The Annual Missouri Retired Teachers Association (MRTA) Region 6 Meeting/Luncheon was held on April 21, 2023 at the First Assembly of God Church, Osceola, Missouri with 80 retired teachers, retired school personnel and guests in attendance. As members of MRTA, the membership of this organization promotes education and provides resources to teachers and school personnel. In addition, they are devoted to promoting the advancement of the teaching profession and safeguarding the teacher and retired school personnel pension program.
Guest Wendy Bernier, MRTA Region 5 Vice President, led the group in a song she composed about MRTA for this Region 6 meeting.
Five Committee chairs gave a report—Membership, Mary Newcomb; Legislative, Faye Peters (given by Cay Sergent); Retirement Education, Loree Walrath; Information and Protective Services, Evelyn Boyle; and Community Service, Glenda Ware.
The MRTA Distinguished Retiree from Region 6, Marilyn Parratt, was introduced. Marilyn Parratt hails from Clinton and is a member of the Henry County Retired Teachers and Retired School Personnel. Marilyn spent 38 years being employed in a PEERS position for the Clinton School District as a Special Needs Classroom Aide and a bus driver.
Two Units of Region 6 was recognized for receiving the 2022 Unit of Excellence. The Units recognized were Henry County Retired Teachers and Retired School Personnel and West Central Unit of Retired School Personnel Speakers for the event included Martha Schatz, Missouri Retired Teachers Association( MRTA) State President; Karen Miller, Missouri Retired Teachers Foundation (MRTF) President; ; Kell Smalley, AMBA (Association Member Benefits Advisors) Representative; and Maria Walden, who spoke as MRTA Executive Director and also on behalf of PSRS/PEERS. Sarah Hoeller, Assistant Executive Director of MRTA, was in attendance. The blessing for the lunch was given by Kay Zimmer, Pastor of Vista United Methodist Church.
A special thank you was extended to the First Assembly of God Church members for preparing and serving the meal, setting up the hall, and designing the floral arrangements. Thank you to St. Clair County Unit for being the hostess to this annual event.
The MRTA Region 6 includes Bates, Benton, Cedar, Dallas, Henry, Hickory, Polk, St. Clair, and Vernon counties and boasts ten separate groups of retired teachers and retired school
personnel. The Unit presidents for the counties were recognized.
Presentations were made by Classroom Grant winners Rikki Mesh, Clinton Intermediate School; Shelby Loane, El Dorado Springs Elementary; Kay Ruby, LeesvilleR-9 Elementary (read by MRTA member Sandra Braithwait) and PEERS Grant winner, Jacqueline Smith, Stockton R-1 Middle School. The reports provided a summary of how the grant winners were using the grant money.
The 2023 Attendance Award for the group with the largest attendance at this meeting was won by the Henry County Retired Teachers and Retired School Personnel unit. Then, a drawing for door prizes was held.
Closing remarks were made by the Region 6 Vice President, Virgilene Cook, who served as MC for the day.
