Chris and Cathy Kerr (Solebury Mtg.) Share their recent experience in Russia.
Yardley Meeting’s Peace and Social Action Committee
Newtown Monthly Meeting of Friends
Buckingham Meeting National Historic Landmark
Yardley Meeting Presents FCNL Concerns
Annual Gathering of Quaker Public Educators
Meetinghouse Needs Volunteers to Welcome Tourists
American Friends Service Committee Donations
Opportunities at Friends Neighborhood Guild
Tile Works Issues Special Edition Tile
Forgiveness, Reconciliation and Restorative Justice
The Emerging Majority - Progressive American Radio
Pilgrimage to England’s Quaker Country
Choir Concert at George School
PYM Friends Workcamp Celebration & Visioning Day
Snippets of News from the Quarter and Other Places
NOVA Network of Victim Assistance
Join the Community Chorus at George School
Meeting for Worship at Pennswood Village
Doylestown Meeting Friends Silent Vigil for Peace
Chandler Hall Worship Services Organizers
January 2004 |
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4 |
Sun |
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Join the Community Chorus at George School. (See Snippets page two) |
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9 |
Fri |
6:00pm |
Yardley Friends Meeting’s Peace and Social Action Committee. |
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10 |
Sat |
9:00am-3pm |
Annual Gathering of Quaker Public Educators. |
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11 |
Sun |
11 am |
Newtown Monthly Meeting of Friends Celebrates it’s New Addition. |
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25 |
Sun |
10-11 |
Chris and Cathy Kerr will share their recent experience in Russia. (Solebury Meeting) |
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30 |
Fri |
6:00pm |
Yardley Meeting Presents FCNL Concerns. |
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Dec - March |
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AFSC Launches campaign for African Children. (See page two) |
Looking Ahead |
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June 28-July 13, 2004 ” |
Pilgrimage to England’s “Quaker Country. |
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April 23-24, 2004 |
Arch Street Meetinghouse.Forgiveness, Reconciliation & Restorative Justice. |
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They will have slides of their stay in St. Petersburg and discuss their impressions of life in the former Soviet Union as it strives towards democracy. They will discuss what impressed them the most and some of the cultural differences. Join us and find out. Info: 215-862-5932.
Christmas Holiday Party for Residents
Yardley Friends Meeting’s Peace and Social Action will be hosting a pot-luck and screening of the Moveon.org film “Uncovered: The Whole Truth About the Iraq War.”
Info: call John Ceneviva at 215-736-8442.
Date is January 9, 2004, at 6:00pm.
It’s time to Celebrate!
The last nail in place, the mellow wood floors seasoned, and occupancy approved, our wonderful new space is just about in full use. Never mind that some furnishings and carpets are still in the planning.
On Sun, January 11, beginning with Meeting for Worship at 11 am, followed by hors d’oeuvres (finger food) and a program of fun for all ages, ending at about 3:00pm. After the hors d’oeuvres, there will be a scavenger hunt for the children, and for the older children and adults, a How-To-Be-An-Additionaire Quiz Show and a Naming of the Rooms event.
During hors d’oeuvres, Bill Heinemann will treat us all to a slide show that tracks the construction from the beginning, and there will be recognition of those who worked and contributed to make our new addition a reality. Capping the celebration will be folk dancing for young and old, called by Alan Crosman, to the music of the Math Band.
Info: 215-579-8896.
Members of the Society of Friends (Quakers) settled here in 1701 and soon held meetings for worship, becoming an organized meeting in 1720. They have been worshipping in their present building since 1768. The design of this meetinghouse, the first to have equally divided sections where men and women met separately for business and then together for worship, reflects the Quaker belief in the equality of the sexes. It served as the prototype for many later Friends’ meetinghouses, and has been designated a National Historic Landmark. Info: 215-782-3351.
There will be a potluck supper at 6:00pm, followed by two speakers from Friends Committee National Legistion, Tim Barner and wife Cathy Guthrie. The subject will be the new FCNL (Green Building). Also, they will discuss the new FCNL Booklet: Peaceful Prevention and the Congressonal Update. Date is January 30th, 2004. Info: Carol Cadwallader 215-579-2672, or Ken Blackwell at 609-883-0595.
The Peace Vigil at the Liberty Bell that began in 1999 continues each First Day afternoon between 4-5 pm. This is a meeting for worship in the manner of Friends that lasts for an hour. Usually, it’s a handful of people. Last week, with a concerted effort, Friends from three states swelled the ranks to 60. John Andres Gallery, of Chestnut Hill Meeting articulates that this vigil is “for prayer, and for peace.” His reflections appear in Pendle Hill Pamphlet #358: Reflections from a Prayer Vigil for Peace.
