About this Page
Here are brief descriptions of some of the ways UURMaPA seeks to help you stay connected with other UURMaPAns and information about membership. You may also want to check our Publications page to download useful documents, including our Directories, Retirement Guide and Elderberries newsletters.
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Purposes of UURMaPA
Our purpose is stated in the bylaws: “In faithfulness to the Unitarian Universalist tradition and to the guidelines and code of conduct of the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association and the Unitarian Universalist Society for Community Ministries, the members of the Unitarian Universalist Retired Ministers and Partners Association embody in our lives and our conduct with each other the values that we proclaim on behalf of our faith. Our purpose is to be an inclusive multicultural community that serves the interests and enhances the well-being of retired Unitarian Universalist ministers and their life partners through informational communication, periodic membership gatherings, and other supportive programs and activities. As a Unitarian Universalist organization of professionals and partners, we recognize that fulfilling our purpose calls us to cultivate anti-oppressive attitudes and practices consistent with our shared values, thereby promoting our collective well-being.”
UURMaPA works with the leadership of the UUA and the UUMA to represent the interests of our membership, and to offer creative input to the process of making decisions that affect our movement and its future. UURMaPA is recognized by the US Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)3 non-profit charitable organization so all donations are tax-deductible. We have no paid staff and all our work is entirely accomplished by volunteers like you! Thank you.
Governance Overview
UURMaPA is managed by an elected nine-person Board, which meets monthly, usually by video conference, and ideally at least once a year in person. See our Governance page for more information. The President is always eager to hear directly from members about concerns.
History
UURMaPA was organized in 1985 with support from the UUA Department of Ministry, and under the name UU Retired Ministers Association (UURMA). This followed a series of gatherings of retired ministers and partners hosted by Harold and Shirley Hadley, beginning about 1982, to talk about the needs of and resources for retired UU clergy and their partners. Among those in the early gatherings were Harold and Arnold Westwood, Walter Kring, and Keith Munson and their spouses.
A grant from the Veach Committee of $5000 and additional support from the UUA and the NY State Universalist Convention helped the initial organizing efforts and funded a conference held in 1985 in Petersham, NH, during which bylaws were drafted and officers elected. The first issue of Elderberries actually preceded the formal organization by a few months. UURMA was a chapter of the UU Ministers Association. In 1997 UURMA was re-organized and incorporated as a separate entity. The name was changed to UU Retired Ministers and Partners (UURMaPA) to reflect the full membership of partners and surviving widows and widowers. UURMaPA gained IRS 501(c)3 status in 2004.*
More can be gleaned by reviewing the archive of Elderberries found on the Publications page.
* From information compiled by Nancy Doughty, Sept. 2007, which includes information from an interview with some of the founders and early leaders. Additional information is from Elderberries.
Local Area Connectors
Over UURMaPA’s history, members residing throughout North America and Overseas have stepped up to serve as “Connectors” for those living in their geographical area. Their chosen areas have often mirrored historical UUMA Chapter or Cluster structures.
In general, Connectors facilitate their neighbors’ access to UURMaPA programs and activities and their relationships with one another.
Specifically,
– they facilitate welcomes for their Areas’ new retirees and newly arrived residents,
– they foster neighbors’ participation in Area and All-UURMaPAn opportunities to deepen connections,
– they participate in UURMaPA’s support for colleagues and their families at times of challenge and loss.
UURMaPA’s Corrections Coordinator (current office-holder listed under Governance) seeks volunteers to serve as Local Area Connectors on an annual basis. As many as 40 areas (typically about 30 households each) have been served by Connectors over the years. Volunteers, however, are not identified in every area, every year.
Contact information for the current Connectors can be found here.
If no Connector is listed for your Area, you are warmly invited to contact the Connections Coordinator to explore how this vacancy might be filled. Email connections@uurmapa.org or see Governance for other contact information.
DIRECTORIES:
— Your listing in the Membership Directory includes the name of your current “Connections Area.”
— The Area Connections Directory (alphabetical by Area name) shows the ministers and partners currently living in each Area. Current Connectors’ names are bolded.
Both Directories are linked under Publications and access to each is password-protected. Any UURMaPAn will be given the current password upon request to any UURMaPA Board member or to the Membership Coordinator. (Listed under Governance). NOTE: Transition to a new online UURMaPA Membership system is underway (Sept. 2024) and will likely result in the eventual movement away from posted Directories.
