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QuakerShaker - February 2004
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QuakerShaker on-line distribution
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Jan 25, 2004 17:56 PST
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This is the February 2004 QuakerShaker, Newsletter of the Yellow
Springs Society of Friends. To unsubscribe from e-mail edition, e-mail
DABlan-@aol.com. To subscribe to paper e-mail edition, contact
Harold Putnam at HPu-@aol.com. Contact the editor, Ann Cooper, at
adco-@aol.com.
************
In this issue:
1. February Calendar
2. Note from New Editor - Ann Cooper
3. News of (our!) Friends
4. Simplicity Circle
5. Friendly Living Discussion
6. Fresh Photos of Rockford—Dale Blanchard
7. Meet with Friends Health Care Association Board Members—Dick
Eastman
8. Introductory Quakerism Series—Bruce Heckman
9. Registration of Intent—Lorena Hyde
10. Peace & Social Concerns Brown Bag Discussion—Deb Kociszewski
11. The Iraq War and its Consequences - Irwin Abram's New Book
12. AFSC Aid for Iran
13. From the OVYM February Calendar
14. FRIENDLY CONCERNS Greene County Senior Services Replacement
Levy, Issue #6,
15. February Meeting for Business Agenda
16. Meeting for Business Minutes Dec.
17. Meeting For Business Minutes Jan.
**********
1. February Calendar
**********
Always: Sundays 8:30 a.m. Meeting for Worship, Rockford
8:30 a.m. Early Meeting for Worship, Rockford
10:00 a.m. First Day School (Sept-May), Rockford
11:00 a.m. Meeting for Worship, Rockford (Child care is available)
Wednesdays 7:00 a.m.Meeting for Worship, Rockford
Saturdays 12-1:00 p.m. Peace Vigil, corner of Limestone & Xenia Ave.
February Calendar:
Sunday, Feb. 1 Monthly Meeting for Business, following a noon
potluck, Rockford
Tuesday, Feb. 3 Membership & Pastoral Care Committee Meeting, 7:00
PM Jane Morgan’s home
Sunday, Feb. 8 Brown Bag Discussion with Friends Care Board
Rockford, following 11:00
Meeting for Worship
Friday, Feb. 13 Ministry & Advancement Committee Meeting, 7:00 PM
Cindy Butler-Jones’ home, Tipp City
Sunday, Feb. 15 Miami Quarterly Meeting, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Eastern Hills Monthly Meeting, Cincinnati (Details TBA)
Thurs., Feb. 19 Simplicity Circle, 7:00-8:00 PM, Thorpe home
Saturday, Feb. 21 Irwin Abrams Book Signing at Borders, Dayton
Sunday, Feb 22 Peace & Social Concerns Brown Bag discussion, Noon
Rockford
Deadline for March Quakershaker submissions. Contact editor, Ann
Cooper, at 937-767-7973, or email Adco-@aol.com.
Friends Meet and Visit after the 11:00 Meeting for Worship. Everyone is
encouraged to stay and visit following the rise of 11:00 Meeting for
Worship.. Thanks to these Friends, who will be heating water and
providing snacks on these dates in February: Carolyn T.—Feb 8 Claire
W.—Feb 15 Deb K.—Feb 22 Mary H.—Feb 29
**********
2.Note from the New Editor—Ann Cooper
**********
It is a pleasure to return to editing the Quakershaker. I am grateful to
the Newsletter Committee and to recent editors, Bill Houston and Dale
Blanchard, for their good work and kind support as I step back into
this process. It’s been suggested we use the newsletter to get to know
more about each other as individuals, as well to provide details
about Quaker activities and programs. I hope that Friends will share
some anecdotes about their lives for this purpose. Who knows, I may tap
on your shoulder someday and invite you to let your Light shine in one
corner of the Quakershaker. So I suppose it’s only fair for me to take
the plunge first. Here’s a snapshot of me, answering the kinds of
questions I’d like to ask you:
How did you get involved with Quakers?
I’d been reading a book by Elizabeth Watson, a Quaker, and I was
developing an interest in Friends. Then I moved to Yellow Springs, and
met Hazel Tulecke, who invited my family to go on a hayride with Friends
in 1989. That made us feel welcome, we attended Meeting one morning, we
liked it a lot and we kept on coming.
