Retirement Wishes and Quotes: 68 Messages for the Card, Plus Lines Traced to the Source

On March 2, 1809, two days before James Madison took over the presidency, Thomas Jefferson wrote to his friend Pierre Samuel Du Pont de Nemours that he was going home to "my family, my books, & farms," and that "never did prisoner, released from his chains, feel such relief as I shall on shaking off the shackles of power." Most retirees feel some version of that. A good retirement wish catches it in three moves: thank them for the work, name one thing they did that mattered, and wish them well with whatever they're retiring to. Below you'll find retirement wishes sorted by who is retiring, plus quotes we traced to the letter or poem they came from.

Five retirement wishes that fit almost any card:

• Congratulations on your retirement. Thank you for the years of good work, and enjoy every day that's finally your own.
• You made this a better place to work. Now go make the rest of your life just as good. Happy retirement!
• Here's to fewer alarms, longer lunches and all the plans you've been saving up. You've earned every one of them.
• Your career ends today, but the stories (and the friendships) don't. Congratulations, and keep in touch.
• Wishing you health, time and something new to look forward to every morning. Happy retirement.

Who's Retiring, and Which Tone Fits

The same card can read as warm or as stiff depending on who opens it. Match the tone to how well you know the retiree, then pick from the matching section further down.

Who's retiring	Tone that works, with an example
A coworker you sat near	Warm and specific: "The 3 p.m. coffee run won't be the same."
Your boss or manager	Grateful and respectful: "Thank you for trusting me with the hard projects."
A close friend	Playful and personal: "Finally, someone who's free on a Tuesday."
A teacher or professor	Thankful and reflective: "Hundreds of us carry something you taught us."
Mom, Dad or your spouse	Proud and loving: "Watching you work all those years taught me how."
Someone retiring for health reasons or earlier than planned	Gentle, no jokes about leisure: "I'm grateful I got to work beside you."

Retirement Wishes for a Coworker

A coworker's card usually goes around the office, so most people see only a few square inches of space. The lines that land are the ones that mention something only your team would know: the project, the desk, the running joke. If they're leaving for a new job rather than retiring, our farewell messages for a colleague who's moving on fit better.

• Congratulations on your retirement! The office is about to get a lot quieter and a lot less organized.
• Thank you for every time you showed me the shortcut nobody wrote down. I'll keep passing them on.
• Twenty-some years of showing up, helping out and keeping the rest of us sane. Enjoy the reward.
• You were the person everyone called when the system went down. Now nobody gets to call you. Enjoy it.
• I'll miss our Monday debriefs more than I'll admit in a group card. Happy retirement, friend.
• Wishing you a retirement as steady and generous as the way you did your job.
• You trained half of this department, and it shows every day. Thank you, and congratulations.
• Your desk will get a new owner, but your spot on this team stays yours. Come visit.
• Happy retirement! May your calendar be blank and your plans be entirely up to you.
• It was a privilege to work next to someone who cared this much. Go enjoy the next chapter.

Glad to Go: What Jefferson and Washington Wrote on Their Way Out

Two of the most quoted retirement lines in American history were not speeches but private letters, written by men who were openly relieved to be done. They suit the retiree who has been counting down the days.

"I retire to my family, my books, & farms & having gained the harbor myself, I shall look on my friends still buffeting the storm, with anxiety indeed, but not with envy."

— Thomas Jefferson, letter to Pierre Samuel Du Pont de Nemours (March 2, 1809)

Jefferson wrote this in the last week of his second term, in the same letter as the "shackles of power" line quoted above (the Monticello research site lists both as an extract from the letter, held at the Library of Congress). The harbor image is a gift for a retirement card from the team staying behind: it lets the retiree be openly glad to leave while the rest of you admit, with a wink, that you're still out in the storm. Try: "You've gained the harbor. We'll keep buffeting the storm, with anxiety indeed, but not with envy."

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"I am not only retired from all public employments, but I am retiring within myself; and shall be able to view the solitary walk, and tread the paths of private life with heartfelt satisfaction."