Membership Directory
Our Membership Directory lists UURMaPA members (retired ministers and partners) and gives contact information as well as indicating their Connections Area. The Membership Directory is updated monthly. The most recent one can be downloaded as a PDF file from the Publications page.
The Directory also includes information about UURMaPA’s leadership. A companion document, the Area Connections Directory shows the membership by regional areas. It can be downloaded separately from the Publications page.
Our Newsletter (Elderberries)
Our quarterly newsletter, Elderberries, is published and available usually in early February, May, August and November. All UURMaPA member households can receive a mailed, black-and-white version; it is not necessary to subscribe. A notice goes out on the UURMaPA-announce email list when the full-color version is posted on our web site. You may opt out of receiving it by mail if you prefer to read it online; send a message to notify our membership coordinator of this preference. While the specific content will vary from one issue to the next and one editor to the next, Elderberries generally contains news of members, articles of interest written by UURMaPA members, information pertinent to retirees, and brief obituaries. (Longer versions of these obituaries are archived on our web site on the Obituariespage).
You can download the most recent issue of Elderberries as well as archived issues from our Publications page.
Connections Groups
Upon becoming a UURMaPAn, and at any time thereafter, ALL members are invited to join into a facilitated small group experience. Somewhat like Small Group Ministry or Chalice Circles, they
* have up to eight members
* covenant to meet regularly by Zoom technology (usually monthly, for 60-90 minutes)
* have one member “convenor” who lightly facilitates the session
* open & close with a Chalice Lighting/Extinguishing reading
* devote perhaps 50% of the session to “Deep Check-Ins” (?5 minutes/person)
* devote the remaining time to a group-chosen discussion topic (and choosing the next session’s topic)
Group covenants are opened for renewal or ending annually. Many groups welcome mid-covenant entrants.
If you are interested in helping form a new group or joining an on-going group, contact the Connections Coordinator. Email connections@uurmapa.org or see Governance for other contact information.
Focused Support Groups
UURMaPA facilitates the formation of member groups who covenant to focus on specific shared interests. Groups currently active and open to new participants are:
* Caregivers
An on-line support group for UURMaPA members who are partners in care meets monthly. If you are caring for another person, you are welcome to join us for an hour of check-in, shared resources, and caring for one another. We covenant for confidentiality. The group meets using Zoom technology, which can be used from a computer, tablet, or smartphone with a camera or you can phone in. The facilitators will help you get set up to use Zoom if you are new to the technology. For more information and to join the group, contact caregivers@uurmapa.org.
* Grief Support
An on-line support group for URMaPAns who have been recently widowed and are grieving the loss of their partner meets monthly. For an hour and a half we check in, catch up as we process our grief, and share resources. Each of us grieves in our own way. We offer a safe and confidential space to find support in our separate journeys. For more information and to join the group, contact dfickeisen@uuma.org.
To explore forming a group with any specific focus, contact the Connections Coordinator. Email connections@uurmapa.org or see Governance for other contact information.
E-Mail Announcements
Our e-mail list (UURMaPA-announce) is used to send you occasional and timely information from UURMaPA, including news, notices of member deaths, and opportunities to connect. The list is open only to members and is used only for UURMaPA business, and is not shared with anyone beyond UURMaPA. This is a one-way list to post announcements to all UURMaPA members. It is not for discussion. If you do not already receive these messages and would like to, send a request with your e-mail address to membership@uurmapa.org. After your membership is verified, your address will be added to the list.
UURMaPA on Facebook
We have a Facebook page (UURMaPA) where announcements are posted. This is an open (public) page. You can check it out here and “Like” the page to see postings in your Facebook feed.
Our discussion group for both ministers and partners can be found here: UURMaPA (Unitarian Universalist Retired Ministers and Partners Association) Simply ask to join the group and an administrator will quickly approve your request if your Facebook profile shows a UU connection. If it doesn’t, you will need to answer some questions to establish your UU affiliation before you are approved. It is a private group so only members can see the posts, although the membership is public.
There is also a “secret” Facebook group for UU Ministers in Fellowship who are thinking about retirement, in the process of retiring, or who have retired, and are interested in conversation about the experience, planning, execution, and how life is from the “other side” of active ministry. Called “UU Ministers Retiring,” the list is open by invitation only, and is not maintained by UURMaPA. A Facebook “Secret” group means that no one who is not part of the group can find it, view postings, or see who else is in the group. To learn more and request membership, send an e-mail message to Diane Miller, who created and administers the group or reach out to her on Facebook.
