminisce about the things that they and the retiree used to do together around the office. This could be a great way to have some fun stories.
3. Choose an Appropriate Gift
Gifts are always a crucial part of any party – whether you’re celebrating a retirement or a birthday. The key to success is making sure you think about what your gift recipient is going to enjoy most. Sites like UKGifts.co.uk have some great ideas if you’re struggling and remember, you don’t have to spend a fortune to make the right impression. For instance, if you know that your retiree is going to be spending a lot more time with his feet up, make him smile with a novelty pair of slippers.
If you know that the person you’re celebrating has always wanted to go on vacation somewhere special, you could chip in for a plane ticket with other members of their family, or just buy them a great pair of sunglasses for the beach.
4. Keep the Playlist Lighthearted
Retirement parties are a lot of fun, but it’s important to keep the mood right. The focus shouldn’t be on how old the retiree is getting, or the fact that they have “one foot in the grave.” A good way to keep the mood light is to stick with the right playlist. For instance “Good Riddance” by Greenday is a great song for a retiree who’s keen to be moving onto the next stage of their life.
You can also play around with songs like “9 to 5” from Dolly Parton, or “The Best is Yet to Come” by Frank Sinatra. If you’re not sure which songs will resonate best with the person who the party is for, shop around for some suggestions from other friends and family members.
5. Make a Book of Memories
Finally, make sure that your retiree has something wonderful to take away with him or her when the party is over. A book of memories is a fantastic option, where people who the retiree has worked with over the year can leave notes about the most memorable moments they had with the person over the years. You can also add in some pictures and extra mementos too – like the person’s first wage slip if they still have it.
You can create some really beautiful guest books that are similar in style to what you might expect from a wedding. It’s these kinds of meaningful take-aways that can give your retiree a reason to smile days after the party is over.