June 2014 Newsletter
(Sixth Month)
(Sixth Month)
Meeting for Worship
& First Day School
Sundays at 11:00 a.m.
Midweek Meeting for Worship,
Wednesdays at 6:00 p.m.
Social and Civic Responsibility
Advices:
In
the words of William Penn, “True godliness don’t draw men out of the world,
but enables them to live better in it and excites their endeavors to mend it.”
Elsewhere he commented: “It is a reproach to religion and government to
suffer so much poverty and excess.
Poverty
within a wealthy society is unjust, cruel, and often linked to skin color,
gender, and language. We must examine our own privilege and role in the
economic order that deepens this disparity. Friends should be alert to
oppression and injustice, and persistent in working against them.
We
value our part in shaping the laws of our country. Our task is to see that laws
serve God’s purposes and build a just social order. Our first allegiance should
be to God, and if this conflicts with any compulsion of the state, we serve our
country best by remaining true to our higher loyalty.
If,
by divine leading, our attention is focused on a law that is contrary to God’s
law, we must proceed with care. Before acting, Friends should pray for further
guidance and speak with the Meeting, family members, and all those who might be
affected by the decision. If a decision involves disobedience to the law, we
should make the grounds of our action clear to all concerned and be prepared to
suffer any penalties without evasion. As a community, we must care for those
who suffer for conscience’s sake.
Queries:
What
am I doing to carry my share of responsibility for the government of our
community, nation, and world?
Am
I persistent in my efforts to promote constructive change?
How
do we attend to the suffering of others in our local community, in our state
and nation, and in the world community?
Do
we try to understand the causes of suffering, and do we address them as a Meeting?
How
do we, individually and as a Meeting, support the organizations that work to
bring the testimonies of Friends into reality in our society?
Meeting for Business began at 1:00 pm with 22 people present. After a period of worship, acting clerk Stephen Matchett read a passage from the PYM Advices & Queries for Fifth Month on “Harmony with Creation.” The reading was followed by silent reflection.
5-01: Meeting approves
Stephen Matchett as Acting Clerk for today, May 11, 2014.
Approval of Previous Month’s
Minutes
5-02: Meeting approves the
minutes of April 13, 2014 as presented.
Nominating Committee
5-03: Meeting approves the nomination of Philip Gerrie to clerk Property &
Finance Committee through 4/30/2015; and of David Matchett as San Francisco
Friends School Quaker Life Committee representative beginning 9/1/2014 through
8/31/2016.
David Ackerly, Nominating Committee co-clerk, reported they
are nominating Anne Collins and Sandra Schwartz as members of Ministry &
Oversight Committee, for terms through 4/30 of 2016 and 2015 respectively. Anne would need to be released from
Children's Religious Education and Hospitality Committees. These will be
seasoned for a Month. Nominating is considering the openings that still exist:
Clerk for M&O, Property & Finance, Clerk and Assistant Clerk. We are
possibily in need of a called meeting, in particular for the clerkship. Perhaps
Nominating and M&O can work together to resolve. Additionally, Blake Arnall is moving away, so the
committee seeks his release from Welcoming Committee.
5-04: Meeting approves the release of Blake Arnall from Welcoming Committee.
Property & Finance Committee
Committee member and treasurer Amy Baker reported that the
entire De Beers bequest has been liquidated, to a total of $194,283.05. Property & Finance propose that 75%
of the money be directed toward the Rausch Street loan and 25% to the General
Fund, designated in part for improvements to the Ninth Street building,
including a sound system (see New Business, below), seating area in the kitchen
and work on the back hallway. In addition, the General Fund is low, and these
funds would bring it back up to a healthy amount, $40K, in addition to these
expenses. The clerk invited comments or questions, and announced we would let
the proposal season for a month. Questions and concerns are to be brought to
P&F while we season. A Friend
expressed thanks to the Treasurer for her efficiency and care.
Ministry
& Oversight Committee
Stephen Matchett read a letter from Cheryl Hendrickson and
David Cowen requesting membership. The letter is referred to M&O to set up
a visiting committee or committees.
Krista Barnard reported that, besides the committee's having
no clerk, only four current members were present at its most recent
meeting. Bob Kovsky will convene
the June 4 M&O meeting. The committee decided not to hold a topic table at
the potluck on the first Sunday in June. They are continuing a monthly rotation
of M&O members to break meeting and give announcements.
The Retreats Subcommittee is continuing to prepare for the
Memorial Day weekend retreat, and the registration deadline is May 18.
The committee held a wide-ranging and long discussion of
leadership, pastoral care, and other community issues in San Francisco Meeting
and may come back in the future with a program or recommendations.