What do you do when you’re not at Friends Meeting?
I work for the Greene County Library, spend time with my family and ride
my horse.If you could ask any Quaker one question, what and whom would
you ask?
I’d ask John Woolman for advice about simplicity.
What have you been reading lately?
Fiction set in warm climates, poetry by Henry Taylor and The Hemingway
Book Club of Kosovo,
by Paula Huntley.
Tell a little about your family.
Bruce Heckman and I were married under the care of this Meeting in 1992.
We’re still crazy about each other. Our girls are all away at school
now. Joanna is at Capital University, Carolyn is at the School of the
Art Institute of Chicago, and Mary is at Earlham.
Have you been involved with any other religious organizations or
churches? What were they, and how did they affect you?
Yes. As a child, I attended Congregational and Methodist churches with
my family. In my twenties and early thirties, I belonged to an
especially vibrant Methodist Church in Missoula, Montana. Many of my
ideas about a loving, patient God were shaped by sermons I heard there.
Two of the preachers I remember from that church were among the most
thoughtful, inspiring and well-spoken people I have ever known. They
made Christianity sensible to me.
I look forward to publishing stories and information from members of the
Yellow Springs Friends Meeting community. Please contact me by phone
937-767-7973, or email adco-@aol.com.
**********
3.News of (our!) Friends
**********
Mark Melecki, a Member of Yellow Springs Friends Meeting, practices
massage in Yellow Springs, teaches massage in Dayton, and does physical
therapy at Greene Memorial Hospital in Xenia. Mark has just opened
another office in Centerville with three other massage therapists. This
is the consequence of a vision about which Mark has long dreamed, the
core of which he has described as "a community of successful massage
therapists, sharing a beautiful, affordable, professional practice
setting and supporting each other in growth, clinical knowledge, and
business skills." They call it Touchpoint Clinical Massage, and the
original four, two women and two men, are hoping that other massage
therapists with similar values will join them.
Barry Hollister and Irwin Abrams will be celebrating birthdays in
February. Both were born on the same day in the same year, February 24,
1914, Barry in Omaha, Nebraska, and Irwin in San Francisco. Barry may be
the elder. By the time Irwin was born in the early afternoon in San
Francisco, it was later in the day in Omaha. In any case, Barry sent
Irwin an announcement about a History job at Antioch, just when Irwin
was considering ending his four years with the AFSC and returning to
academe—and the rest is Antioch History!
And, speaking of Irwin Abrams and History, on January 10, at the annual
meeting in Washington, D.C. of the American Historical Association,
there was a panel on Peace Research in History: Irwin Abrams and the
Evolution of a Field. Irwin presented a paper on "Memoirs of a Peace
Historian," which dealt mainly with the time he spent in Europe in 1936
and ’37, working on his doctoral dissertation, "A History of European
Peace Societies, 1867-1899."\
Editor’s Request to all Meeting Members and Attenders:Please do use the
Quakershaker to share news of Friends. Contact me with stories!
Adco-@aol.com, or 767-7973
**********
4.Simplicity Circle—Mary Thorp
**********
The Simplicity Circle will be meeting on the third Thursday of every
month, from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Thorps’ house (1420 Southgate,
767-2815) to discuss the Northwest Earth Institute’s course on Voluntary
Simplicity. There are a couple of extra copies of the study/reading
guide available from the Thorps. Those dates, for the near future, are
February 19, March 18, April 15 and May 20. Please join us!
**********
5. Friendly Living—Mary Thorp
**********
Friends continue to meet at 10:00 a.m. on First Days to discuss writings
about living out our Quaker faith. The current book is Patricia
Loring’s Listening Spirituality, Vol. I; please contact Dale Blanchard
dablan-@aol.com if you need a copy.
************
6. Fresh Photos of Rockford—Dale Blanchard
**********
Dale would like to update the Quakershaker website
(http://quakershaker.net) and would love to have photos of the
Meetinghouse. Do you have any fairly recent photos? If you do, you
could e-mail them to Dale, DABlan-@aol.com, or let her borrow the
prints. She has the equipment necessary to scan them for use on the
website. You may contact her at 767-7891.