UURMaPA Conferences
We have traditionally (before the pandemic) held two multi-day annual conferences at retreat centers. Designed to keep costs relatively low, they included lodging, meals, programming and plenty of time to hang out and chat with other members. Usually these had 40 to 60 participants. One was held in the Fall in the Northeast; the other during the winter, in a warmer clime.
Our most previous in-person event was in February, 2020, just before the pandemic struck. Since then, we have been pioneering how to come together virtually twice a year (or more). This has been both encouraging to many UURMaPAns who would be unable to travel but can now join in online, and a bit frustrating to those who miss the in-person connections possible onsite.
Beginning with Fall 2022, we have experimented with a “pod” option to the virtual conference, whereby at a few select sites, UURMaPAns can gather to share the viewing of the virtual content, have meals together and enjoy other aspects of the time with each other.
To learn more about planned and past conferences and to register, go to our Activities page.
Local Gatherings
Local gatherings are organized by local members, typically within one of the Connections Areas. We may gather for lunch, a holiday party, or an excursion. Whatever you can imagine that might be of interest to members nearby is welcome, but you’ll need to provide the organization power to make it happen. We’ll coach you if you like and help you let others know about it through the Area Connections Coordinator and social media. If you want to explore making one of these happen, check out our Conference Planning Guide, which can be downloaded from our Activities page and reach out to the Conferences Liaison on the the Board.
Annual Summer Welcoming Event
UURMaPA used to host an annual luncheon during UUA General Assembly each June to honor and welcome newly retired ministers and their partners. During the pandemic, we substituted a virtual gathering in July. Post pandemic, we tried to begin them again, but noted the high cost and relatively low turnout of new members at in-person GA lunches and we decided instead to annually send new members a gift and invite them to participate in a virtual welcome gathering in July.
At this event the UURMaPA board provides a brief orientation to UURMaPA services, announces winners of our annual awards—Creative Sageing and Unsung UURMaPAn—and invites staff members of the UUA and UUMA to speak about issues relevant to retired persons. We also invite all current members to attend this virtual meeting as well to welcome our new colleagues. Watch the UURMaPA-announce e-mail list for information about registering for the virtual new member welcome gathering in July.
Financial Assistance
If you need financial assistance (or know of another member who does), there are several funds available through the UUA to support needs of retired ministers, partners, and surviving partners. Please do not hesitate to contact the UUA Office of Church Staff Finances or your Area Connections Coordinator to talk about the need and explore possible sources of aid.
Unitarian Universalist Society for Ministerial Relief
The UU Society for Ministerial Relief, now nearly 170 years old, is the single largest source of needs-based financial aid for our retired ministers and survivors. Each year they provide over $400,000 in annual and special grants to beneficiaries in North America, as well as in Transylvania and the Philippines. If you find yourself or someone you know in financial distress, do reach out. You can learn more and access our confidential financial information form at our website, where you can also find current contact information for inquiries.
UURMaPA Membership
A lifetime membership in UURMaPA is automatically extended to all ministers in fellowship with the UUA when they formally announce their retirement. At the same time a lifetime membership is extended to their life partners. It is not necessary to apply.
Our membership as of September 1, 2019 included 669 retired ministers, 364 life partners, 176 surviving life partners of deceased ministers, 257 single ministers, and 46 clergy couples. Together they represent 850 households. This was an increase of 114 households since late 2015. (Updated figures coming.)
When is a UU minister considered retired?
Ministers in fellowship with the UUA are considered retired when they announce their retirement formally to the Ministries and Faith Development Staff Group of the UUA. Their years of service are subsequently recognized at a Service of the Living Tradition, which is held in conjunction with the UUA General Assembly. UURMaPA used to host a luncheon at each GA for new retirees, but this honoring welcome is now accomplished with an online event each summer, not too long after GA.
Many ministers opt for retirement when their settled ministry with a congregation, or their professional relationship with another employer-organization, ends. Many retired ministers continue to work as interim or contract ministers with UU congregations for several years during retirement. Some retired ministers seek ways to earn money in secular fields. So while many ministers remain employed in some way, they still can be “retired” for purposes of ministerial standing. Partners may or may not be concurrently retired.
Some ministers are designated as Minister Emeritus/a by a congregation they previously served. Only a minority of retirees have this status, and these individuals have voting rights at the UUA General Assembly.
Further information on official retirement may be found on the UUA website.