— George Washington, letter to the Marquis de Lafayette (February 1, 1784)

Washington wrote to Lafayette from Mount Vernon a few weeks after resigning his commission as commander in chief, describing himself as "a private citizen on the banks of the Potomac" sitting "under the shadow of my own Vine and my own Fig-tree." The same letter ends the passage with his plan to "move gently down the stream of life, until I sleep with my Fathers." That last clause is too somber for most cards, so quote the "paths of private life" sentence, or borrow the vine and fig tree for someone who is retiring to a garden. (Editions differ slightly in spelling and use "&" or "and"; the wording here is from the Teaching American History transcription.)

For a Boss or Manager Who's Retiring

Writing up the ladder makes people stiff. You don't need to be formal, just sincere: thank them for one specific thing they did for you or the team, and skip anything that sounds like you're glad they're going.

• Thank you for being the kind of boss people stay for. Congratulations on a career well led.
• You gave me my first real chance here, and I haven't forgotten it. Happy retirement.
• You always took the blame in public and gave the credit away. We noticed. Thank you.
• Wishing you a retirement with no budget meetings, no quarterly reviews and nobody asking "do you have a minute?"
• Your standards made all of us better at our jobs. Enjoy setting your own schedule for a change.
• It's rare to have a manager who is also a mentor. I was lucky to have both in you.
• Congratulations on your retirement. The decisions are someone else's now; the respect stays yours.

For a Friend Who Just Retired

With a friend you can be looser and more personal. Invite them to something; a retirement wish that comes with a plan is worth more than one that comes with a gift card.

• Welcome to the free-on-a-Tuesday club. Lunch is on me, and there's no rush to get back.
• You talked about this day for years. I'm so happy it's finally here for you.
• Congratulations! Now we can finally take that trip without checking anybody's vacation days.
• Retired, not done. I can't wait to see what you pick up next.
• Here's to the friend who worked hard enough for two careers. Enjoy the rest you've earned.
• Your weekdays just became weekends. Please use them to call me more.
• Happy retirement! You're the first of us to make it, so report back on what it's like.

Retirement Wishes for a Teacher or Professor

A teacher's retirement card often comes from former students, sometimes decades later, so the most moving lines name what stuck. One of the best poems about leaving a long career was written for exactly this kind of reunion.

"For age is opportunity no less
Than youth itself, though in another dress,
And as the evening twilight fades away
The sky is filled with stars, invisible by day."

— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, "Morituri Salutamus" (1875)

Longfellow wrote "Morituri Salutamus" as the poem for the fiftieth anniversary of his class of 1825 at Bowdoin College, addressed to classmates who were, like him, near the end of their working lives. Its point is that the later years have their own work and their own light. The closing image of stars visible only after dusk is a natural fit for a teacher who has spent a career helping others shine; write the four lines out in full, then add a sentence about what you learned in their room.

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• Thank you for the years of red pens, second chances and believing we'd get there. Happy retirement.
• Somewhere out there, hundreds of former students are still using what you taught them. Including me.
• You made a subject I dreaded into the one I chose. Congratulations on a career that changed lives.
• Enjoy the first September in years without a lesson plan. You've earned the summer that doesn't end.
• The bell rings for you one last time. Thank you for every class you gave your whole heart to.
• From one of the kids in the back row: you noticed me, and it mattered. Happy retirement.

Planning something for a teacher who isn't retiring yet? Our Teachers' Day messages cover thank-you notes for the middle of a career.

For Mom, Dad or Your Spouse

Family retirement cards can say what a coworker can't: what all that work made possible at home. Pride is the right note here, along with a little teasing about how they'll fill their time.

• Mom, you worked so we could have choices. Now it's your turn to choose everything. Happy retirement.
• Dad, thank you for every early shift you never complained about. Sleep in. You've earned it.
• Watching you go to work all those years taught me more than any job ever has. Congratulations.
• To my husband: welcome home for good. Please don't reorganize the kitchen in the first week.
• To my wife: you gave your best to that job for decades. Now I get the best of you all day. Lucky me.
• Happy retirement, Mom! The grandkids have already booked most of your Wednesdays.
• Dad, you always said you'd retire to the lake. The fish have no idea what's coming.

Funny Retirement Wishes That Don't Sting

Jokes work best about the job, the commute and the alarm clock, not about age, health or money. If the retiree is sensitive about getting older, tease the office instead of them. For more lines that land with a laugh, see our funny birthday messages; several of the same rules apply.