**********
7. Meet with Friends Health Care Association Board Members—Dick Eastman
**********
There will be a brown bag lunch and discussion, Sunday, February 8,
following the rise of Meeting for Worship. Individuals who have been
members of the Friends Health Care Association (FHCA) board will talk
about their experiences with the organization. Dick Eastman, Jane
Brown, Pam Davis, Henning VonGierke and Carl Champney will present their
views, and others with similar experiences are encouraged to contribute
to the discussion as well. Since our Meeting regularly recruits
volunteers to serve on this board, all our members and attenders might
appreciate learning about how the board functions. This discussion would
offer a helpful preview for any Friends who might consider serving on
the FHCA board at a future time.
**********
8. Introductory Quakerism Series—Bruce Heckman
**********
The Yellow Springs Friends Meeting will offer an introductory series on
Quakerism beginning February 16. Eight consecutive weekly sessions will
take place Monday evenings 7:00 to 8:15 p.m. The location will be the
Rockford Meeting House on President Street in Yellow Springs. Childcare
is available if requested in advance.
This series will provide interested adults with an introduction to
Quaker principles and practices. Those wishing to attend may know very
little about Quakerism, or they may already have some experience and
understanding of Quakerism but wish to learn more. Sessions will
include opportunities for questions and discussion. Relevant reading
materials will be available for participants' use. Call Bruce Heckman
at 767-7973 for additional information or to request childcare.
~~~~~~~~~~
In 1650, George Fox bid a judge to “tremble at the word of God.” Justice
Bennet derided Fox, calling him and his followers “Quakers.” Early
Friends accepted the label, since they did actually tremble when they
felt the love of God and were “tendered in their hearts
***********
9. Registration of Intent—Lorena Hyde
**********
This is the yearly reminder from the Memorial Committee to members and
attenders of the Meeting to complete a Registration of Intent if they
wish to have the services of the committee at death. Green brochures
explaining what the committee offers are in the rack at Rockford. If you
have not done so, we urge you to take one and think about whether you
want to have your death handled in this way. Pre-registration is
necessary because of the paperwork involved immediately following death.
Most older people in the Meeting have made decisions about this. Many
younger individuals and families have given no indication that they have
given the matter any consideration. People who are new to the Meeting
may not be aware of this service. We urge all who have not done so to
think about their decision in this matter. Any Committee member can
discuss it with you. Heidi Eastman (767-7592) is clerk of the Committee.
IMPORTANT MESSAGE to registrants signed up with the Memorial Committee:
If you have a pacemaker, or if you acquire one, please notify the clerk
of the Committee (currently Heidi Eastman). The device must be removed
before the Memorial Committee can its their work.
**********
10. Peace & Social Concerns Brown Bag Discussion—Deb Kociszewski
**********
The Peace and Social Concerns Committee will host a brown bag discussion
on the Peace Testimony on Sunday, February 22, 2004, after Meeting for
Worship. In preparation for this discussion, please consider these
questions:
What does the Peace Testimony mean to you?
How has the Peace Testimony shown up in your life?
For further information, please contact one of the following Peace and
Social Concerns committee members: Billie Eastman, Hazel Tulecke, Denise
Runyon, or Deb Kociszewski.
**********
11. The Iraq War and its Consequences - Irwin Abrams book
**********
Yellow Springs Friend Irwin Abrams has co-edited a new book, The Iraq
War and its Consequences: Thoughts of Nobel Peace Laureates and Eminent
Scholars. Collected essays address concerns such as the economic costs
of war, the role of the United Nations and multilateral international
organizations, human rights issues, the looting of museums, education
and the rebuilding of Iraq, the impact of war on American society, and
much more. Contributors include The Dalai Lama, Jose Ramos-Horta
(Foreign Minister, Timor Leste) Mary Ellen McNish (AFSC), Noam Chomsky
(MIT), Joseph Stiglitz (Columbia University), and Sir John Daniel
(UNESCO). Many other notable and knowledgeable peace laureates and
scholars add insight and information to this book, which has drawn
widespread opposition, as well as strong support. On Saturday, February
21, Irwin will be signing copies of the book at Borders in Dayton. He
will announce details following Meeting for Worship when he has more
information. Those interested may also call Irwin for more information.
**********
12. AFSC Aid for Iran
**********
The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) is directing proceeds from
its Emergency Crisis Fund to help tens of thousands affected by the
recent earthquake in Iran. Funds raised will purchase essential supplies
in the region, instead of shipping them in from other areas. AFSC
considers this the most cost-effective approach.
Cash donations may be made payable to the AFSC Crisis Fund, and sent to
AFSC Development; 1501 Cherry Street; Philadelphia PA 19102.
Contributions via VISA or MasterCard may be made by calling
1-888-588-2372, ext. 1, or through the AFSC website at www.afsc.org.
The AFSC Emergency and Material Assistance Program has an 86-year
history of providing assistance to those struggling for survival during
times of war or natural disaster. AFSC helps people without regard to
their religious, ethnic or political affiliations. The American Friends
Service Committee is a Quaker organization that includes people of
various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace and
humanitarian service. Its work is based on the belief in the worth of
every person and faith in the power of love to overcome violence and
injustice.
Ecumenical Advocacy Days
"I Will Feed Them with Justice," the 2004 Ecumenical Advocacy Days for
Global Peace with Justice, will take place March 5-8, 2004, in
Washington, DC. Co-sponsored by Friends Committee on National
Legislation, the gathering will focus on economic justice and nuclear
disarmament in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. Karin
Lee, FCNL senior associate for East Asia Policy, and David Culp,
legislative representative for the Quaker Nuclear Disarmament Program,
are among the featured speakers at the four-day education and lobby
event. For more information contact
www.advocacydays.org; Leon Spencer, (202) 547-7503; or Anna Rhee,
advoca-@earthlink.net.
**********
13. From the OVYM February Calendar
**********
Feb. 7: Executive Committee Meeting, Landrum Bolling Center, Rm. 124, 12
– 3:30pm
Feb. 7: Discipline Revision Committee Meeting, Landrum Bolling Center,
Rm. 107, 9 – 11:30am
Feb. 15: Miami Quarter Meeting, Eastern Hills Friends, time to be
announced.
Feb. 13-16: Friends for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer
Concerns (FLGBTQC)
Midwinter Gathering, Burlington Meetinghouse, Burlington, NJ
Feb. 20-21: Advancement & Nurture Committee Retreat, Stout Meetinghouse,
Richmond, IN
**********
14. FRIENDLY CONCERNS
**********
From time to time, Friends wish to share information about concerns that
they hold personally. These topics may not have been addressed by the
Meeting as a whole or by other Quaker organizations, but individuals
among us still care about them very deeply. These topics seem to fit
well under a heading of “Friendly Concerns.” In this issue of the
Quakershaker, we hear from Frances Goodman, a member of this Meeting,
and an volunteer at the Yellow Springs Senior Citizens Center, about an
issue of importance to her and many people throughout our county—a
senior services replacement levy. Thanks, Frances, for sharing this
information. —Ann Cooper
Senior Services—Frances Goodman A Greene County Senior Services
Replacement Levy, Issue #6, will be on the ballot March 2. This .8-mill
replacement levy is effective for 5 years, and will be based on 2004
property valuations. Since 1999, the levy has generated 93% of the
budget for the Greene County Council on Aging (GCCA). Programs supported
include
Partners in Care (PIC), senior centers and senior service providers.
Expenses for PIC are covered through 2004. Levy failure would result in
program shut down in early 2005. In conjunction with individuals,
families and service providers, PIC helps seniors receive the support
they need to remain in their homes as long as possible. This typically
includes emergency response, home-delivered meals, adult daycare,
homemaker services, personal care and medical transportation. On
average, GCCA purchases services for 630 seniors per month. PIC also
assists family caregivers with support groups, educational programs, and
a caregiver resource center. The Kinship Navigator program helps
grandparents raising grandchildren and other family caregivers facing
legal, medical and financial issues. In 2003, 75 kinship families with
122 children benefited from this program. Funding also goes to senior
centers offering services, such as transportation.For more information,
please call 376-5486, or 1-888-795-8600.
**********
15. Monthly Meeting for Business - Agenda
**********
Agenda for February Meeting for Business--Carl Hyde Meeting for Worship
with Attention to Business, Yellow Springs Friends Meeting, Second Month
1, 2004
1) Consideration of the Second Query on Personal Religious Exercise:Do
you so order your life as to include reading, meditation, and communion,
that you may know more of the presence and guidance of the Divine
Spirit? Do you remember the need to pray for others, holding them in
the presence of God?
2) Review of Minutes of January Meeting
3) Appointment of Delegates to February 15, Quarterly Meeting Delegates
should be prepared to nominate new QM officers
Delegates will be asked to discuss Yearly Meeting assessment policy
Program will feature reports on the death penalty in Ohio and Kentucky
Are there issues Yellow Springs wishes our delegates to present? If so,
how should they be presented?
4) Committee Reports:
Nominating Committee report on appointments to Friends Care Board Peace
and Social Concerns on plan for discussion meeting
5) Discussion of the propriety (or lack of same) of a nature scene in
Rockford
6) New Business
7) Next Meeting planned for March 7, 2004
8) Announcements: Brown Bag Meeting with members of Friends Care Board,
February 8
**********
16. Minutes of Monthly Meeting for Business January 4, 2004
**********
Yellow Springs Friends met for business at the Meetinghouse on January
4, 2004. Present were: Carl Hyde, Dale Blanchard, Denise Runyon, David
Hyde, Dick Eastman, Paul Wagner, Fran Goodman, Carol Simmons, Bruce
Heckman, Betty Wagner, Harold Putnam, Allen Treadway, Kay Hollister,
Hazel Tulecke, Billie Eastman, Luanne Ebert, Jane Morgan, Jean Putnam,
Irwin Abrams, Lorena Hyde, Peg Champney, Joan Brucker, Carolyn
Treadway, Faith Morgan, Deb Kociszewski
The Meeting opened in silent worship, which included prayerful
consideration of the first query on worship and ministry. Friends were
reminded that preparation for worship includes a lifetime of
preparation.
1. Minutes. The recording clerk read the minutes from the December,
2003, Meeting for Business. The December minutes will be published in
the February Quakershaker.
2. Ministry and Advancement. Bruce Heckman reported for the committee
that retreat expense to the meeting is $755. One thousand dollars had
been allocated. Fees paid by attendees totaled $775. The cost to use the
Glen Helen Outdoor Education Center was $1071.20, and expense for food
was $459.33. A copy of the report is attached to the archive copy of the
minutes.
3. Care of the Meetinghouse. Paul Wagner reported that the new
scheduling procedure is in effect. Paul distributed copies of the
summary of the Building Maintenance and Use Budget. A copy of the report
is attached to the archive copy of the minutes. He noted that collection
of fees for use of the building will be a priority in the coming year.
Expenses to maintain the building in 2003 were more than usual due to
several maintenance and repair needs.
Friends discussed the need to hire someone to perform care services.
Paul suggested that we continue as is for the remainder of the current
business year. Friends requested that Simmons organize a Spring Cleaning
event. It was suggested that the meeting report a summary of expenses
for the Meetinghouse to Antioch University. Paul will submit this
report. Friends minute their tremendous appreciation to Paul Wagner
for the service he provides and has provided for many years toward the
care and maintenance of the Meetinghouse.
4. Peace and Social Concerns. Deb Kociszewski reported that the
committee is not ready to forward an agenda for a Meeting-wide
discussion of the Peace Testimony. Deb shared a statement summarizing
the committee's work to date. The statement was prepared by Billie
Eastman and will be published in the QuakerShaker as part of these
minutes. It reads as follows:
Begin Billie Eastman statement for Peace and Social Concerns:
***I have a Vision. I see a great body of human beings to be gathered
centered in the light of our creation. We are light and love created in
the image of God. We have the task of finding and using the power within
to bring together large groups of people ready to move into higher
consciousness. This is our Quaker heritage. George Fox experienced it in
the late 1650s. This is what we are being asked to do. George Fox
connected to the source, experienced God directly. He was one with
vision, insight, a prophet, and was able to know God's will and follow
his leadings. In Fox's generation, the gathered people, those who were
ready to see religion, the church, the priests and ministers
differently, were called Quakers. The acquired the name because the
energy of their knowing, the centeredness in the source was so strong
that they actually quaked with energy. The gathered people were also
those seeing the task of changing the social structure and power from
the elite to all humans no matter what their class. Their faith was so
strong they went through suffering to make the change happen. They were
also called Friends--there is that of God in everyone and everyone is a
friend. We are all one. Love thy neighbor as thyself--Love the enemy and
do good unto him. The teacher of love was Jesus and early Quakers spoke
of that love and experienced that love within as humans do today. By the
writings of early Quakers and George Fox, we read and understand they
were readers of the Bible, and they understood that the authority came
from God and the Bible was a guide of past teachers, who were led and
experienced God. The great teaching of George Fox was fostering the
experience of knowing God directly and being able to communicate with
God. Connecting with this source of power, filled with love and light,
the people of George Fox's time were led to their task.