Program is from 9am to 3pm on Saturday, January 10, 2004, at Friends Center in Philadelphia. The keynote speaker will be Loren Thomas, Superintendent of Schools in Pittsgrove Township, Salem County, New Jersey, and a member of of Atlantic City Area Meeting. Contact Elke Muller at 215-241-7223 or elkem@pym.org
Philadelphia’s new Constitution Center will open July 4, 2003. We can only guess the impact it will have on the number of visitors to the Fourth and Arch Street Meetinghouse. We need you to help as volunteer guides.
Our Quaker heritage is a gift from the past that the tourists want to experience and explore. They treasure what it stands for: A way of life based on religious freedom, the founding of a nation, etc.
Tour guides and school groups are finding the Arch Street Meeting House a significant addition to their tour of Philadelphia. They don’t have to wait in long lines or go through metal detectors. They get to sit down and share in the dialogue. Last spring over 25,000 visitors came to the meetinghouse (over 1,000 on one day!).
The Quaker message needs to be told and Arch Street Visitors Program needs your help to do it. Call Sandy Sudofsky at 215-627-2667.
We will have another meeting of our Peaceful Hands group tonight. Please join us if you can. A group of us with similar concerns are welcoming others to join us for an evening of peace related conversation. All are welcome to bring your hand crafts, your bills to pay - anything you would normally do with your hands on a Tuesday evening - or just spend the time with us, dialoguing about ways to direct our common energies toward our community, and the world at 7pm. Childcare is available. Friends will meet on the second Tuesday of each month at Quakertown Friends Meeting, Rt 579 & White Bridge Road, Quakertown, NJ 08868. Call for directions: 1-908-537-2719
Needed: 4 bars of soap, 1 plastic bottle of shampoo (in plastic bag), 1 tube of toothpaste, 4 adult-size toothbrushes (in packaging), 1 hairbrush, 1 wide-tooth comb, 1 finger nail clipper, 1 box of adhesive bandages (minimum 40, assorted preferred). Donors are encouraged to include $5 for each kit to help pay shipping costs. Send to AFSC, 1501 Cherry Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102-1479.
Peaceful Hands (Quakertown Friends Meeting) is being laid down for the time being, but the women’s group will continue meeting on the last Tuesday of the month. Info: 1-908-537-2719.
Friends Neighborhood Guild, founded by Friends in 1879, is a community center and settlement house which provides social services to a multicultural low-income community in North Philadelphia. On Martin Luther King Day, Monday, January 19, the Guild will hold it’s third annual Day of Service. Guild staff, board, youth and community members gather for a morning of work, then an opportunity to share together about the meaning of MLK day for each of us. In the past, this event has been a simple, inspiring and hopeful occasion. Contact Felicia (215-923-1544 or friendsguild@aol.com or David (215-849-5626) or
davidgtown@mindspring.com)
The Quaker School at Horsham welcomes you to a Fall Open House. Dates are Thursday, November 6, 2003, and Thursday, December 4, 2003. Both are from 9:00 - 10:30 AM. The Quaker School at Horsham is a coeducational school for children with learning differences in Grades 1-8. Call 215-674-2875 to register or www.quakerschool.org
American Friends Service Committee
The American Friends Service Committee has been involved in Africa for decades working in economic development projects, diplomatic exchanges, health promotion, housing and community reconciliation. Based on it’s long history of humanitarian work, Africa officials approached the service committee to help the thousands of children orphaned by HIV/AIDS. AFSC is asking groups and Meetings to collect and assemble items for hygiene kits for the orphaned children and/or collect money to send the kits (a $5 @ kit is requested). Any other donated amount will be used to purchase other needed supplies. Each Kit will contain the following: a toothbrush and toothpaste, washcloth, soap, petroleum jelly and a wide-toothed comb all in a 2 gal. ziplock bag. All items must be new and each kit MUST have all items. Funds are also needed to buy nourishing food, blankets, and medicine and to pay for school fees and mosquito nets for these young people.
Cash/check donations should be made payable to:
AFSC, 15th & Cherry St., Philadelphia, PA 19102
Credit Card Donations call: 1-888-588-2372 ext 1
The campaign runs through March 15, 2004.
For information: call Omar Ibrahem@215-241-7023
The Moravian Pottery and Tile Works Museum has begun production of a third special edition tile to raise funds for its restoration and educational programs. As the next tile in a series of five designs to be offered through 2006, the “2004” tile features a bee in a choice of either green or yellow glazed background, measuring apporximately 5.5 inches square, the tile sells for $35 and is available now throughout 2004 at the Tile Works museum shop. The tile works is at 130 Swamp Road in Doylestown.
The program will be at Arch Street Meeting House, April 23-24. The people involved: Sulak Sivaraksa, Buddhist peacemaker from Thailand; Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela, member of South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission; Paula Green, founder of the Karuna Center and international facilitator of reconciliation; Joseph Sebarenzi, former speaker of the Rwandan parliament, genocide survivor and conflict transformation trainer; Miki Jacevic, facilitator with Women Waging Peace, and others.
