News from Western Quaker Newsletters
September 2009
News of Friends Meetings and Churches
Agate Passage Meeting (Poulsbo, WA) is planning a new first hour program: “Quaker Sojourns”, an opportunity to learn more about one another and to encourage conversation about how travel can nourish values and beliefs. Each second Sunday Friends will hear a different travel story and discuss the ideas that spin off from it.
Albuquerque Meeting (NM) will celebrate its 60th anniversary on Saturday, October 17 with an afternoon of worship-sharing, reminiscences, creativity, a photo display, stories, fun and music, followed by a light supper and evening of Friendship.
The Community Group Hosts of Canyon Hills Friends Church (Yorba Linda, CA) think it so important that Friends join a community group this fall that they decided to call everyone in the church and give them a personal invitation to be part of a group. The entire church through the weekend messages and the Community Groups will be studying an exciting new series called "One Month to Live", Thirty Days to a No-Regrets Life.
The theme for the Women’s Conference, October 9-10 at Canyon Hills Friends Church (Yorba Linda, CA) will be "Who's that Woman in the Mirror? - Finding a Healthy Self-Image." Women are told: “What you think about yourself makes a difference in how you live your life. Learn the way to experience all God intended you to be and to accept and love the truth that's there when you look in the mirror. Explore your self-image and enjoy a fun and life-changing time.”
Chico Meeting (CA) will hold an open house on October 4th. CFM is celebrating the second year in their meetinghouse, now one hundred years old!
The Quaker Studies session for Lower Columbia Worship Group (Seaview, WA) will focus on Sandra Cronk’s description of spiritual nurture in the Society of Friends.
Adult Religious Education Committee of Corvallis Meeting (OR) has considered the possibility of a meeting-wide retreat and decided that there is not enough clarity on a need for it or what it should focus on, so will not undertake to plan one for this fall.
Fresno Meeting (CA) supports the concept of universal healthcare for all to end the disgrace of having almost 50 million uninsured in this country.
The Library Committee of Grass Valley Meeting (Nevada City, CA) has a plan to inventory what materials are in the GVFM Library and to organize materials in a manner of both Mr. Dewey’s decimal classifications and Friends.
Midtown Friends (Sacramento, CA) held a peace fair at a midtown park in July. Their hope was to raise awareness and have good conversations about peace – not necessarily national peace but on the deeper nature of peace.
The Community and Fellowship Committee of Mountain View Meeting (Denver, CO) was newly established this year to help the meeting become a more welcoming and inclusive meeting and to provide opportunities for people to get together, forming community. The Committee is making plans for greeters and hopes no one again goes away without making contact with at least one person in the meeting;
Friends at Multnomah Meeting (Portland, OR) are making plans to train interested Friends in methods of Helping Others in Times of Economic Stress. Topics to be covered include housing, mental health, referrals to agencies, and helping the helpers.
The mission trip to Mexico of Netarts Friends Church (OR) is an intergenerational highlight every year. It started as a trip primarily for the youth of the church, but over the years it has become a “come one, come all” event. In 2009 a record number of 29 people went on the trip, and many had only attended NFC a few times before going. Now most are regular attenders!
Unprogrammed worship is starting at Newberg Friends Church (OR). Friends are excited that God is birthing something new in their midst. Each Sunday morning a group will meet for a time of waiting and listening to Christ together as a chance to see what God has in store as they worship with silence and no program or plan. Friends will simply start with a scripture and then wait expectantly for the Spirit to move among them.
Newberg Friends Church (OR) is having a Josh Reid Appreciation Gathering to celebrate Josh Reid’s seven years of service as youth pastor.
North Seattle Friends Church (WA) went kayaking. Those interested met at a rowing club for a guided tour around Lake Union. Experience was not required.
Patty Federighi, North Seattle Friends Church (WA) went to Burundi and the Congo to work with Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Services of Burundi (www.THARS.org) on a project that teaches quilt making as a tool of trauma healing.
