NEWS

Time to renew your membership

Soon you will be receiving an email or letter inviting you to renew your UMRA membership for the 2023–24 year. We hope that you’ll renew before you get busy with your summer activities. Even better, go right now to Member Portal > Renew Membership and renew. If we get renewals by the start of UMRA’s fiscal year on July 1, we’ll have a handle on how much money we’ll have to work with next year.

If you’re on the fence about renewing, let me make a case for why you should. UMRA is all about opportunities, and this past year we offered a lot of them

 

  • Six in-person luncheon forums and three virtual forums with talks by prominent public figures including Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon and University political scientist Kathryn Pearson
  • Eight virtual living well workshops on topics ranging from bone health to taking advantage of the University of Minnesota Libraries
  • A well-attended summer social at Como Park and a lovely boat ride down the Mississippi River in the fall
  • A wide range of special interest groups, where you could connect with others to read, hike, and take pictures, or learn about family history, travel, and financial issues
  • Easy and meaningful ways to do volunteer service through the University Retirees Volunteer Center and UMRA’s new Silver Gophers Service Corps
  • Grants for research and professional development, with nine retirees receiving them this year
  • Publication of articles by UMRA members in the online Journal of Opinions, Ideas & Essays

UMRA also advocated on your behalf. When the University announced a plan to discontinue UMN email privileges for retirees, we were able to secure a pledge that UMRA members would continue to have access to their UMN emails and associated Google workspaces.

UMRA is an all-volunteer organization that depends on membership dues. I think we provide a terrific deal for our $30 annual dues charge. I hope you agree and will renew your membership for the coming year.

—Ron Matross, UMRA president


Published:

News

Meet UMRA member Millie Woodbury, a lifelong world traveler whose favorite place on campus is Aisle C, Seat 24, at Northrop Auditorium. 

Published:

Eight retirees from the Twin Cities and Morris campuses have been chosen to receive 2024 awards from UMRA’s Professional Development Grants for Retirees Program. As in previous years, their projects cover a diverse set of topics, reflecting the breadth of studies and continuing professional activities undertaken by University retirees. 

Published:

Many of us are busy switching from using our UMN email to another email account – or at least contemplating how to go about it. This Tips & Tricks article highlights several key steps you may want to take, or need to take, as you make this change. Instructions are also included for making this change to your UMRA account login and UMRA member communications.

Published:

The 2024 PDGR grants have been decided and awarded.  Seven grants were awarded to a variety of worthy studies.

Published:

UMRA’s mission is, in part, that of advocating for the University. There are several ways to show that support to your elected officials, including emails, phone calls, visits to your elected representatives, and rallies coordinated by the U.  

Published:

Meet UMRA member Julie Westlund. She retired as the director of UMD Career and Internship Services, a position she enjoyed for 30-plus years—serving students and doing meaningful work to make a difference in their lives.  

Published:

The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute is offering a free, online lecture series this spring to showcase work and research taking place at the U, with topics ranging from cancer treatment to awesome apples and design in everyday objects.

Published:

Working with Great River Greening, the Silver Gopher Service Corps is recruiting volunteers to photograph plants, insects, and critters and then crowdsource species identification with the iNaturalist app.

Published:

UMRA members now have two convenient online giving options for making donations to support UMRA programs and activities.

Published:

UMRA runs on volunteers. The Program Committee is a great way to have an impact with a very reasonable time commitment. 

Published:

The Nominating Committee invites you to contribute to UMRA by volunteering to run for election to serve on UMRA’s Board of Directors or by nominating someone else who would add value and perspective to our organization.

Published: