News of Friends Meetings and Churches

Agate Passage Meeting (Poulsbo, WA) held a Threshing Session on “What do we want our meeting to be?”

Beginning in January, 2011, a book study will be scheduled at Albuquerque Meeting (NM) for interested adults. The book is To Be Broken and Tender: A Quaker Theology for Today by Margery Post Abbott.

Ministry and Counsel of Bellingham Meeting (WA) proposed an emergency plan for closing down Meeting: Key people will make the decision on whether or not to have Meeting due to weather. A Key person will call Friends on Ministry and Counsel and an e-mail message would be sent out. Friends would check their email first, if questions, call Ministry and Counsel.

For the Children’s Program at Bellingham Meeting (WA), a bound composition book will be used for sign-in and kept as a record. A Child Registry form will be created for the purpose of identifying 1) allergies and 2) permission to pick up. Children's allergy information from Child Registry will be posted in kitchen near the food and snacks.

Kathy Bergen, Program Coordinator for Friends International Center in Ramallah, Occupied Palestine, will be at the Berkeley Friends Church (CA) on Wednesday November 10^th. She will share her experiences as the Center works to support the Ramallah Friends Meeting and how the current political context affects their work. Of special concern are access and movement, together with land confiscation and house demolition.

Friends have a long history of disdaining holidays as mere frivolities. Yet the Thanksgiving Day potluck dinner on Thanksgiving Day at Berkeley Friends Meeting (CA) is the best-attended event on the Meeting calendar.

Boise Valley Meeting (ID) will hold a Workshop on Quaker Process and Conflict Resolution on October 30^th, led by Ann Stever and Dorsey Greene.

Canyon Hills Friends (Yorba Linda, CA) were invited to a presentation of the 2011 budget and leadership at the church’s Annual Congregational Meeting. Dessert was served at the beginning of the meeting.

Chena Ridge Meeting (Fairbanks, AK) is offering a Couple Enrichment Workshop in Fairbanks the weekend of November 5-7.

Thursday November 11th at 7 PM, Kathy Bergen, Ramallah Center Program Coordinator, will speak at Chico Meeting (CA) on supporting peace-building efforts between Israelis and

Palestinians. Everyone is welcome beforehand to join in a vegetarian potluck supper at 5:30 PM. Current conditions for Palestinians will emerge in Bergen’s talk, including restrictions on access and movement, and the continuing process of land confiscation and house demolitions. Quakers have been active in Ramallah since starting a school there in 1869; the Ramallah Friends Meetinghouse was established in 1910.

Chico Meeting (CA) will hold a Winnowing Session on time and money and how they represent our faith both as individuals and as members of a corporate body.

Starting November 10 and every 2nd Wednesday for the months following, after the 6-6:30 pm worship, there will be a worship sharing session at Davis Meeting (CA) about the Advices and Queries for that month. Every 4th Wednesday, at 6:30 pm after worship, and each 3rd Sunday at 8:30 am, Friends are gathering for "grab bag queries" focused on sharing of faith and practice.

Davis Meeting (CA) contacted the manager of the next door apartment building about using their van-accessible parking space. The manager is willing to allow use of their disabled parking space on Sunday mornings.

Eastside Meeting (Bellevue, WA) will celebrate Mildred Joyce’s 100^th birthday on Sunday, November 21^st. Happy Birthday, Mildred!

The International Day of Peace Celebration at Eastside Meeting (Bellevue, WA) brought together about sixty people – ages from 9 months to 99 years. The theme of the evening was “Let Peace Begin with Me”. After dessert, the Raging Grannies sang and children from the Meeting brought everyone into the Meeting room singing “All God’s Children Got a Place in the Choir”.

A touching moment was when Jawad Khaki, of the IMAN Center in Kirkland remembered how after September 2001, Eastside Muslims were looking for a place to worship. They approached several congregations – “Eastside Friends Meeting” he said, “was the first group to say Yes! You can worship here.” Even though they found another space for worship, he has not forgotten Eastside’s kindness and welcoming hospitality.

Doug Larzelier has accepted the call from Homedale Friends Community Church (ID) to serve as interim pastor. Doug has been a longtime member and elder in the church. He recently returned from Albania, where he oversaw a building program for a mission agency.

The Worship and Ministry Committee of Honolulu Meeting (HI) sponsors Third Sunday discussions of Quaker Testimonies. The schedule includes Simplicity, October; Equality, November; Peace, December; and Community, January.

