Volunteer for UMRA committee tasks, serve others, and get to know new colleagues
Have you been searching for a volunteer activity that provides service to others and allows you to work on tasks with friends? Or do you prefer to work on tasks more independently? There’s a place for you in our work for retirees.
Over the next months of summer, UMRA will be getting organized for next year, and there will be several opportunities for you to get involved.
Two groups planning now for new directions are described below. Please make your interests and availability known.
New UMRA Newsletter needs writers and editors
Join a team that will be advancing our communications to serve retirees with an e-newsletter. Currently, getting the news out depends on the work of essentially two people—a newsletter editor and a website webmaster. Because this lean arrangement can be precarious as well as time-consuming, we are forming a volunteer “editorial board” to spread the planning, managing, and content-gathering tasks among several volunteers as we move into an electronic newsletter.
If you like to write, enjoy editing, or if you can assist with collecting incoming news, please join us. If you like the idea of an e-newsletter and want to help combine our website information with an e-news function, we need you!
This new endeavor is in the planning stages now. Let us know of your interest. Contact Ginny Hanson, newsletter editor, [email protected], or David Naumann, webmaster, [email protected].
The UMRA Cares Committee
In the process of reorganizing and expanding in new directions, the Cares group needs volunteers to help plan and develop a variety of initiatives to assist UMRA members.
The Cares Committee was first appointed in 2013 by President Ron Anderson to reach out to UMRA members and their families when a death or serious illness occurs. Condolence cards are also sent to non-member faculty and staff when we have the name and address of a surviving spouse/partner. Recently the committee’s focus has turned to finding resources for member concerns about health and aging through programs, workshops, and individual contacts.
If you are interested in assisting with this committee work, please contact Earl Nolting, 651-633-4333; [email protected], who will answer any questions you may have.
For information about working with these or any of the other UMRA committees, contact incoming president Chip Peterson, 651-699-4286 or [email protected].
News
Make your own discoveries in Portugal in 2025 on this journey to medieval monasteries, fertile vineyards and cities that are equal parts history and modern energy. Deadline to express an interest is Friday June 7, 2024.
Spend eight nights in Madrid and Barcelona in 2025. Express your interest by June 7, 2024.
Embrace the colorful history of the Canadian Maritime provinces for 11 nights in 2025. Express your interest by June 7, 2024.
Spend four nights in Québec City in 2025. Express your interest by June 7, 2024.
Spend 9 nights on the Douro River in Portugal in 2025. Express your interest by June 7, 2024.
Embrace and explore Mexico City as it showcases all facets of Mexico’s national character in 2025. Deadline to express an interest is Friday, June 7, 2024.
Bright and bold living history awaits you in beautiful St. Augustine, Florida in 2025. Express your interest by June 7, 2024.
The election of UMRA officers and new board members for 2024–25 will be conducted via an online poll from May 13 to 19, with the results to be announced at our annual meeting on May 21. Look for the ballot in your email inbox on May 13. Diane Young has been nominated to be president-elect.
“I convinced myself I could handle this problem without support groups or doing additional research, but that’s only because I didn’t want to make it any more real than it already was. Denial comes in many forms, and one is to avoid thinking about the problem any more than need be.” —Alice A. Larson
Meet UMRA member Peter Moe. He retired in 2023 after a career that spanned nearly half a century at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, and is credited with developing the “Arb” into one of the few in the U.S. with world-class fruit and landscape breeding programs.
The University Retirees Volunteer Center (URVC) has welcomed two new members with valuable skills and experience to the URVC Leadership Council: Lynn Slifer and Jeanne Jacobson.
The University plans to remove retirees from the @umn.edu internet identity domain on December 7. UMRA has advocated for ensuring continued access to this identity (including email, Google Workspace, and associated services), citing University retirees’ enduring contributions to and engagement with the University. Thus far, our efforts have not prompted any change of plans.
Leading the online Journal of Opinions, Ideas & Essays has been a labor of love for Kris Bettin. Alas, a change in family needs has necessitated her retirement. So, JOIE is seeking a new leader to join a savvy editorial committee of five and bring fresh ideas for continued development of the UMRA-sponsored journal.
If you’re looking for an opportunity to explore your photographic interests, hone your photographic skills, and hear what other retirees are up to, the UMRA Photo Club is a great place to be. We have fun! And whatever your skill level, there is room for everybody.
Soon you will receive an email or letter inviting you to renew your UMRA membership for the 2024–25 year. Please renew before you get busy with your summer activities. Your support helps to make our programs and many other member benefits possible!
This will be a new regular column where you can find organizational tasks that need your help! We are currently looking for help researching a new UMRA Membership Database and URVC volunteer database, and a co-producer for UMRA's Zoom webinars. See more details: