The Next Chapter Program
Introduction
The Next Chapter is a virtual program grounded in Ignatian spirituality that has been offered to Alpha Sigma Nu members for the past three years. It is a seven-month guided journey in a group setting for people who are approaching retirement or who are recently retired to help them discern how they want to live their next chapter of life. The program has been highly evaluated by participants in all years. For more information, go to www.nextchapterprogram.org.
Contact Amy O’Neil, Director of Development and Alumni Relations to find out more details about the next cohort by email at amy.oneil@marquette.edu, or phone (414) 288-7547.
Program Facilitator
Tom Auffenberg (Saint Louis University ’23)
Tom retired in 2016 after careers in teaching, law/financial planning and twenty-five years as a business owner. His education includes a BA in philosophy from the Santa Clara University, a law degree from St. Louis University, a Certified Financial Planner designation, an MA in Theology and a Certificate in Spiritual Direction from Aquinas Institute, and training to companion people making the Spiritual Exercises. Tom participated in a one-year program focusing on transitioning from the work years to the retirement years at The Halftime Institute and afterward became a Certified Halftime Coach. In addition to serving on several non-profit boards in the St. Louis community, Tom previously served as the Regional Coordinator for Contemplative Leaders in Action – St. Louis, and is currently the Program Director for The Next Chapter Program.
Testimonials
Transformative Reflections: Voices from the 2024 Program
“The program gave me the structure and forced me to carve out the time to ask myself important questions about who I want to be and what I want to do after I retire.”
“I believe that the schedule over months was great to have time to make changes, consider options, and to consider one piece at a time. The final plan is an amazing blueprint for making decisions and choices that are consistent with who I want to be during my next phase of life.”
Buy the Book!
In Discerning Retirement, Auffenberg provides an approach to planning for retirement grounded in Ignatian spirituality. This unique method guides the reader into a partnership with God as they carefully and prayerfully prepare for their next chapter of life. In the first six chapters of the book, readers are introduced to Ignatian styles of prayer, self-awareness exercises to increase their understanding of how God made them, approaches for identifying new good-fit pursuits, exercises for discerning how they will allocate their time in retirement, and an approach for making decisions in sync with God’s desires for them. In the final chapters, readers create a personal next chapter plan and learn how to successfully implement it.
For anyone contemplating retirement or who has recently retired and is unsure of how best to use this newfound freedom, this book offers a truly unique vision for retirement, one that is grounded in partnership with God and leads to a deeply satisfying and purposeful next chapter of life.
You can purchase Tom’s book here.
