Tom Georgi’s wife, Suzanne, was horrified to discover that by age 60, he had saved enough money to retire. “You’ve got to get another job, she insisted.” Marines know how to follow a chain of command, and there was no wiggle room in this code red. So, Tom took his marching orders.
Being a golf marshal meant miserably early mornings, and dog walking for the animal shelter would track too much dander into the house, so when a friend suggested volunteering at the USS Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum in downtown San Diego’s Embarcadero, he gave it a shot.
More than a decade later, he’s never looked back.
Named after a WWII naval battle that helped turn the tide of the war with Japan, the Midway was the United States’ longest-serving carrier of the 20th century and is now an immensely popular tourist destination. As a safety officer, Tom greets guests at the entrance and exit, roams the floor, monitors the flight deck, and loves every minute of it.
Tom spent twelve years on active duty in the Marines, then taught Air Force Officers how to fire the Cruise missile weapon system for General Dynamics and eventually moved to a computer science corporation. That sounds like an exciting career. But without hesitation, Tom says that working at the Midway is the best job he’s ever had, even though it doesn’t pay him a penny.

00:00-Start
04:31-Bend with the Breeze
06:10-A Professional Volunteer
09:14-Hotfooting it For the Grandson
10:49-For the Love of Cruises
14:29-Fully Retired, Semi Planned
17:17-EA-6B Prowler and Yeti
19:50-Facing Challenges
24:54-Midway Naval Museum History
30:01-That’s My Definition of Retirement
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