Honolulu Meeting (HI) agreed to hold a discussion meeting on the Meeting’s peace and social justice witness and on the Meeting’s possible relationship to the future entity that will follow on from American Friends Service Committee whose office is leaving Honolulu.

Klamath Falls Friends Church (OR) has at times partnered with the local elementary school to provide lunches for poor children during vacations when school is not in session.

A “Garden Camp,” sponsored by the extension office of OSU with its eight two-hour-long sessions, had used the garden which replaced part of the lawn at Klamath Falls Friends Church (OR) to help teach 30 children from the area about the essentials of growing vegetables.

Mountain View Meeting (Denver, CO), through the Quaker Quest Program, will examine as a Meeting what the Meeting believes and practices. They anticipate the program will take more than a year, possibly two or three. Friends will gather and explore the spiritual hunger many feel, the questions they don’t now know how to answer, the concerns where they lack agreement, the issues that cause tension, and – most importantly – what brings them together.

Kathy Bergen, program coordinator at the Friends International Center in Ramallah, will visit Multnomah Meeting (Portland, OR) on Saturday, November 6^th, at 7PM. She will provide a slide show and lead discussion about peace work of Friends in the conflicted land of Israel-Palestine.

Multnomah Meeting (Portland, OR) will hold an all-day Quaker Quest workshop on 29 January 2011, to help Friends learn more about Quaker Quest. This would be the beginning of a six-month “in-reach” process of discerning whether Friends want to undertake the full Quaker Quest program including outreach to the wider community.

For several years, Newberg Friends Church (OR) has participated in Operation Christmas Child (OCC). Packing a shoe box full of gifts for a child in need around the world has been a fun way to make a difference in one child’s life. The goal at Newberg Friends Church, between the boxes packed and the cash or supply donations, is for 300 boxes.

North Valley Friends Church (Newberg, OR) is looking for someone to serve as a half-time Administrative Assistant. The person will coordinate and carry out the office and administrative needs of the church. Information: (office@northvalleyfriends.org)

Brandon Baker is the new Interim Youth Pastor at Reedwood Friends Church (Portland, OR). He is originally from Arizona and a student at George Fox Evangelical Seminary studying spiritual direction.

If Friends at Reedwood Friends Church (Portland, OR) are interested in playing Handbells they should give Marilyn Pruitt a call.

At Rose Drive Friends Church (Yorba Linda, CA), the Friends Serving Friends Men's Ministry is a ministry that embraces the widowed, the single parents, and others in the church and community with long-term needs. This ministry is not project oriented but relationship focused, allowing Friends to make a practical and long lasting difference in the lives of those in need. Men of all ages who can commit to one Saturday a month for three hours of doing odd jobs and small projects are encouraged to participate.

Rose Drive Friends Church (Yorba Linda, CA) held a Called Congregational Meeting on October 17th in the Sanctuary. Childcare was available.

The Finance Committee of Sacramento Meeting (CA) conducted a survey to gather Friends’ insights about managing the Meeting’s budget for donations, projects, and financial assistance. By far the clearest message conveyed by survey responses is that Friends’ awareness of, commitment to, and involvement with activities is the most important guideline in managing Meeting contributions.

The new restrooms at the meetinghouse of Salt Lake Meeting (UT) are almost complete, and will certainly be by October 30. Buildings & Grounds asks Friends to gather at the Meeting House on that day to spiff the place up after the construction, which has dusted most surfaces upstairs and down, and to give the inside of the building a general thorough cleaning that it hasn't had for a while.

San Diego Meeting (CA) has a new Meeting House with an organic garden with over 100 trees growing fruit for the homeless in the city.

Santa Cruz Meeting (CA) has approved co-sponsoring with the Resource Center for NonViolence an afternoon presentation by "La Vida Nueva"/ Zapotec Women's Weaving Collective (Oaxaca, Mexico) at the Meeting House, November 14. Local Oaxacan students will be performing their native dances in addition to there being many rugs for sale and on display. It
should be an afternoon filled with colorful weavings and costumes!

South Seattle Meeting (WA) is in the process of hiring a teacher for the older children. The Education Committee made an offer to a Friend. If that Friend does not accept the position, the committee will consider her reservations as they shape the job description and the continuing search. When a teacher is hired, there will be one volunteer each meeting instead of two.

South Seattle Meeting (WA) will hold its third annual Meeting for Remembering on Saturday, November 6^th (Saturday). At this Meeting Friends honor those dear to them who died recently or long ago and remain in their hearts.