Delonna Halliday, Olympic View Friends Church (Tacoma, WA) is a Love and Logic Facilitator who facilitates parenting training at Friends Churches. Love and Logic provides simple and practical techniques to help teachers and parent experience less stress and more fun while raising responsible children.
Orange County Friends Meeting (Santa Ana, CA) has decided to give up its conventional phone line, which is expensive and used very little, and replace it with a Skype phone account. This number can be reached from any phone; Friends do not need to use Skype or a computer.
Rose Drive Friends (Yorba Linda, CA) scheduled a baptism class in the Fireside Room. The class is a prerequisite to water baptism at the church.
Rose Drive Friends Church (Yorba Linda, CA) noted that with a church its size it is important to be intentional about getting to know people and Small Groups are the main way they connect people. These groups are normally 8-14 people who meet once a week for about 90 minutes. At a Small Group Friends can meet new people in a relaxed atmosphere, ask questions about the Bible, and share concerns they would like people to pray about.
Worship and Ministry (W&M) Committee of Sacramento Meeting (CA) wants Friends to know W&M is constantly trying to improve the quality of worship and ministry. When issues or concerns arise, W&M tries to resolve them as quickly as possible. W&M reminds Friends that if they have any concerns or possible ways to make the quality of worship and ministry better to please let someone on the committee know.
Salt Lake Meeting (UT) is hosting “Faith and the Land: a Call for Wilderness Stewardship,” on Sunday, September 27th.
San Jose Meeting (CA) considered whether Friends would ask the city for a refund for Open Preserve taxes paid. The Meeting is in unity to not ask for a refund from the Santa Clara County Open Preserve as the Meeting supports the preservation of open spaces.
Santa Cruz Meeting (CA) endorsed a traveling minute for Friend Diego Navarro who has a deeply-held concern for young adults in poverty, a concern that led him to create the Digital Bridge Academy.
Santa Cruz Meeting (CA), noting that the Quaker decision-making process has sometimes stopped the Meeting from taking a formal part in certain community activities, asks how to allow for Meeting approval in less than the usual time frame? Friends will hold a Threshing Session.
Santa Fe Friends (NM) have formed a local group called Friends in the Arts which meets monthly and is affiliated with the Fellowship of Quakers in the Arts, an international group.
South Seattle Preparative Meeting (WA) held an orientation for potential First Day School teachers noting that “Everyone is encouraged to teach, even if you are only available twice in the next few months. The job's a breeze: curriculum is provided, and teachers always work in pairs. The job's rewarding: the kids are a lot of fun, they're thrilled to see new faces, and conversations during class are always interesting and often charming.”
South Seattle Preparative Meeting (WA) is co-sponsoring a Peace Walk on September 20th. "Peace in the Neighborhood, Peace in the World." to celebrate the U.N. International Day of Peace, to join in community with other neighborhood groups to make a statement for peace, and to help their fellow Seattle residents by bringing food for the St. Mary's food bank.
Strawberry Creek Meeting (Berkeley, CA) is experiencing a baby boom; four babies are/were due in a two-month period.
Stephen Matchett will visit Strawberry Creek Meeting (Berkeley, CA) to speak on "Going to the Well". He will share some of his favorite passages from William Penn's Primitive Christianity Revived. The thrust of the message will be personal and experiential, not scholarly, and he will offer his own life story as a way of communicating why these writings are meaningful to him.
Tacoma Meeting (WA) is hosting a Quaker Quest workshop on Saturday, September 19th.
Outreach Committee of Tempe Meeting (AZ) suggests that its official purpose would be:
“It is the purpose of the Outreach Committee to make the larger community aware of the existence of our Quaker Meeting and for our Meeting community to know of our activities.”
Tempe Meeting (AZ) is considering the possibility of hosting a homeless program in the Meeting House twice a month. Tempe Meeting has been reluctant to house homeless guests because of disapproval by neighbors in 2005 and because of earlier assurances of limitations of use of the Meeting House at the time it was built.
Vancouver Monthly Meeting (BC) is looking forward to Fun’ Raising. The Fun nights: Games Night, Movie Night, and Quaker Sing A Long – Hootenany will be brought to Friends by the Ad Hoc Refugee Committee who will ask Friends for donations to contribute to the sponsorship of a young refugee family, now caught in the no-man’s land between Iraq and Syria.
The Pastoral Search Committee of First Friends, Whittier (CA) has announced that a pastoral candidate will visit the church in September.
Beyond the Monthly Meeting/Churches
Arizona Half-Yearly Meeting will take place from Friday, September 25, to Sunday, September 27 at Emmanuel Pines Christian Camp and Retreat Center in Prescott, AZ with the theme, Strengthening Our Ties in Nature. Suggested readings include Earthcare for Friends by Louis Cox and Be Ye Perfect: The Quaker Call to Wholeness by Lisa Lofland-Gould.
Ben Lomond Quaker Center in California is considering offering a program for smaller meetings and worship groups in Pacific Yearly Meeting. Smaller meetings and worship groups are being asked whether Ben Lomond should offer the program and how it might be planned to meet their needs.
The quarterly meeting of the Christian Friends Conference will take place on Saturday, September 19th at Berkeley with brown bag lunch and beverages and bagels provided in the morning.
The Fall gathering of College Park Quarterly Meeting will be October 16-18 at Sierra Friends Center, Nevada City, CA.
Colorado Regional Meeting will be held November 6th - 8th at the YMCA of the Rockies Conference Center in Estes Park bordering Rocky Mountain National Park. This year’s theme is “Deepening Our Spiritual Life in Community” and will be led by Nancy Bieber, a member of Lancaster (PA) Monthly Meeting and a psychotherapist, spiritual director and retreat leader.
The Steering Committee of the Friends Committee on Washington Public Policy (FCWPP) will meet during Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting in the Dining Hall at Lazy F Camp & Retreat Center near Ellensburg at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, September 25th.
Northern California Teens (8th-12th grades) in and near the Silicon Valley were invite to gather at the Palo Alto Meetinghouse for an exploratory meeting to consider who the group is and what it might do in the coming year. There was to be a time for sharing, games, considering ideas, and food (pizza and ice cream).
Several short-term missionaries are going to Rwanda as Rwanda has decreed that all school teachers be able to teach in English. EFM has begun to address the situation in Friends Schools. The five teachers who are going to Rwanda are from Northwest Yearly Meeting.
The Peace Education Sub-committee (a sub-committee of the NWYM Christian Education and Discipleship Committee of Northwest Yearly Meeting is focusing on two items for the immediate future - needs assessment and a NWYM Peace Month. This year the Peace Month will be January with the theme "What is Peace?" The sub-committee hopes to facilitate a discussion in the local meetings and provide teaching tools on Quaker history and why Friends have a peace testimony.
Northwest Yearly Meeting has ministry openings among its churches. Sherwood Friends is looking for a half-time youth pastor; Newberg Friends is looking for a full-time youth pastor; 2nd Street Community Church, a ministry of Friends in Newberg, is looking for a Middle School Intern and Director of Equipping and Serving; Olympic View Friends are looking for a pastor; Twin Rocks Friends Camp needs an Assistant Food Director; and Barclay Press has a 30-hour office position.
The Friends Women Retreat, a combined retreat of Friends both east and west of the Cascades, of Northwest Yearly Meeting, will be held at Twin Rocks Friends Camp, October 1-4.
Retha McCutcheon of Northwest Yearly Meeting will lead a trip to Israel/Palestine in January 2010. Along with visits to historical sites, the group will also connect with ministries related to NWYM--including the work the Neiferts are doing in Haifa. Retha's email: retha@marafiki.us
Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting will meet September 25-27, 2009, at Lazy F Ranch near Ellensburg. Port Townsend Monthly Meeting will lead the program with the theme, “Wild Earth, Wild Mind, Wild Heart.” Friends are invited to “Engage their minds and creativity; express their grief over our planet in peril; find hope for our future as an interdependent earth community; and gain courage to live out the Quaker testimony of care for the natural world.
The Continuing Committee of Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting has begun a discussion of financial options that may be needed in order for PNQM to continue its current policy of "pay what you can" for those who attend QM sessions. There was a very substantial deficit from our Spring 2009 in spite of a large attendance. Even with financial reserves, such deficits are not sustainable and must be prevented or greatly reduced beginning not later than spring 2010.
The Religious Education Committee of Pacific Yearly Meeting circulates an e-Newsletter. The latest issue focuses on outreach to families with the concern that most smaller meetings feel a need for more families and children.
Pacific Yearly Meeting united in moving forward with hiring a Youth Program Coordinator. As part of this significant development, PYM Nominating Committee is in the process of identifying individuals to serve on a Supervisory Committee, which would implement and oversee the hiring and supervision of this employee.
Quaker Earthcare Witness will hold its Annual Meeting and Gathering in Bellingham, WA, October 8-12 with the theme, “Wisdom Stories for a Resilient Future: Bible Stories, Native Stories, Quaker Stories.” Kathy Hyzy of Multnomah Meeting and editor of Western Friend will present the keynote address. www.quakerearthcare.org
Southern California Quarterly Meeting will be November 7-8 at Temescal Canyon.
Western Friend celebrated the publication of the book, Enlivened by the Spirit, at University Meeting in Seattle. The book is a compilation of nearly fifty Friends’ responses to the query, “How have you experienced God or the Divine?” with art, song, poetry, fiction, and essays.
Willamette Quarterly Meeting will gather October 3-4, 2009 at Mt. Hood Kiwanis Camp near Rhododendron, OR.
September 2009
News of Friends Meetings and Churches
Agate Passage Meeting (Poulsbo, WA) is planning a new first hour program: “Quaker Sojourns”, an opportunity to learn more about one another and to encourage conversation about how travel can nourish values and beliefs. Each second Sunday Friends will hear a different travel story and discuss the ideas that spin off from it.
Albuquerque Meeting (NM) will celebrate its 60th anniversary on Saturday, October 17 with an afternoon of worship-sharing, reminiscences, creativity, a photo display, stories, fun and music, followed by a light supper and evening of Friendship.
The Community Group Hosts of Canyon Hills Friends Church (Yorba Linda, CA) think it so important that Friends join a community group this fall that they decided to call everyone in the church and give them a personal invitation to be part of a group. The entire church through the weekend messages and the Community Groups will be studying an exciting new series called "One Month to Live", Thirty Days to a No-Regrets Life.
The theme for the Women’s Conference, October 9-10 at Canyon Hills Friends Church (Yorba Linda, CA) will be "Who's that Woman in the Mirror? - Finding a Healthy Self-Image." Women are told: “What you think about yourself makes a difference in how you live your life. Learn the way to experience all God intended you to be and to accept and love the truth that's there when you look in the mirror. Explore your self-image and enjoy a fun and life-changing time.”
Chico Meeting (CA) will hold an open house on October 4th. CFM is celebrating the second year in their meetinghouse, now one hundred years old!
The Quaker Studies session for Lower Columbia Worship Group (Seaview, WA) will focus on Sandra Cronk’s description of spiritual nurture in the Society of Friends.
Adult Religious Education Committee of Corvallis Meeting (OR) has considered the possibility of a meeting-wide retreat and decided that there is not enough clarity on a need for it or what it should focus on, so will not undertake to plan one for this fall.
Fresno Meeting (CA) supports the concept of universal healthcare for all to end the disgrace of having almost 50 million uninsured in this country.
The Library Committee of Grass Valley Meeting (Nevada City, CA) has a plan to inventory what materials are in the GVFM Library and to organize materials in a manner of both Mr. Dewey’s decimal classifications and Friends.
Midtown Friends (Sacramento, CA) held a peace fair at a midtown park in July. Their hope was to raise awareness and have good conversations about peace – not necessarily national peace but on the deeper nature of peace.
The Community and Fellowship Committee of Mountain View Meeting (Denver, CO) was newly established this year to help the meeting become a more welcoming and inclusive meeting and to provide opportunities for people to get together, forming community. The Committee is making plans for greeters and hopes no one again goes away without making contact with at least one person in the meeting;
Friends at Multnomah Meeting (Portland, OR) are making plans to train interested Friends in methods of Helping Others in Times of Economic Stress. Topics to be covered include housing, mental health, referrals to agencies, and helping the helpers.
The mission trip to Mexico of Netarts Friends Church (OR) is an intergenerational highlight every year. It started as a trip primarily for the youth of the church, but over the years it has become a “come one, come all” event. In 2009 a record number of 29 people went on the trip, and many had only attended NFC a few times before going. Now most are regular attenders!
Unprogrammed worship is starting at Newberg Friends Church (OR). Friends are excited that God is birthing something new in their midst. Each Sunday morning a group will meet for a time of waiting and listening to Christ together as a chance to see what God has in store as they worship with silence and no program or plan. Friends will simply start with a scripture and then wait expectantly for the Spirit to move among them.
Newberg Friends Church (OR) is having a Josh Reid Appreciation Gathering to celebrate Josh Reid’s seven years of service as youth pastor.
North Seattle Friends Church (WA) went kayaking. Those interested met at a rowing club for a guided tour around Lake Union. Experience was not required.
Patty Federighi, North Seattle Friends Church (WA) went to Burundi and the Congo to work with Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Services of Burundi (www.THARS.org) on a project that teaches quilt making as a tool of trauma healing.
Delonna Halliday, Olympic View Friends Church (Tacoma, WA) is a Love and Logic Facilitator who facilitates parenting training at Friends Churches. Love and Logic provides simple and practical techniques to help teachers and parent experience less stress and more fun while raising responsible children.
Orange County Friends Meeting (Santa Ana, CA) has decided to give up its conventional phone line, which is expensive and used very little, and replace it with a Skype phone account. This number can be reached from any phone; Friends do not need to use Skype or a computer.
Rose Drive Friends (Yorba Linda, CA) scheduled a baptism class in the Fireside Room. The class is a prerequisite to water baptism at the church.
Rose Drive Friends Church (Yorba Linda, CA) noted that with a church its size it is important to be intentional about getting to know people and Small Groups are the main way they connect people. These groups are normally 8-14 people who meet once a week for about 90 minutes. At a Small Group Friends can meet new people in a relaxed atmosphere, ask questions about the Bible, and share concerns they would like people to pray about.
Worship and Ministry (W&M) Committee of Sacramento Meeting (CA) wants Friends to know W&M is constantly trying to improve the quality of worship and ministry. When issues or concerns arise, W&M tries to resolve them as quickly as possible. W&M reminds Friends that if they have any concerns or possible ways to make the quality of worship and ministry better to please let someone on the committee know.
Salt Lake Meeting (UT) is hosting “Faith and the Land: a Call for Wilderness Stewardship,” on Sunday, September 27th.
San Jose Meeting (CA) considered whether Friends would ask the city for a refund for Open Preserve taxes paid. The Meeting is in unity to not ask for a refund from the Santa Clara County Open Preserve as the Meeting supports the preservation of open spaces.
Santa Cruz Meeting (CA) endorsed a traveling minute for Friend Diego Navarro who has a deeply-held concern for young adults in poverty, a concern that led him to create the Digital Bridge Academy.
Santa Cruz Meeting (CA), noting that the Quaker decision-making process has sometimes stopped the Meeting from taking a formal part in certain community activities, asks how to allow for Meeting approval in less than the usual time frame? Friends will hold a Threshing Session.
Santa Fe Friends (NM) have formed a local group called Friends in the Arts which meets monthly and is affiliated with the Fellowship of Quakers in the Arts, an international group.
South Seattle Preparative Meeting (WA) held an orientation for potential First Day School teachers noting that “Everyone is encouraged to teach, even if you are only available twice in the next few months. The job's a breeze: curriculum is provided, and teachers always work in pairs. The job's rewarding: the kids are a lot of fun, they're thrilled to see new faces, and conversations during class are always interesting and often charming.”
South Seattle Preparative Meeting (WA) is co-sponsoring a Peace Walk on September 20th. "Peace in the Neighborhood, Peace in the World." to celebrate the U.N. International Day of Peace, to join in community with other neighborhood groups to make a statement for peace, and to help their fellow Seattle residents by bringing food for the St. Mary's food bank.
Strawberry Creek Meeting (Berkeley, CA) is experiencing a baby boom; four babies are/were due in a two-month period.
Stephen Matchett will visit Strawberry Creek Meeting (Berkeley, CA) to speak on "Going to the Well". He will share some of his favorite passages from William Penn's Primitive Christianity Revived. The thrust of the message will be personal and experiential, not scholarly, and he will offer his own life story as a way of communicating why these writings are meaningful to him.
Tacoma Meeting (WA) is hosting a Quaker Quest workshop on Saturday, September 19th.
Outreach Committee of Tempe Meeting (AZ) suggests that its official purpose would be:
“It is the purpose of the Outreach Committee to make the larger community aware of the existence of our Quaker Meeting and for our Meeting community to know of our activities.”
Tempe Meeting (AZ) is considering the possibility of hosting a homeless program in the Meeting House twice a month. Tempe Meeting has been reluctant to house homeless guests because of disapproval by neighbors in 2005 and because of earlier assurances of limitations of use of the Meeting House at the time it was built.
Vancouver Monthly Meeting (BC) is looking forward to Fun’ Raising. The Fun nights: Games Night, Movie Night, and Quaker Sing A Long – Hootenany will be brought to Friends by the Ad Hoc Refugee Committee who will ask Friends for donations to contribute to the sponsorship of a young refugee family, now caught in the no-man’s land between Iraq and Syria.
The Pastoral Search Committee of First Friends, Whittier (CA) has announced that a pastoral candidate will visit the church in September.
Beyond the Monthly Meeting/Churches
Arizona Half-Yearly Meeting will take place from Friday, September 25, to Sunday, September 27 at Emmanuel Pines Christian Camp and Retreat Center in Prescott, AZ with the theme, Strengthening Our Ties in Nature. Suggested readings include Earthcare for Friends by Louis Cox and Be Ye Perfect: The Quaker Call to Wholeness by Lisa Lofland-Gould.
Ben Lomond Quaker Center in California is considering offering a program for smaller meetings and worship groups in Pacific Yearly Meeting. Smaller meetings and worship groups are being asked whether Ben Lomond should offer the program and how it might be planned to meet their needs.
The quarterly meeting of the Christian Friends Conference will take place on Saturday, September 19th at Berkeley with brown bag lunch and beverages and bagels provided in the morning.
The Fall gathering of College Park Quarterly Meeting will be October 16-18 at Sierra Friends Center, Nevada City, CA.
Colorado Regional Meeting will be held November 6th - 8th at the YMCA of the Rockies Conference Center in Estes Park bordering Rocky Mountain National Park. This year’s theme is “Deepening Our Spiritual Life in Community” and will be led by Nancy Bieber, a member of Lancaster (PA) Monthly Meeting and a psychotherapist, spiritual director and retreat leader.
