Emy Vanderpool wasn’t ready to retire in the summer of 2022, but she had no choice due to health reasons.

“I felt so lost, like I lost my purpose,” she said.

That changed when the retired music teacher joined the UFT’s Partners Through Experience program, a volunteer initiative of the union’s Member Assistance Program (MAP) that matches members who’ve been retired for five years or less with teachers in their first three years on the job.

Vanderpool worked with special education teacher Catherine Tabora at PS 112 in the Bronx last school year and is currently paired with Bronet Luo, a third-year special education teacher at Brooklyn Studio Secondary School.

“I was so grateful to be able to still help other teachers even though I couldn’t go back myself,” Vanderpool said.

Retirees are sounding boards for new members’ concerns and questions and help them navigate the union and the city Department of Education.

There are more than 100 pairs matched up so far this year, MAP Director Tina Puccio said.

The program began several years ago when then-Retired Teachers Chapter Leader Tom Murphy and UFT Vice President Karen Alford, the head of the union’s New Member Initiative, reached out to Puccio with the idea.

Luo has video meetings with Vanderpool on Fridays. She said it helps to receive guidance from someone who was in her shoes, and she is becoming a better teacher for it.

“She’ll give me advice and encouragement, and I appreciate that because it feels like someone is listening,” Luo said of Vanderpool.

Tabora, now in her fourth year of teaching, said she is thankful to have worked with Vanderpool. “Just venting to somebody at the end of the workday was kind of a nice support to have,” said Tabora, who has since continued a friendship with Vanderpool. By coincidence, the two live near each other and attend the same church.

Tabora said Vanderpool emphasized the need for self-care, like taking a walk. “All these little things actually just make a difference in feeling a bit more positive and having a little bit more energy,” she said.

Vanderpool said Partners Through Experience is a great outlet for her and other retirees who want to give back. “From my experience in the schools, everybody is so busy and what I have as a retiree is time,” she said.

Vanderpool said she lends an ear and emphasizes what worked well in the classroom. She doesn’t evaluate; that’s the job of administrators, she said.

“I just listen and point out all the good things that I can,” she said.