Spring Valley Friends Church (CA) gathered for its 18^th annual Love Fest. Twenty-three people joined in a time of worship, communion, singing and praise. During Raise His Praise some shared what God had impressed on them while others sat in thoughtful silence.

Tigard Community Friends Church (OR) strives to make an impact on its community. Most adults who live in this area go to work during the week. Though Friends share the same neighborhood, they did not know most of the neighbors. First they invited the neighbors to a barbeque and to participate in a community garden. Friends are also hosting a financial management class and have invited the neighborhood to join in this class.

Kathy Bergen, program coordinator at the Friends International Center in Ramallah, will visit West Hills Friends (Portland, OR) on Sunday, November 7th at 11AM. She will provide a slide show and lead discussion about peace work of Friends in the conflicted land of Israel-Palestine.

West Hills Friends (Portland, OR) participated in a labyrinth made from the food YOU have donated!

Mark Pratt-Russum is now youth pastor at West Hills Friends (Portland, OR). Both Mark and his wife Beth are graduates of Eastern University in Pennsylvania. They lived in Denver prior to accepting this call.

Quaker Quest will be presented by members of First Friends, Whittier (CA) on the subjects of Quakers and the Religious Experience, Quakers and Equality, and Quakers and Social Action. There will be six sessions in March and April, 2011.

Beyond the Monthly Meeting/Churches

The Alternatives to Violence Project will present a Basic Community Workshop on November 5-7 at Salem Meeting.

The Ben Lomond Quaker Center announces an internship opportunity beginning in early 2011 for an individual who is led to service with the Religious Society of Friends and who hopes to

learn about nonprofit management and social justice work.

The next meeting of the Christian Friends Conference will be December 11, 2010 at Palo Alto Friends Meeting.

The Friends Committee on Legislation Annual Bay Area Dinner will be at the Hillside

Club in, Berkeley, CA on Saturday, November 6.

The Intermountain Yearly Meeting Clerk is forming a task group to advise the Yearly Meeting about the direction it should take in assisting meetings with Quaker service. Each monthly meeting is asked to appoint a representative to the task group.

This is a year of evaluation of the new North Pacific Yearly Meeting structure, replacing the old Steering Committee with a Coordinating Committee. The major effect of the change is that more business is now handled at Annual Session.

North Pacific Yearly Meeting Coordinating Committee will meet on October 30^th at the Multnomah Meetinghouse.

Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends Church will observe Peace Month in January 2011! Friends are asked you to participate by sending in submissions for the Daily Reader, a booklet with an entry for each day of the month of January. Information: peaceeducation@nwfriends.org

There are two openings for pastoral positions in Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends Church. Crossroads Community Church in Astoria, Oregon, is looking for a bi-vocational lead pastor. Information:csaxton@nwfriends.org

Each year, the people of Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends Church partner together in ministry through the generous support of the Thanksgiving Offering. This year, the Thanksgiving Offering is staying close to home as Friends assist in the training and support of pastors serving local congregations. Training for future and current pastors will be enhanced as half of this year’s offering will go toward completing a Friends Center scholarship for graduate students at George Fox Evangelical Seminary. The other half of the Thanksgiving Offering will be dedicated to the Pastoral Assistance Fund under the care of the NWYM Board of Elders.

Friends in the Portland-area of Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends Church are invited to gather at Lynwood Friends on November 13. There will be a potluck at 5:00pm, followed by an opportunity to hear Nate Macy speak on discernment.

There is a proposal to change the name of Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting to Cascade Regional Meeting.

Pacific Yearly Meeting Representative Committee will meet at the San Francisco Meeting on the weekend of March 4-6, 2011.

The Fall gathering of Southern California Quarterly Meeting will be at Temescal Canyon Conference Grounds, Pacific Palisades, CA. Nov 6-7. The theme for this Fall Gathering, “Speaking Truth with Love: Transforming Conflict in Our Quaker Communities,” has two points of origin. One is the prevalence of unresolved conflicts of various sorts within the monthly meetings as reflected in the 2010 State of the Meeting reports. In some cases, these conflicts have resulted in lingering resentments and polarization within Meetings. The other point of origin for this theme is the idea, explored by George Lakey at Pacific Yearly Meeting, that Friends suffer from a pervading disposition toward conflict avoidance.

Berkeley Friends Church will host the annual meeting of the Western Association of the Religious Society of Friends (WARSF) on February 11-12, 2011. The Board of Oversight will meet on Friday evening, and then the general meeting of members the following afternoon.