Published 30 June 2022
Senior citizens celebrate 19th Retirees’ Day & MISSA’s 54th Foundation Day
Dozens of retirees, together with MISSA management and staff celebrate today the 19th Retirees’ Day which also coincides with the 54th Foundation Day of the Marshall Islands Social Security Administration.
As July 1 is also celebrated every year nationwide as “Fisherman’s Day” and was declared a non-working holiday, the Administration decided to hold the celebrations one day in advance (on June 30).
Today’s special day was celebrated briefly and without the day-long, traditional festivities that the retirees used to enjoy in the past. Directors Aaron Silk and Josepha Maddison of the MISSA Board who are both retirees themselves were invited to grace the occasion. Dozens of retirees and MISSA beneficiaries were treated with sandwiches, refreshments and Marshallese music.
In 2003, then President Kessai Note and his Cabinet approved and declared July 1st of every year as “Retirees’ Day” as tribute to all retired senior and disabled citizens who have served the Marshall Islands in various employment capacities in the Government and private Sectors.
The Cabinet also approved that July 1st shall serve as MISSA’s anniversary date, as it was on July 1, 1968 when the Trust Territory Social Security System (TTSSS) was first established.
The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands – often popularly referred to as Micronesia, consists of three major archipelagos – the Carolinas, the Marianas, and the Marshalls which are located in the Western Pacific Ocean just north of the equator. Before World War II, they were held by Japan under a mandate from the League of Nations. After the war, they were administered by the United States as a United Nations Trusteeship.
On October 13, 1967, the Trust Territory Social Security System was enacted by the Congress of Micronesia and approved by the High Commissioner. The program went to effect on July 1, 1968.
Happy 54th Anniversary, MISSA!
