But for 71-year-old John Foster, retirement was just the start of a brave new venture.
###
Foster and the rest of his six-member team from Woodgate Rural Fire Brigade are battling a fierce bushfire in Australia — and they’re all over the age of 70.
###
“Some call us Dad’s Army. We don’t mind,” Foster said in a Facebook post Thursday.
###
The team of septuagenarians includes John, Keith, Ray, Glenda, Noel and Henk.
###
“Let’s say we are all between 70 and 74. We do this because we believe, I guess, in supporting the community,” Foster told CNN on Friday.
###
“We are part of a much wider effort involving many members of the Fire Brigade and other Brigades from our local area and now a team from New Zealand.”
###
Australia is reeling from deadly bushfires, with more than 1,300 firefighters battling flames that have ravaged the states of Queensland and New South Wales this past month.
###
Four people have died in this year’s blazes, which have been exacerbated by hot, dry weather.
###
Foster’s team of volunteers is focusing on a bushfire in Woodgate, Queensland. The team has been battling the blaze for more than two days now, helping to protect a community of around 1,000 people.
###
“We’re mainly extinguishing them — we only cover bushfires — we are one of many (volunteer brigades) in Queensland,” he said.
###
Foster decided to take a photo when they were out and realized they were all over the age of 70.
###
But what prompted him to join up as a firefighter?
###
Put simply, he wanted to make friends and support his local community.
###
“When I moved to the country from a city a friend said if you want to meet people join the local Rural Fire Brigade — so I did. It’s community support and they are all over Queensland.”
###
Foster told CNN he is likely to be working to extinguish the fire for a few more days and described it as tiring work.
###
“I’m getting tired now and am heading to bed — we have a couple more days to run with this fire.”
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey