Leaving a Career Without Leaving Purpose Behind
After 35 years in commercial real estate, Chris Manola could have treated retirement as an opportunity to do considerably less.
Instead, retirement changed where she directs her energy.
Since leaving the industry in 2021, Chris has developed a strikingly varied second chapter. She is a certified yoga instructor and sound meditation guide. She is a film actor with 25 IMDb credits. She volunteers locally, serves nonprofit organizations and was recently appointed to the Board of Directors of Friends of the Crete Township Community Center.
The common denominator is not a particular profession. It is usefulness.
Chris has found different ways to remain active in the community where she lives, often through work that brings people together.
From Commercial Real Estate to the Yoga Mat
Through Humble Warrior Yoga, Chris leads sound meditation and breath work sessions on the last Monday of every month from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Crete Township Community Center, 25930 S. Cottage Grove Avenue.
Crystal singing bowls, breathing exercises and guided meditation form the foundation of the sessions.
“Our nervous systems are not equipped to handle the relentless demands of modern life,” Chris says.
Her aim is to give participants an opportunity to experience calm while learning techniques they can use beyond the session itself.
Chris also teaches yoga Tuesdays from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Crete Park on Main, 1374 Main Street. It is another way she has made wellness part of her regular involvement in the community.
A Broader Definition of Service
Teaching is only one part of Chris’s schedule.
She volunteers at the Crete Lions Club Recycling Center at 1215 Douglas Lane, where community members are encouraged to lend a hand. The current volunteer hours are 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. on Monday, Thursday and Friday; 7:00 a.m. to noon on Tuesday and Saturday; and 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. and 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday.
Chris makes the commitment sound refreshingly manageable. Even one hour a week helps. Profits generated through the Recycling Center are directed back into the community.
Her own service was recently recognized when she was named Lion of the Year by the Crete Lions Club.
She is also a founding member of the Crete Community Runners Association and serves on several local nonprofit boards.
A New Role at the Community Center
Chris’s appointment to Friends of the Crete Township Community Center adds another dimension to that work.
The Friends of the Crete Township Community Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization supporting the center through social activities, classes and civic events. Its work also includes raising funds for operations, identifying grant opportunities and developing programs and events for Crete Township and surrounding communities.
The connection is particularly fitting because the center is already where Chris conducts her monthly sound meditation sessions.
Choosing What Comes Next
Retirement is often described in terms of what someone stops doing. Chris’s experience offers another way of looking at it.
A long career can end without ending curiosity or the desire to contribute. What changes is the freedom to decide where that energy goes next.
“Your inner peace can transform the world,” Chris says.
Her own second act suggests that purpose can evolve without disappearing. Sometimes it becomes more local, more personal and easier to see.
Learn More
Sound meditation takes place on the last Monday of each month from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Crete Township Community Center. Call 708.722.1857 and leave a message to register.
Register for Chris’s Tuesday yoga classes at Cretepark.com. Learn more about the Friends of the Crete Township Community Center at https://cretetownship.com and Humble Warrior Yoga.
For Crete Lions Club Recycling Center volunteer inquiries, email cretelionsclub1215douglas@gmail.com.