The thousands of people the world around, who took to the streets to
forward peace and not war in Iraq, showed the beauty of the
consciousness of humans today. There is a task today that Quakers came
to do, why we gather on Sunday mornings to worship, why we have been
concerned with social ills, why we seek for the truth, why we seek to
remove from our lives all of that which is not of love (anger, hate,
revenge, fear, greed); why Quakers have a record of integrity and trust.
We need to see clearly, know who we are, communicate and accept our role
in today's society. We are living in an age of great deception, a time
of great change, a time of wandering in the desert of despair, a time
when thousands are seeking peace, security, and roots. It is a time of
seeking the Christ within, knowing that we are created in the image of
God and co-creators with God. We are being called to become active, to
bring together environmental groups, religion, science, youth. How this
is to be done will come from within, our connection with God, the
source, the unified field. It can begin by conversation and reviewing
our peace testimony and Quaker history.
***end Billie Eastman statement for Peace and Social Concerns.
Friends have requested that the Peace and Social Concerns committee
follow through and set a date for the discussion of the Peace Testimony.
Friends are encouraged to join Peace and Social Concerns if they feel
led. Dick Eastman will sit with the committee for this purpose.
5. Membership and Pastoral Care and Ministry and Advancement. David Hyde
reported for the committees, who met together to consider support of new
attenders. Membership and Pastoral Care will address needs that surface
regarding new attenders.
6. Friends Care Center Board. Dick Eastman shared his support of hearing
from Yellow Springs Friends appointees to the Friends Care Center Board.
Such a discussion would be valuable to hear the experiences of our
appointees, as individuals in the Meeting may be called upon to serve on
the Board. This discussion will be held Sunday, February 8, 2004, as a
brown bag lunch.
Dick Eastman will coordinate with Yellow Springs Friends appointees to
the Board.
7. Potluck to welcome Ed Hyde. Ed Hyde will be welcomed as a full adult
member in the Yellow Springs Friends Meeting on Sunday, January 11,
2004, at a potluck.
8. Miami Quarterly Meeting. Friends are encouraged to consider attending
the Miami Quarterly Meeting February 15, 2004, at Eastern Hills as
delegates from Yellow Springs Friends Meeting. Delegates will be
appointed at the February, 2004, Meeting for Business.
9. Committee Job Descriptions. Lorena Hyde reminded committee clerks to
provide their job descriptions to Jean Putnam for use by the Nominating
Committee.
10. Ken Champney. Peg Champney reported that Ken is progressing well
following surgery. Peg reported that she feels confident in calling for
help as needed.
11. Jane Morgan Picture Donation. Jane Morgan has offered the donation
of a nature photograph, made by John Morgan, to the Meeting. Paul Wagner
reminded Friends of a past donation of artwork to the Meeting. At a past
time, Friends felt that there was great value in keeping the walls quiet
in the Meeting room. The past donation was hung in the library. Irwin
Abrams reminded Friends that an artwork donation was declined
approximately 12 years ago. Friends are asked to consider the matter of
the picture and discuss it at the February Meeting for Business.
The meeting closed in silent worship. The next Meeting for Business will
be held Sunday,
February 1, 2004 at 12:45 PM at the Meetinghouse.
