Pancakes for Peace
Lehigh Valley Monthly Meeting has a very supportive community. It supports the work, efforts and causes of its committees and individuals. A recent example was the “Pancakes for Peace” breakfast held before Worship on March 1st sponsored by First Day children and the First Day Committee.
All of the Quarterly monthly meetings are very familiar with the “sacrament of the potluck” after meeting for worship, but fewer have a breakfast option. This event was full of good spirits and smiling faces and so we all had a great time. About ten children helped by waiting tables, preparing, and then cleaning up.
The children knew that the breakfast was to raise funds for charity, but no decision had been made on how to distribute the funds. This led to what I think was the most fun part of the event.
After the breakfast the children involved, ranging in age from 8 to 17 years old, met to decide how to give away the nearly $600 our Friends had contributed. We adults wanted to use the occasion to demonstrate the Quaker process of a business meeting. Everyone has a voice. Everyone is going to listen. We are not going to vote. Let’s see what is going to happen. We hope and expect that all will feel good about the decision.
As discussion began, there was no hesitation about “nominations.” Let’s help animals, the homeless, the environment, veterans. We reminded the children that they could split the funds. One of the boys brought up Victory House which helps homeless vets. Someone knew about The Nature Conservancy which helps the forests and water and thus animals. The Meeting has had a decades long association with the Safe Harbor agency in Easton which provides meals and shelter, and that agency was also chosen.
As we wrapped up the meeting I asked, do we all feel good about the decision? I am not sure if this example of and the vocabulary of Quaker process was understood by the younger children, but the nodding heads and the smiling faces showed that they had done it successfully.