Registration $180 ($150 if paid by March 26, 2004) $90 for full-time students. The registration fee covers all keynote addresses, facilitated workshops, musical entertainment and share meals. Info: 215-627-2667.
Be part of The Emerging Majority every Friday between 1 and 2 PM on WBNW am 1120 and WPLM am 1390 (Boston). Ben and Dennis Tafoya were members of Doylestown Meeting. Their new show aims to create an on air community for people who are passionate about economic democracy, peaceful foreign policy and human rights. Info: 1-617-953-2530.
On June 21 to July 5, 2004. This year’s installment of the biennial tradition will include visits to some of the Friends Schools in Great Britain. Contact Debora Sines Pancoe and Craig Pancoe at 215-887-0995 or cpancoe@verizon.net
The 50-voice Earlham College Concert Choir is touring the East Coast with an engaging program of traditional, multicultural and contemporary musical selections. This is a convenient off-campus opportunity for alumni, parents and friends to connect with Earlham. Admission is free, with a reception to follow. Program is on Wednesday, January 7, 2004, at the GS Meetinghouse.
Info: 1-610-658-5269.
If you have calendars for 2004 that you do not need, please give them to Katherine Reilly at PYM. The Federal Public Defender is collecting 2004 calendars for the prisoners who have received capital sentences (death sentences) because that is what they have requested. Info: Katherine Reilly, 215-241-7205.
Next summer, PYM Education & Religious Education will again sponsor a pilgrimage of Friends to “1652 Country” in the north of England. Join us to visit Quaker meetings, historic sites, and the lush, countryside where George Fox and the first Friends inspired many to join them in worship. The trip runs from June 28 to July 13, 2004, a week later than previously announced. We will stay in the beautiful Glenthorne Country Guest House located in Grasmere in the Lake District. During the first week of the trip we will travel as a group to the Quaker history locations. The estimated cost of $2,000 covers lodging, meals, and transportation for the organized portion of the pilgrimage. The second week will be organized by YOU-on your own at your own expense. Info: 215-887-0995.
The program will be at Arch Street Meetinghouse from 10:00am to 3:00pm on February 21, 2004. Workcamp participants, supporters, or anyone who is interested in the future of the Workcamp programs are encouraged to come to this day and join in the continuing discussion of the future of the Friends Workcamp program. We will begin by sharing our Workcamp experiences, and rejoicing in the Workcamp’s rich history. In the afternoon we will have brainstorming and visioning for the future of Workcamp. There will be a catered lunch. Please RSVP by February 7th to reserve lunch. Info: 215-241-7236 or 1-800-220-0796, Ext. 7236. Snow date for this event will be February 28th.
Bucks Quarterly Meeting recently received a thank-you letter from the coordinator of the Quaker Missions Stamp Project, Brad Hathaway, who wrote “Wow! What a great box of stamps and it looks like quite a few “collectors” pitched in. Every donation was received with gratitude.” They expect their distributions to F/friends organizations and project to surpass $30,000 by the end of 2003. Many individuals and meetings in BQM support this project. Stamps may be sent directly: Quaker Missions, PO Box 795, Mattapoisett, MA 02739 or delivered to Karen Shaudys, 871 Dolington Rd, Newtown PA 18940, or call her for more information at 215-493-9406.
Going once .... Middletown Holiday Auction raised $1,300 to fund non-budgeted expenses and charitable donations. At this event money was also raised toward an endowment established to provide perpetual care for historically-significant Fair Hill Burial Grounds.
BQM Singing Group will meet at Makefield Meeting on Wednesday, the 28th.
NOVA Network of Victim Assistance, Suite 105, 16 North Franklin St., Doylestown, PA 18901. The Thrift Shop is seeking volunteers. You can help. Benefits include flexible hours, rewarding work in a fun environment, and proceeds from the shop benefit victims of crime. NOVA Thrift Shop offers a great selection of women’s clothing, children’s dress-up apparel, jewelry, furniture and collectibles at affordable prices. Call Karen at 215-249-8000.
Join the Community Chorus at George School. No audition is necessary, but music reading and choral experience are helpful. Rehearsals are on Sunday evenings, 7:00 to 9:00 pm in the Walton Center, starting January 4th.
The performance is Sunday May 2, 2004 at 3pm in the Meetinghouse.
Meeting for Worship is at Pennswood Village every first day morning at 10:30 am at Barclay Lounge. We would like other Friends in Bucks Quarter to join with us in Worship.
Middletown Friends Meeting at Langhorne now has midweek Worship from 7-8 pm every Wednesday. The third Wednesday is Worship Sharing at 7pm.
Doylestown Meeting Friends continue their Silent Vigil for Peace at the corner of State & Main Streets, and invite members from other Meetings to participate as well. The Meeting has added the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons to the Peace Vigil Message. The Vigil is from 6pm-7pm every Tuesday.