Readers might have noticed that with this January issue, we’ve made the transition to Volume XL of the Retiree Advocate.

That’s not “XL” as in extra large – although we like to think PSARA has an extra large impact – it’s XL as in 40. That’s right, we’re beginning the fortieth year of the Retiree Advocate.

That’s a remarkable achievement for any independent publication, but even more remarkable for one like the

Advocate that relies solely on subscriptions and doesn’t accept advertising of any kind.

We owe our success primarily to you, our readers, who have supported us for 40 years. But we also need to acknowledge two outstanding working-class journalists who guided the Advocate through its formative years and shaped it into the publication we know today.

Max Roffman (1910-2003) edited the Advocate even before it was the Advocate. He came to Seattle in 1984 from Hawaii, where he’d spent 21 years organizing the United Public Workers Union (UPW), and another 10 working for the Center for Labor Education and Research at the University of Hawaii.

When he came to Seattle, Max became a leader of the Puget Sound Council of Senior Citizens (PSCSC) and was the first editor of Senior News – the predecessor of the Retiree Advocate.

In 1994, Max retired as editor, although he continued to write for the publication, and Will Parry (1920-2013) took on his editorial responsibilities.

Will had been a writer for The New World and People’s World, until 1956, when the McCarthy persecutions deprived him of his ability to make a living as a journalist. Will then went to work for a box-making company and became a leader of Western Pulp and Paper Workers (AWPPW) Local 817.

Will went on to edit the AFT-WA newsletter, and when he retired, became involved in the PSCSC and Senior News. When he became editor in 1994, the publication was only a four-pager that came out every other month, and was written mainly by Max and Will.

In 1998, the Senior News became a monthly and expanded to six pages. The National Council of Senior Citizens was relaunched as the Alliance for Retired Americans (ARA) in 2001, and Senior News became the Retiree Advocate in 2002.

Will retired as editor in February 2013, and died the following May 13, having seen the Advocate through a period of sustained growth.

The Advocate hasn’t come this far and had the extra large impact it’s had without the constant support of our as a journalist. Will then went to work for a box-making company and became a leader of Western Pulp and Paper Workers (AWPPW) Local 817.

Will went on to edit the AFT-WA newsletter, and when he retired, be- came involved in the PSCSC and Senior News. When he became editor in 1994, the publication was only a four-pager that came out every other month, and was written mainly by Max and Will.

In 1998, the Senior News became a monthly and expanded to six pages. The National Council of Senior Citizens was relaunched as the Alliance for Retired Americans (ARA) in 2001, and Senior News became the Retiree Advocate in 2002.

Will retired as editor in February 2013, and died the following May 13, having seen the Advocate through a period of sustained growth.

The Advocate hasn’t come this far and had the extra large impact it’s had without the constant support of our readers. Many of you have written for the publication, many have volunteered your time to help us mail the Advocate or to distribute it to friends and neighbors, and all of you have contributed dues to help keep us running. Thank you!

As we begin 2025 with a second Trump administration in the “other Washington” we’ll need the Retiree Advocate more than ever.

We'll keep bringing you hard-hitting analysis of the major issues, let you know what PSARA is doing about them, and how you can help.

Together we’ll keep pushing for a positive vision of a future that benefits all of us. And we will resist the temptation to “moderate” our agenda in order to accommodate the Trump regime, or Elon Musk, or whoever.

We know we can do it because we've been doing it for 40 years, and we look forward to continuing our run for as long as it takes.