Abbott volunteered at Rosebud Indian Reservation in 1965–66, then community development director in Transitional Housing Program for Sioux tribe at Rosebud, 1966–67. After that, he became an elementary schoolteacher in Lost Creek, KY, 1967–68, followed by being a social worker for the city of Louisville, KY, 1967–68. He then became a social worker in Massachusetts: Pittsfield (1969–70), South End, 1970–73, and finally Newburyport, (1973–).[1]