About 350 UFT members who retired from service in 2024 assembled at the New York Hilton Midtown on Dec. 5 to toast to their life after New York City public schools. The recent retirees were treated to a sumptuous lunch as well as a vendor fair where they learned about health care options such as the UFT Welfare Fund’s Supplemental Health Insurance Program and retiree programs such as the Si Beagle Learning Centers.

Do you always sweat the small stuff? Hold back until everything is just right? Let small flaws ruin the big picture? Listen in as Debbie Missud, licensed mental health counselor and owner of the Manhattan Psychotherapy Collective, discusses perfectionism with the UFT’s MAP team. Missud explains why people tend to develop perfectionistic tendencies and shares practical strategies and tips to help manage these tendencies and cultivate a more balanced mindset.

The UFT Middle Schools Division hosted its annual Thanksgiving Luncheon and winter coat giveaway on Nov. 23 for nearly 180 students living in temporary housing throughout New York City. Students explored a variety of arts and crafts activities, enjoyed an early holiday lunch and received brand-new coats, hats, gloves and socks donated by UFT members and staff.

More than 80 parent leaders, students and UFT members came together at the Queens borough office on Nov. 23 for the Queens Power Summit, an event that offered a range of informative sessions designed to empower attendees with skills and knowledge to strengthen their communities.

More than three dozen members turned out for Bingo Night at the union’s Queens borough office on Nov. 22 to raise awareness of the UFT Committee on Political Education (COPE), the UFT’s political action arm that is funded entirely by voluntary contributions. In addition to bingo, members enjoyed classic board and card games such as Uno, spades, Chutes and Ladders, Jenga and Connect Four.

About 185 nurses spent Nov. 15 at union headquarters in Manhattan networking with colleagues and taking continuing education classes on wound care, medical emergencies and other topics. They also heard a keynote address about “moral injury,” a phenomenon that occurs when nurses are unable to put their patients’ needs first in the corporatized health care environments in which many work.

More than 70 parents, guardians and children turned out on Nov. 9 for the UFT’s Staten Island Family Partnership Summit. The event, held at PS 20 on Staten Island, consisted of two morning plenary sessions, afternoon workshops and an exhibit fair.

Almost 350 school psychologists gathered in-person at Shanker Hall and virtually on Nov. 8 for their chapter’s 8th annual Psychologists Appreciation Day and professional development. Coming together under the theme “Wellness: Make It a Priority,” the psychologists learned about strategies to support students utilizing an integrative approach — physical and mental health.

About 1,500 UFT members, families and friends gathered at the New York Hilton Midtown on Nov. 3 to celebrate the organizers, activists and leaders who advanced the union’s mission over the past year. The annual fall event, which commemorates the 1960 strike that won collective bargaining rights for the UFT, honored 179 in-service and retired members.