Retirement

Continued Ministry

After retiring in 1985 from the position of Presiding Bishop, Allin entered what he referred to as “The realm of unofficialdom.” His ministry in the Church continued as he served as winter chaplain at Christ Memorial Chapel on Jupiter Island, Hobe Sound, Florida and during the summer as vicar of St. Ann’s Church, Kennebunkport, Maine. In addition, Allin was appointed Chaplain General of the Community of the Transfiguration in Glendale, Ohio. Allin was also a member of the boards of Nashotah House seminary and House of the Redeemer retreat center in New York City.

Allin continued to accept invitations to preach and preside at church services around the country as well as to speak at engagements such as the Scott Field Bailey Lecture Series at the Seminary of the Southwest in Austin, Texas, in 1991 and the 1986 Bishop Williams Memorial Lecture Series at Rikkyo University in Tokyo, Japan.

In addition to his continued ministry in retirement, Allin enjoyed several hobbies. He had a great deal of interest in writing, and he authored essays and poems. At one point, Allin was contemplating writing a book on ministry. He also continued his well-known enthusiasm for model trains. He was sometimes depicted as an Episcopal Church “conductor” of sorts during his time as Presiding Bishop. And he was an avid golfer, who compared life on the green to that of a Presiding Bishop: “If you want to stay ‘out of the rough,’ don’t press.”⁷³