The Steering Committee of the Friends Committee on Washington Public Policy (FCWPP) will meet during Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting in the Dining Hall at Lazy F Camp & Retreat Center near Ellensburg at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, September 25th.
Northern California Teens (8th-12th grades) in and near the Silicon Valley were invite to gather at the Palo Alto Meetinghouse for an exploratory meeting to consider who the group is and what it might do in the coming year. There was to be a time for sharing, games, considering ideas, and food (pizza and ice cream).
Several short-term missionaries are going to Rwanda as Rwanda has decreed that all school teachers be able to teach in English. EFM has begun to address the situation in Friends Schools. The five teachers who are going to Rwanda are from Northwest Yearly Meeting.
The Peace Education Sub-committee (a sub-committee of the NWYM Christian Education and Discipleship Committee of Northwest Yearly Meeting is focusing on two items for the immediate future - needs assessment and a NWYM Peace Month. This year the Peace Month will be January with the theme "What is Peace?" The sub-committee hopes to facilitate a discussion in the local meetings and provide teaching tools on Quaker history and why Friends have a peace testimony.
Northwest Yearly Meeting has ministry openings among its churches. Sherwood Friends is looking for a half-time youth pastor; Newberg Friends is looking for a full-time youth pastor; 2nd Street Community Church, a ministry of Friends in Newberg, is looking for a Middle School Intern and Director of Equipping and Serving; Olympic View Friends are looking for a pastor; Twin Rocks Friends Camp needs an Assistant Food Director; and Barclay Press has a 30-hour office position.
The Friends Women Retreat, a combined retreat of Friends both east and west of the Cascades, of Northwest Yearly Meeting, will be held at Twin Rocks Friends Camp, October 1-4.
Retha McCutcheon of Northwest Yearly Meeting will lead a trip to Israel/Palestine in January 2010. Along with visits to historical sites, the group will also connect with ministries related to NWYM--including the work the Neiferts are doing in Haifa. Retha's email: retha@marafiki.us
Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting will meet September 25-27, 2009, at Lazy F Ranch near Ellensburg. Port Townsend Monthly Meeting will lead the program with the theme, “Wild Earth, Wild Mind, Wild Heart.” Friends are invited to “Engage their minds and creativity; express their grief over our planet in peril; find hope for our future as an interdependent earth community; and gain courage to live out the Quaker testimony of care for the natural world.
The Continuing Committee of Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting has begun a discussion of financial options that may be needed in order for PNQM to continue its current policy of "pay what you can" for those who attend QM sessions. There was a very substantial deficit from our Spring 2009 in spite of a large attendance. Even with financial reserves, such deficits are not sustainable and must be prevented or greatly reduced beginning not later than spring 2010.
The Religious Education Committee of Pacific Yearly Meeting circulates an e-Newsletter. The latest issue focuses on outreach to families with the concern that most smaller meetings feel a need for more families and children.
Pacific Yearly Meeting united in moving forward with hiring a Youth Program Coordinator. As part of this significant development, PYM Nominating Committee is in the process of identifying individuals to serve on a Supervisory Committee, which would implement and oversee the hiring and supervision of this employee.
Quaker Earthcare Witness will hold its Annual Meeting and Gathering in Bellingham, WA, October 8-12 with the theme, “Wisdom Stories for a Resilient Future: Bible Stories, Native Stories, Quaker Stories.” Kathy Hyzy of Multnomah Meeting and editor of Western Friend will present the keynote address. www.quakerearthcare.org
Southern California Quarterly Meeting will be November 7-8 at Temescal Canyon.
Western Friend celebrated the publication of the book, Enlivened by the Spirit, at University Meeting in Seattle. The book is a compilation of nearly fifty Friends’ responses to the query, “How have you experienced God or the Divine?” with art, song, poetry, fiction, and essays.
Willamette Quarterly Meeting will gather October 3-4, 2009 at Mt. Hood Kiwanis Camp near Rhododendron, OR.
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