New Business
A Friend expressed unease with the process and decision at
last month's Business Meeting approving funding for the Friday Food Sharing
program of Peace & Social Concerns Committee. The action was taken in the face of some members'
reservations, and the Friend expressed concern that a perceived lack of respect
and care for dissenting views on this and other occasions was causing that
Friend to feel unsafe and out of place in Meeting. An extensive and worshipful discussion followed. The following were among the thoughts
and experiences aired:
●
the value and importance of putting a question over when
Friends have concerns that cannot be answered at the time a decision is being
sought;
●
the preservation of our spiritual unity, and community, as
having priority over the taking of specific actions;
●
a Friend who stood aside from an earlier decision and
experienced it as being “put to one side”;
●
the experience of standing aside from a decision and
considering later whether one should have stood in the way;
●
the need for clear information when being asked to take an
action, particularly one involving money;
●
hurt feelings at Meeting's allocating money to a new project
after having cut the budget of an existing committee ostensibly to make ends
meet;
●
differing views on the handling of Meeting's money, including
defining and distinguishing between ongoing operational costs and one-time or
provisional expenditures;
●
the importance of being able to trust our committees' decision
making processes.
We agreed to revisit next month the decision to fund the
Friday Food Sharing program for the remainder of the year. The acting clerk
will request from the clerk of Peace & Social Concerns an itemized budget
for the project, which was not provided at the last meeting, and a report on
what has been spent so far.
Keith Wedmore made a request for the installation of a sound
system in the Meetinghouse to assist us in hearing each other, noting that
there have been many technological advances since the Meeting last considered
this issue. The acting clerk
observed that the Property & Finance Committee report indicated that the
committee was looking into this possibility, and encouraged Keith to be in
consultation with them and with Ministry & Oversight on the matter. Another Friend suggested that in any
related wiring we do we also take into consideration the possibility of
different kinds of internet connectivity and remote access.
Children's
Religious Education Committee
Committee clerk Kate Frankel recommended a change in our
policy regarding the screening of paid child care providers to extend to
volunteer child care providers. This was requested by our insurance provider in
order to maintain current coverage and rate. Protect My Ministry is an
organization that does these screenings for many churches.
5-05: Meeting approves, as proposed by Children's Religious Education
Committee, a change in policy from obtaining an online criminal background
check for paid childcare employees to paid employees plus volunteer childcare
providers.
State of the Meeting Report
Stephen Matchett handed out a slightly revised draft of the
State of the Meeting Report he read last month, to be submitted to the
Quarterly and Yearly Meetings (copy attached to the archived copy of these
minutes). The current report was
read in silence for review.
5-06: Meeting approves the State of the Meeting Report as presented.
Announcements
The acting clerk announced the annual meeting of San Francisco
Friends Meeting, Incorporated, to be held on June 8, 2014.
Marion Chatfield-Taylor volunteers for a good-bye celebration
for Blake Arnall on June 1. The meeting might consider giving him a Minute of
Sojourn.
After a period of sharing of joys and
concerns, Meeting for Business closed with worship at 3:20 pm with 16 people in
attendance.
Respectfully submitted,
Ann Marie Snell, Recording Clerk
Stephen Matchett, Acting Clerk
Stephen Matchett, Acting Clerk
Childrens’ Religious Education
Happy Summer, Friends!
We are chug-chugging along in the Nursery and First Day School, blessed by our helping hands: Antonina Real has joined Neil, Liz, and Max, filling in when Max is gone. Please join me in welcoming her to our childcare-providing friends. We plan to have a friendly presence in the Nursery and in the First Day School Room each Sunday, and while it's not necessary, it would be helpful to know summer plans and whether your child will be attending childcare during the months of June, July, and August.
We are chug-chugging along in the Nursery and First Day School, blessed by our helping hands: Antonina Real has joined Neil, Liz, and Max, filling in when Max is gone. Please join me in welcoming her to our childcare-providing friends. We plan to have a friendly presence in the Nursery and in the First Day School Room each Sunday, and while it's not necessary, it would be helpful to know summer plans and whether your child will be attending childcare during the months of June, July, and August.
In Peace,
Kate Frankel, Clerk CREC
Meeting Newsletter
It’s that time again! An update form for our Meeting Directory is included in this
newsletter. Both members and attenders are welcome for inclusion, and we will
only include those who request to be in it. The deadline for inclusion is June
15, and the form can be returned to the Meeting House.
June 2014 News from AFSC
5K Undocu-Run
On May 5th, the AFSC’s 67 Sueños
project and Mechxa de UC Berkeley held their third annual 5K UndocuRUN fun run. The run is a fundraiser for our
migrant youth summer project to use public mural art in the ongoing effort to
make visible the humanity of the migrant community, change the narrative about
migrant people and create the political will to legalize our community and stop
the abuses.
Even though the run is over, you can
still support our summer project through online donations at:
AFSC’s healing Justice Program and NRCAT
Calls for Prayers
On Wednesday, May 7, the National
Religious Campaign Against Torture sent email invitations to all clergy who had
signed the letter in support of the hunger strikers last summer, as well as
NRCAT’s national list,
inviting recipients to submit written prayers to be delivered to those who
remain in the Secure Housing Unit at Pelican Bay State Prison. The hope is that
these prayers, coming from many faith traditions, will bring hope to prisoners
and call public attention to the plights of people held in long term isolation.
We invite you to submit a
prayer from your faith tradition, in Spanish or English or the sacred
language of your religious tradition. Please
email your prayer to campaign@nrcat.org, subject line: Prayer One
Year Later.
It has been a year of legislative
hearings, of retaliation against hunger strikers, of resilience and work for
unity amongst prisoners inside and families and communities outside. Legislation
has been introduced in California that would end indefinite solitary
confinement and bring an end to the ‘gang validation’ process that leads so many incarcerated,
mostly people of color, to spend years and even decades in solitary confinement. Please join AFSC, NRCAT, California Families Against Solitary
Confinement (CFASC) [www.abolishsolitary.com/about-cfasc.html], Interfaith Communities United
for Justice and Peace (ICUJP) [icujp.org/], and T'ruah:The Rabbinic Call
for Human Rights [www.truah.org/issuescampaigns/torture.html] observing the national day to
remember victims of torture, June 26, by sending your prayer.
June 2014 News from Ben Lomond Quaker Center
2014 June
News from Ben Lomond Quaker Center
We still
have space in our Quaker Center Summer Youth Camps, which will once again be
directed by Stephen Myers, with help from Anna Lisa Chacon for Quaker and
Service Camps and from Mary Klein and Jim Summers for Peace Action Camp. For more information visit http://www.quakercenter.org/summer-youth-camps/ or call Bob or Kathy Runyan at Quaker
Center at 831-336-8333 with questions.
§ June 22nd - 29th:
Quaker Camp: for rising 4th, 5th, or 6th graders to explore Quaker testimonies
experientially. Activities include: community building games, swimming, hiking
around Quaker Center, campfires, music, community service, and a field trip to
the beach.
§ June 22nd - 29th:
Service Camp: for teens entering 7th,
8th, or 9th grade to serve others
while building community. We will be of service in Santa Cruz County and go on
hikes in the area. We'll also take field trips to a local Friend's pool and to
the beach.
§ July 27th – Aug. 2nd: Peace Action Camp: in Carson City, Nevada at the McCleary Ranch for rising 10th -
12th grade teens to explore Gandhian constructive program, and sustainable,
low-impact living as they relate to Friends' testimonies around peace, justice
and environmental stewardship with inward and outward nonviolence, community
service, and outdoor adventure.
Do you feel like you're missing out on all the fun of summer
camp? All ages are welcome to our annual Family Work Camp from August 3rd-8th. Join us for a week of putting our hands and hearts to
work on improvements to Quaker Center facilities while building community among
us.
Please
register early for all Quaker Center programs online, http://www.quakercenter.org/programs/register.
College Park Quarterly Meeting
The upcoming
College Park Quarterly Meeting will be October 17 - 19
(Fri-Sun) at Sierra Friends Center in Nevada City
Pacific Yearly Meeting
The upcoming
Pacific Yearly Meeting session will be July 14-19,
2014 at Walker
Creek Ranch in Petaluma,
CA
Submissions to
the newsletter are due by the next-to-last First Day (Sunday) of each month in
the News Committee mailbox at the meetinghouse, or by e-mail to news@sfquakers.org. This newsletter is also available for
reading or downloading on our website at http://www.sfquakers.org/news.html.
Members of the
News Committee are Kate McCarley (clerk, editor), Eli Bishop (web servant), Catherine
Fox (production), and Noel Schwerin (distribution)
If you’d like to be added to the Meeting
Directory please complete this form. If you’re already listed, please review
your entry and make any updates to your contact information on this form.
Return the form in the M&O mail slot in the lobby or email dmatchett@mindspring.com by
June 15th, 2014. Thanks!
q New listing q
Revised Listing
Name: ______
Phone: ______
Alternate phone: ______
Email: ______
Quaker affiliation q Attender q
Member of ______________________________________ Meeting
Significant other: ______
Address: ______
City, State, Zip: ______
Children: ______
(all events at 65 9th St., unless noted;
*see details elsewhere in newsletter)
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Sunday
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Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
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1
9:30a Bible Study
11a Meeting for Worship, Community Potluck following
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2
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3
7p Property & Finance Mtg
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4
8:30a SFFS
6 Meeting for Worship
7p Ministry & Oversight Mtg
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5
12p Peace Vigil‡
7p Potluck & Quaker Study
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6
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7
10:30a-1p Food Pantry
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8
11a Meeting for Worship
1p Meeting for Business
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9
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10
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11
8:30a SFFS
6p Meeting for Worship |
12
12p Peace Vigil‡
7p Potluck & Quaker Study
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13
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14
10:30a-1p Food Pantry
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15
9:30a Bible Study
11a Meeting for Worship
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16
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17
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18
6p Meeting for Worship |
19
12p Peace Vigil‡
7p Potluck & Quaker Study |
20
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21
10:30a-1p Food Pantry
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22
9:15 Non-Violent Comm. Practice Group
11a Meeting for Worship
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23
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24
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25
6p Meeting for Worship
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26
12p Peace Vigil‡
7p Potluck & Quaker Study |
27
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28
10:30a-1p Food Pantry
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29
9a Extended Meeting for Worship
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30
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1
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2
6p Meeting for Worship
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3
12p Peace Vigil‡
7p Potluck & Quaker Study
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4
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31
10:30a-1p Food Pantry
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‡Federal Building, Golden Gate Ave. and Larkin St. †San Francisco
Friends School, 250 Valencia St.
