Giving Back Key to Happy Retirement for Former Basketball Standout

It’s Friday and Rollin Cutter and his wife of 50-plus years, Maridee, are going about their Friday routine – they get a cappuccino at the local Speedway, then load up a dozen or so meals at the Riverview Hospital loading docks and perform their Meals on Wheels route for the week. Afterward, they grab lunch at Eddie’s Corner Café on Noblesville’s scenic square.

Not a particularly unusual routine for a couple of retired educators. They’d be the first to tell you that there are a healthy number of retired teachers who are giving back to their communities in numerous ways. But then you might notice the gold ring on Rollin’s right hand. And if you take a second look, you will see “Milan High School – Indiana High School State Champions” embossed upon it.

To any native Hoosier or basketball fan, the reference to Milan High School is legendary. The “real story” behind the movie “Hoosiers,” it makes “The Little Engine that Could” look like a shoo-in. The tiny Ripley County team representing the school of 161 students beat the mighty Muncie Central Bearcats in the 1954 Indiana High School Athletic Association Basketball State Championship Tournament. And Rollin Cutter was a sophomore on that legendary team.

Milan Basketball

Rollin went on to play basketball for Butler, coach high school basketball and serve as a guidance counselor. In 1998, he retired from the guidance department of Noblesville High School at the young age of 60.

“I retired in the midst of my still-productive years,” recalls Cutter, “when I could enjoy myself.” While he says he plays golf at the local Fox Prairie Golf Course two to three times a week (with his buddies who have dubbed themselves the “Over-the-Hill Gang”), it has not been the focus of his retirement; he worked a few jobs to keep busy, including at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the Indy 500 and Brickyard and driving cars for delivery for Hare Chevrolet – just for “something to do,” Cutter says.

“My wife and I decided we would travel as much as we possibly could because we knew we wouldn’t always be able to.” They moved to a low-maintenance neighborhood that allows them the freedom to “pack a bag, turn the heat down and go.”

Twelve years later, the couple is still traveling with a Mediterranean cruise booked for next year. They celebrated their golden wedding anniversary with their son, grandsons and daughter on a seven-day Caribbean cruise during last year’s spring break. He says, “Family is just very important to us. We spend a lot of time watching our grandsons participate in sports and visiting our daughter who now lives in West Virginia.”

From the community’s perspective, they are fully entrenched volunteers. Meals on Wheels of Hamilton County is just one of the ways they stay active helping others. They are active with their church, the Noblesville Lions Club and the Indiana Retired Teachers Association for which he has been the treasurer practically since his retirement. Maridee knits baby blankets for under-served newborns and prayer quilts for their church; she counts the tithe on Monday.

With a dozen years of retirement under his belt, Rollin Cutter has some advice for others. “You can’t just rest on your laurels … you have to DO something. Retirement doesn’t mean you just STOP; you continue to be active. And we believe that we have enjoyed such good health because we have stayed active.”

Interested in following Cutter’s advice and become more involved, increase your activity? Click here to see a list of volunteer opportunities.

Article by Pat Pickett