Submitted, Deb Kociszewski, Recording Clerk
**********
17. Minutes of Monthly Meeting for Business December 7, 2003
**********
Yellow Springs Friends met for business at the Meetinghouse on December
7, 2003. Present were Jane Morgan, Barry Hollister, Joan Brucker, Kay
Hollister, Clyde Replogle, Bruce Heckman, Henning von Gierke, Irwin
Abrams, Dale Blanchard, Lorena Hyde, David Hyde, Dick Eastman, Hazel
Tulecke, Carl Hyde, Deb Kociszewski, Susan Hyde, Claire Winold, Billie
Eastman, Luanne Ebert
The Meeting opened in silent worship, which included prayerful
consideration of the twelfth query on possessions and business.
1. Minutes. The recording clerk read the minutes from the November 2,
Meeting for Business. Cindy Butler-Jones and Dale Blanchard were added
to the list of attendees at the November 2, 2003, Meeting for Business.
Friends approved the minutes of the November 2, Meeting for Business.
2. Membership and Pastoral Care. David Hyde submitted the names of Don
Hollister and Kathy Hale to serve on the Nominating Committee. Friends
approved. Jane Morgan reported that the proceeds of pecan sales are $
82.00. This amount will be added to the amount raised at the Children's
Fair for donation to projects chosen by the children.
3. Nominating Committee. The Nominating Committee submitted the name of
Dale Blanchard to serve as Assistant Clerk of the Yellow Springs Friends
Meeting. It is anticipated that the Assistant Clerk will move into the
role of Presiding Clerk for the term beginning July, 2004. Friends
approved Dale's nomination as Assistant Clerk.
4. Ministry and Advancement. Bruce Heckman reported for the committee
that Meeting retreat evaluations indicated that Friends feel that the
retreat is a valuable annual event.
Suggestions include improved child care, teen program planning in
advance that involves teens, hearing assistance, accessibility, and that
plans be announced earlier. The cost to the Meeting after receipts is
estimated to be $ 800. Friends discussed the merits of scheduling the
retreat every other year or every year. Ministry and Advancement will
consider the comments offered and will report a recommendation later.
5. Rockford Scheduling. Paul Wagner is not available for this Meeting,
and will report at the January, 2004, Meeting for Business. It was noted
that the Meetinghouse schedule is posted at the Meetinghouse.
6. Peace and Social Concerns. Deb Kociszewski reported that Peace and
Social Concerns has met to consider an agenda for a Meeting-wide
discussion of the peace testimony and will offer an agenda at the
January, 2004, Meeting for Business.
7. OVYM Discipline Revision. Yellow Springs Friends have responded on
the proposed section regarding close relationships. We have not yet
received that package on the environment, and will consider it when
received.
8. Friends Care Center. The Friends Care Center Board has requested
input on their long-range planning. Henning von Gierke advised that as
of December 5, 2003, 37 responses had been received. It was noted that
responses were primarily from those over 70 years of age. Responses
indicated that responders are very interested in services that enable
them to remain in their own homes, and that housing affordability is an
issue. Yellow Springs Friends endorse the planning efforts of the
Friends Care Center Board.
It was proposed that Board members appointed by Yellow Springs Friends
Meeting report to the meeting in February or March, 2004, and that we
schedule annual reports.
9. New Business. Committee job descriptions. The clerk has requested
that committee clerks develop and submit job descriptions for the
committees. Bruce Heckman noted that oversight f Meeting activities that
support and welcome new attenders is currently an area of ambiguity.
Friends have requested that Ministry and Advancement and Membership and
Pastoral Care meet together to develop suggestions to address this
concern.
The Meeting closed in silent worship. The next Meeting for Business will
be held on January 4, 2004 at 12:45 PM at the Meetinghouse.
Submitted, Deb Kociszewski, Recording Clerk
~~~~~~~~~~
If I spent enough time with the tiniest creature—even a caterpillar
—I would never have to prepare a sermon.
So full of God is every creature.
—Meister Eckhart
~~~~~~~~~~
Waking up this morning, I smile.
Twenty-four brand new hours are before me.
I vow to live fully in each moment
and to look at all beings with the eyes of compassion.
—Thich Nhat Hanh
~~~~~~~~~~
In prayer,
Come empty,
Do nothing.
Saint John of the Cross
Mail address: Yellow Springs Friends P.O. 45 Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387
website: http://quakershaker.net
******end February 2004 QuakerShaker newsletter***********
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