HELLO, my name is Paul Ranelli
Hometown: Born in New Haven, Connecticut. Raised in Old Saybrook, Connecticut.
When did you become a member of UMRA? Soon after I retired in January 2022.
What was your very first job? Father’s community pharmacy. Started about age 10, doing 10-year-old things.
Where were you on November 22, 1963? In Old Saybrook, in our public-school classroom; an announcement came over the loudspeaker. Early dismissal. I was a walker to school. I went home and was glued to the TV for days.
What was your occupation when you retired from FT work? I was a professor at the University of Minnesota's College of Pharmacy, social pharmacy specialty. I was based on the college's Duluth campus for all my time with the University, just shy of 20 years.
What sparked your interest in using the arts to illustrate how medications impact patients’ lives? I was looking for unique ways to communicate with patients, practitioners, and health science students, including student pharmacists, about the complexity associated with medication-taking. The theater and visual arts have been where I've put my energy over the last 10 years of my career. I've had several projects hit the stage or exhibit space.
Do you have a favorite place on the U of M campus? When I come to the Twin Cities, I like Scholars Walk. On the UMD campus, I like the view of Lake Superior and the campus from my perch in the Malosky Stadium Press Box. That’s where I do public address announcing for the UMD women's soccer team.
What is a fun fact about you we might not know? I did community theater in Shawano, Wisconsin, when I was a practicing pharmacist for the Menominee Tribal Clinic in Keshena. One role: played Felix Unger in The Odd Couple.

What is something you currently enjoy doing with your time? In addition to my UMD public address announcing (women’s soccer and softball), I do voice overs, too. My photography. And, last but not least, I perform as Santa Claus for the Christmas City Express program at the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth.
News
The election of UMRA officers and new board members for 2025–26 will be conducted via an online poll from May 12 to 18, with the results to be announced at our annual meeting on May 20. Sally Gregory Kohlstedt leads the slate of nominees as president-elect. She came to the University of Minnesota in 1989 as a professor and associate dean, and retired in 2018.
On April 30, the UMRA Board of Directors sent a letter to University of Minnesota President Rebecca Cunningham and Provost Rachel Croson expressing the Board's support for the University admnistration as it confronts the legal, ethical, and moral challenges created by the current federal leadership.
Meet UMRA member and statistics Professor Emeritus Sandy Weisberg. His work in “regression analysis” is the direct ancestor of predictive artificial intelligence. His first job was renting televisions to patients in the now-defunct Queen of Angels Hospital in Los Angeles.
The UMRA-sponsored Journal of Opinions, Ideas & Essays is seeking a new editor-in-chief who can promote the e-publication, solicit authors, and ensure JOIE’s continued success.
Volunteer work is usually evaluated according to “replacement rate” figures based on hourly wages. But the data on hours contributed and people served are just the notes on the page; the music is in the human spirit behind and beyond them.
The University Retirees Volunteer Center Leadership Council has elected two new members, including UMRA member Scott Elton (pictured), and re-elected four members for second, three-year terms.
UMRA is excited to announce the launch of a new member portal in late April. This web-based, member management software system is hosted by a company called WildApricot and will replace the current member portal at retirees.umn.edu, where you currently renew your membership and sign up for events.
The new portal simplifies and more efficiently manages many essential tasks for UMRA, including enrolling new members, updating member records, registering event attendees, and processing payments.