ORDINARY PEOPLE LIVING EXTRAORDINARY LIVES

ORDINARY PEOPLE LIVING EXTRAORDINARY LIVES®

Norman Bungard, 84

Of all those featured in this column as Ordinary People Living Extraordinary Lives one of the best examples may be Norman Bungard. We met with the 84-year-old at Skydive City in Zephyrhills, FL. where he was about to make his third tandem parachute jump. “It’s a real thrill to leap from an airplane,” he said. “But that’s not why I’m doing it.”

Bungard was doing it to raise funds. He does volunteer work for the Florida Council on Aging, Guardian Ad Leitem, Habitat for Humanity, the University of South Florida, military veteran organizations and others and has since he retired nearly 20 years ago.

“As a career I worked for the Social Security Administration helping retirees,” he said. “That job helped me see that I didn’t want to sit in a rocker, that I wanted to use my life to make a difference.” He just wasn’t sure how. A spiritual person, Bungard says he prayed for an answer which came to him as five exercises for a meaningful life.

Bungard uses his exercises as a guide for his life and he says it has served him well. Where most people his age are receiving benefits, he is tirelessly working to help organizations offer them.

He hopes he can be a positive example of how valuable people of all ages can be, and perhaps dispel some of the stereotypes of aging. "I’ve experienced ageism myself and have come to several realizations,” he said. "I think many ageist people have the best of intentions but don't realize how condescending they really are. So, they end up walking kind of a thin line between helping an aging person, or treating them like, ‘Oh you poor soul, you don't have much to offer.’"

Bungard plans to keep on proving that he has very much to offer. "I want senior citizens to know that they can do, accomplish and participate in much more than they think,” he said. "I'm not suggesting they need to jump out of an airplane, but we all can follow our passion, stay engaged, and make a difference in the lives of others.

5 Exercises

→ Exercise Spirituality: Do this by expressing gratitude and appreciation

→ Express Altruism: Do this by helping others; individuals or organizations

→ Exercise Creativity: Write poetry, be artistic, expressive and think deeply about things

→ Read: Broaden your interests, take different perspectives, expand your curiosity

→ Exercise Your Body: Join a gym, go for a walk, be active