The Pike County Association of Retired Educators will join retired educators throughout the nation this month in celebrating Retire Educators Month. The focus of the month-long celebration will be National Retired Teachers Week, Nov. 14-20.

The executive council of the Pike County association will meet today at the Troy Sportsplex. A highlight of the meeting will be the presentation of a mayor’s proclamation declaring this week, Retired Teachers Week in Troy.

The Pike County Association of Retired Educators meets six times a year and has 60 active members.

Hank Jones, retired Troy educator and superintendent of city schools, said the association is important to him because it keeps him involved in the local schools, in touch with other retired educators and abreast of issues of importance to educators, active and retired.

“At our meetings, we have programs of interest to retired educators,” Jones said. “We have programs that are informative and programs that assist us as retirees in having a good life. We often have a representative from one of the schools come and tell us what is going on in the schools. We continue to be interested in education in Troy and Pike County.”

Attending meetings is the least of what the members of the Pike County Association of Retired Educators do.

Kathleen Forbish, association president, said the members continue to be active and involved members of the community.

“As retired educators, we aren’t sitting down,” Forbish said.

“We are active in the schools and in the community. During the year 2010, our Pike County association members have volunteered hours that have a dollar value of $149,225. That’s many, many hours of community service.”

Those hours are logged in a variety of ways. Many retired educators return to the classroom as tutors, as readers and to assist with specific projects.

“Some of our members also tutor outside the classroom and help with and attend special events at the schools,” Forbish said. “Our retired educators are also involved in community service in different ways. Our members volunteer at nursing homes, nutrition centers and with youth programs, the Red Cross, United Way and other charitable organizations.

“Some members transport individuals to appointments and to do shopping. Some of us do home care and check on the sick and shut-ins or keep in touch with them by telephone.

“We stay busy and we enjoy continuing to be a part of the school systems and our communities. We didn’t retire to sit down. We retired to do other things of importance.”