Seattle's Office for Senior Citizens offers a program that helps place seniors in jobs that can earn them earn extra money and a second chance at a career, but many active seniors in Ballard are looking for opportunities closer to home.

The city's Senior Community Service Employment Program is well used and often has a wait list. It helps low-income seniors re-launch their careers through training, counseling and resume building.

Carlye Teel, director of the Ballard Northwest Senior Center, a nonprofit social-services agency sponsored by Senior Services, said the city's program is "useful" and that she does refer people to it. But more often, seniors are looking for jobs in their own neighborhood, she said.

Due to that growing demand, Teel has started an "informal neighborhood job bank." Because of limited resources, she can't currently provide the kind of job training that the city can. But she hopes that will change this year.

Teel wants to expand the neighborhood job bank to include training and resume building classes, which are already offered at the center to an extent.

Residents and local businesses come to Teel when they have work for hire; it could be lawn care or working as a cashier. Then the center tries to match up the job with the right senior.

The neighborhood job bank has become common at other senior centers around Seattle, Teel said. Eventually, she'd like to expand the service to teenagers as well.

Seniors value being able to work in the comfort of their community and can do so without the added burden of driving or paying for public transportation, said Teel.

"They are looking for that neighborhood aspect," she said. "They don't have to go far and can be involved in their community."

Age bias isn't really a concern because senior workers have proven to be much more reliable employees due to their maturity and work experience. Absenteeism and turnover rates are lower for workers older than 55 than for other age groups.

Corporate companies like Home Depot are hiring the elderly more often now because they are realizing the value of what they have to offer, said Teel.

Many who've found work through the center are in their late 60s and 70s.

"Seniors want to give back to the community and are willing to give back in many different areas," Teel said. "They have a real sense of community - that is extremely important to them."

The reasons the elderly go back to work are many. For most it is economic hardship. Others live alone and don't want to feel isolated. They want to establish new relationships and friendships.

Medical advances have allowed people to live longer and thus work longer. People that used to sit in a rocking chair at 60 are now taking yoga and Pilates classes.

"Some of it's economic but for a lot of seniors it's just a lifestyle they want to live," said Teel. "Most still have a lot of life yet to live. At 65, they still have 20 to 30 years left."

The nature of retirement and what it means to be a "senior citizen" is also changing. The baby boomers preparing to retire don't belong to the bingo and shuffleboard generation. Instead, they will likely turn retirement upside down, said Teel.

Last year about 775 older job seekers found work through the city's program, said Alana McIalwain who runs the senior employment program. Jobs vary from administrative assistant and substitute teacher to pianist and fitness instructor.

The pay is minimum wage, but for many seniors who are financially scraping by, "it can be a saving grace," said McIalwain.

There are eligibility requirements to participate in the free program. Preference in given to veterans and those 60 or older. The minimum age limit is 55 and residency in King County is required. They must also meet the income criteria, which, for a family of one, is roughly no more than $12,250 a year.

Seniors are taught how to search and apply for jobs over the Internet, a technology many are not familiar with. They get help fine-tuning their resume and practice interviewing. Participants gain work experience through subsidized employment and then transition to unsubsidized jobs.

The city holds workshops open to the public every month to introduce the program and get seniors started on what they need to do to become employable.

McIalwain echoed Teel's sentiment that while finances play a role in the need to return to work, many seniors work to socialize or to regain a sense of purpose.

"(Seniors) don't feel like they are in the mix and they don't like it," McIalwain said. "They want to be recognized as a viable person who can still make a major contribution to an organization."

At age 60 and still working, McIalwain is well aware that the traditional world of retirement is changing.

"We're not just rocking in the rocking chair," said McIalwain, of her "active" generation.

With increases in costs of living and medical expenses, many people her age who thought they could retire at 55 are finding that a very scary prospect, she said.

"It's too frightening," said McIalwain, adding that she probably wouldn't retire for several more years.

Some seniors go back to work just to pay off their medical bills, she said.

The boomer generation will "tip the scale" when it comes to looking at viable opportunities for retirement, and they won't retire in the traditional sense, McIalwain said. They'll find ways to try to hang on to medical care and other benefits.

All of this means that senior job programs at the city and neighborhood level will likely become more vital for seniors' well being.

"People are so desperate," said McIalwain. "The more resources we can offer, whether they want to go back to work or they need to go back to work, the stronger our community and economy will be."

The next senior Job Search Workshop will be in March at the Central Building, downtown at 810 Third Avenue, Suite 150. Everyone is welcome--no age limit. For time and day call 684-0500 or visit http://www.seattle.gov/humanservices/mosc/age55/.

The Ballard Northwest Senior Center serves those living in the Ballard, Magnolia and Crown Hill neighborhoods. Call 297-0403 or visit http://www.seniorservices.org/sc/nwsc.asp.