• Congratulations on your retirement! Your new boss is very relaxed and lets you nap at your desk.
• No more meetings that could have been an email. Just naps that could have been longer.
• Retirement: the only job where Monday feels exactly like Saturday.
• Please send us a postcard from your hammock. We'll be in the quarterly review, thinking of you.
• Your out-of-office reply is now permanent. Congratulations!
• Enjoy retirement. The printer has asked us to tell you it will not miss you.
• From now on, "I'm busy" means you're busy doing whatever you like. Use it often.
• We'll miss you, but not as much as your alarm clock is going to.

Short Lines for the Card, Cake or Banner

Cakes, banners and gift tags need five to ten words. These are short enough for icing or a sign at the party, and they also work as captions for a photo from the send-off.

• Happy retirement! The adventure starts now.
• Thank you for the years. Enjoy the freedom.
• Off duty. Forever.
• Clocked out. For good.
• Well done, well earned, well deserved.
• Retired: not tired, just free.
• The office will miss you. Your hammock won't.
• Cheers to your next chapter.

Not Slowing Down: Tennyson's Ulysses for the Restless Retiree

Some people retire to rest. Others retire to start something, and for them the most fitting poem in English is about a king who refuses to sit still.

"How dull it is to pause, to make an end,
To rust unburnish'd, not to shine in use!"

— Alfred Tennyson, "Ulysses," Poems (1842)

In Tennyson's poem, an aging Ulysses, home in Ithaca after the Trojan War, hands his kingdom to his son Telemachus and decides to sail out again with his old crew. He admits plainly, "you and I are old," but insists "Old age hath yet his honour and his toil." That makes it the right poem for the retiree who is already planning the business, the degree, the long road trip or the volunteer job. The couplet above works on its own; the lines below are the better pick for a card, because they're an invitation.

"Come, my friends,
'Tis not too late to seek a newer world."

— Alfred Tennyson, "Ulysses" (1842)

Written in a card from a group, "Come, my friends" turns into a toast from all of you. The poem's last line, "To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield," works well as a closing for a speech, though it can feel heavy in a short note.

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With a Blessing

For a religious retiree, a short blessing can replace the usual "enjoy your free time." Keep it in your own words unless you know which scripture or tradition they'd recognize.

• May God bless the years ahead with health, peace and the people you love.
• Thank you for serving so faithfully. May this new season be full of grace.
• Praying your retirement is restful, joyful and blessed in every way.
• May the work of your hands be remembered, and the days ahead be gentle.
• Wishing you a retirement filled with quiet mornings, good friends and God's peace.

When Retirement Wasn't Their Choice

Not every retirement is a celebration. When someone leaves because of illness, a caregiving crisis or a buyout they didn't want, skip the hammock jokes and the "lucky you." Thank them, honor the work, and leave the future open.

The most famous early exit in American sports is a good model of grace. On July 4, 1939, Lou Gehrig, forced out of baseball by the disease now often named after him (ALS), stood before 61,808 fans at Yankee Stadium and said, "Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth." By the commonly accepted text, he closed: "I might have been given a bad break, but I have an awful lot to live for." The Society for American Baseball Research notes that no complete recording or transcript of the speech is known to exist, so treat the wording as the accepted version, not a verbatim record. Quoting Gehrig in a card can feel heavy; his tone, grateful and unsentimental, is the thing to borrow.

• I'm grateful I got to work beside you. Whatever comes next, you have a lot of people in your corner.
• Your work here mattered, and it will keep mattering long after today. Thank you.
• No card can say how much we'll miss you. We're here for whatever you need.
• Thank you for every year you gave this place. Take care of yourself first now.
• This isn't how any of us wanted to say goodbye, but we wanted you to know how much you were valued.

Two Retirement-Party Favorites With the Wrong Name

Retirement cards borrow from the same few sayings, and two of the most popular ones usually carry the wrong credit.

"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream." This line is printed all over retirement cards with C. S. Lewis's name under it. Quote Investigator found no evidence that Lewis wrote it; the earliest match is the 1992 book Live Your Dreams by motivational speaker Les Brown, in a section titled "Never Too Old to Be Bold." The Lewis attribution appears to have spread after a 2006 newspaper included it in a Lewis collection. If you use it, credit Les Brown.

