The UFT Florida Center in Boca Raton is now open each weekday, and members can stop by any time from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“We are moving back to some new sense of normalcy by swinging open the doors of the Florida Center once more,” said Tom Murphy, the Retired Teachers Chapter leader. “While virtual activities will continue, in-person member engagement is our goal.”

During winter intersession, which began in January, the UFT Florida Si Beagle Center is sponsoring a host of in-person courses and seminars, including watercolor painting, contemporary fiction, tai chi and bird watching. Retirees could also take trips to the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton and the Bonnet House Museum in Fort Lauderdale, with more trips planned for the spring.

About 7,000 UFT retirees live in Florida, including about 4,000 in the southeastern part of the state, according to Gino Giustra, the new director of the UFT Florida Center and the former director of UFT Retiree Programs.

Caroline Gary and Lori Rand-Marder run the courses, seminars, trips and Day at the University at the UFT Florida Center. The section coordinators in the office are Clarence Reynolds (Broward County) and Lois Porcella (Boca/Delray/Palm Beach). John Amato provides support in a number of areas for the center.

“We’re here. Come visit,” Giustra said. “We have classes, we have activities. The most important part is the social interaction.”

Murphy said the union owes a big debt of gratitude to Gerri Herskowitz, who retired as UFT Florida Center director at the end of December, for “shepherding us through very difficult times” during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The office, which underwent renovations before the COVID-19 pandemic, is in the Potomac Trail Building at 3200 North Military Trail, Suite 100, Boca Raton, FL 33431. The phone number is 561‑994‑4929.