"We have done so much with so little for so long that we can now do anything with nothing." A retirement-party staple for the colleague who kept things running on a shoestring. Quote Investigator traces it to U.S. military culture: a 1942 newspaper column by Hugh S. Johnson praised General MacArthur for "doing so much with so little," and by 1960 the full form was a motto in the Air Force's Tactical Air Command, later spreading to Navy, Marine and Coast Guard units. It has no single author, so "as the old military motto goes" is the honest way to introduce it.

Writing Your Own: Thank, Name, Send Off

Most good retirement notes follow the same simple pattern, which is why they're easy to write once you see it:

• Thank: one sentence of gratitude for the years ("Thank you for twenty-two years of looking out for this team").
• Name: one specific thing they did that you remember. A habit, a save, a kindness. This is the line they'll reread.
• Send off: a wish aimed at what they're retiring to: the grandkids, the boat, the garden, the novel, or simply rest.

Worked example. Say Linda is retiring from the front desk of a clinic after 30 years and plans to spend winters near her daughter in Arizona. Thank: "Linda, thank you for thirty years of being the first kind face every patient saw." Name: "I still remember you calming a scared kid with a sticker and a joke while his mom filled out forms." Send off: "Enjoy the Arizona winters and every minute with your grandkids. We'll miss you at the desk." Three sentences, and it could only be for Linda.

What to leave out:

• Money talk: pensions, savings and "must be nice" comments.
• Age and health jokes unless you know for certain they'll laugh.
• "What will you even do all day?" Many retirees hear it constantly, and it stings.
• Office gossip or complaints about the people staying behind.
• Promises to visit that you won't keep. "Let's have lunch in March" beats "I'll come see you all the time."

Retirement Card Etiquette

Group card or personal card? If you worked closely with the retiree, sign the group card with a short line and send a personal note too; that's where the story belongs. If you barely knew them, a warm sentence in the group card is enough.

Timing. Start a group card at least a week before the last day so the people on leave, on other shifts or working remotely get a chance to sign. Hand it over at the party or on the final day, not after they've gone. A personal card can arrive a week or two later, when the noise has died down.

Signing. Use the name they actually know you by, and add your role or department in a large organization: "Sam (third floor, the one who borrowed your stapler)."

Gifts. If the office collects money, a card listing everyone who contributed is enough; you don't need a separate gift. Gifts tied to their plans, like a guidebook for the trip or seeds for the garden, mean more than generic ones. If retirement wasn't their choice, keep the gift simple and skip anything themed around leisure.

Thank-you notes. A retiree doesn't owe a note for a group card, but a short email to the whole team on the last day is a kind gesture. Our thank-you message guide has lines for that.

Retirement Card Questions

What should I write in a retirement card?

Thank them for their work, mention one specific thing they did that you remember, and wish them well with what they're retiring to, such as travel, family or rest. For example: "Thank you for every time you covered for me. Enjoy the lake house, you've earned it."

What can I say instead of "happy retirement"?

Try "Congratulations on a career well done," "Enjoy the next chapter," "Cheers to your freedom," "Well done, well earned, well deserved," or "Thank you for the years, enjoy every day that's your own."

How do you congratulate someone who just retired?

Say congratulations, name something they accomplished, and ask about their plans. A text like "Congratulations on retiring! What's the first thing on your list?" opens a conversation instead of ending one.

Did C. S. Lewis say "You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream"?

No. Quote Investigator found no evidence for Lewis; the earliest known source is Les Brown's 1992 book Live Your Dreams. Credit Brown if you use the line.

Sources checked for this page: Project Gutenberg texts of Tennyson's early poems ("Ulysses") and Longfellow's complete poetical works ("Morituri Salutamus"); Monticello's Thomas Jefferson research site (extract of the March 2, 1809 letter); Teaching American History (Washington to Lafayette, February 1, 1784); Society for American Baseball Research, "Lou Gehrig's Farewell Speech: July 4, 1939"; Quote Investigator on "never too old to set another goal" (2017) and "so much with so little" (2017). All messages not in quotation marks were written by the GreetingBirds editors.