November 2011 Newsletter
Printer-friendly versionCONTENTS
Meeting for Business-Order of Worship
Attachments:
Finance and Stewardship Committee Annual Report
Ministry and Worship Annual Report
Hospitality Committee Annual Report
Handbook and Records Semi-Annual Report
FMW Newsletter
ORDER OF WORSHIP
MONTHLY MEETING FOR WORSHIP WITH A CONCERN FOR BUSINESS
October 9, 2011
10/11- 1 Opening The Meeting opened at 12:05 pm with a period of silent worship. David Etheridge served as Clerk and Debby Churchman as Recording Clerk. The clerks read Advices, Queries and Voices concerning Stewardship of the Earth which have been proposed by the Faith and Practice Revision Committee of Baltimore Yearly Meeting.
Advices
Friends have connected with the earth and all it holds as part of their spiritual development. From George Fox walking throughout England searching for his spiritual identity to current times, we are aware that we are only stewards, not owners of this land. We need to be constantly aware of how our actions affect the rest of the world. By not using more than we need and by sharing with others, we ensure that the earth will continue to support everyone. Queries
●How do we exercise our respect for the balance of nature?
● How do we avoid misusing the land, air, and sea and use the world’s resources with care and consideration for future generations and with respect for all life?
● In what other ways do we carry out our commitment to stewardship?
Voices
Sustainability as a concept has recently acquired new spiritual depth of meaning to include a resolve to live in harmony with biological and physical systems, and to work to create social systems that can enable us to do that. It includes a sense of connectedness and an understanding of the utter dependence of human society within the intricate web of life; a passion for environmental justice and ecological ethics; an understanding of dynamic natural balances and processes; and a recognition of the limits to growth due to finite resources.
–Quaker Earthcare Witness, 1998
The produce of the earth is a gift from our gracious creator to the inhabitants, and to impoverish the earth now to support outward greatness appears to be an injury to the succeeding age. –John Woolman, 1772
That the sweat and tedious labor of the farmer, early and late, cold and hot, wet and dry, should be converted into the pleasure of a small number of men – that continued severity should be laid on nineteen parts of the land to feed the inordinate lusts and delicate appetites of the twentieth, is so far from the will of the great Governor of the world, [it] is wretched and blasphemous. –William Penn, 1669
10/11 – 2 Welcome of VisitorsApproximately 22 Friends were present. FMW welcomed Marrianne McMullen of Washington, DC.
10/11 – 3 Clerks’ ReportDavid Etheridge, Clerk, made the following report.
- Today, Sidwell Friends will be celebrating William Penn's birthday at an open house from 3:00 to 5:00.
- The memorial meeting for Friend Michael Jack will be held on October 15 at 2:00 pm.
- That same day, there will be a Garden Workday from 10 am to 1:00 pm.
- The next day on Oct. 16, at rise of Meeting, there will be a simple meal and discussion of Right Sharing of World Resources.
- On the weekend of Oct. 21-23, FMW will gather at Camp Catoctin. For more information, see Tracy Hart.
- Friends are invited to a presentation on AFSC and the role of China in the World on Wednesday, Oct. 26 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. To attend, contact invitations@afsc.org by October 25.
- Religious Education and Finance and Stewardship are sponsoring a workshop on a spiritual approach to personal finances, which will be held November 5 and 6. For more information, contact Jane Connor.
- Personal Aid is sponsoring a workshop on the End of Life, to be held on November 12, 10:00 am to Noon. For more information, contact Jim Steen or Janet Dinsmore.
- Marriage and Family Relations is sponsoring a workshop on Forgiveness on Nov. 18 and 19. To find out more, contact Susan Griffin.
MILESTONES
10/11 – 4 Memorial Minute for Michael Jack Merry Pearlstein read the memorial minute for Michael Jack (see attached). This was followed by a period of silence.
10/11 – 5 Membership Committee
David Etheridge made the second presentation of the following requests for membership:
1. Martha Willcox
2. Glenn Parkinson
3. Kathryn Lipp-Farr
Friends APPROVED these requests.
Joan Gildemeister of the Membership committee presented the following requests for Associate Membership:
1. Tommy Gale
2. Nathan Gale
Friends APPROVED these requests.
REPORTS AND OTHER BUSINESS
10/11 – 6 Annual Reports
1. Finance and Stewardship Committee– Loie Clark, Clerk of Finance and Stewardship, presented the committee's annual report (see attached). Until June 30, 2011, FMW was in good financial shape. Since then with the changes in the stock market, our investments have started going down. Contributions are also down—about $10,000 below budget. Median gift level, on the other hand, has risen from about $500 per household to over $600. Friends are so shy about money, and reluctant to share. Loie wants us to be more forthright about money. Child care expenses are rising, which is a good sign. Due to the reclamation of our space, revenue has increased—it may be as much as 25% of our revenue stream next year. We are currently negotiating with the District government over whether or not we will need to pay property tax on this revenue.(see page 4 of the report for more details)
2. Ministry and Worship Committee– Faith Williams, Clerk of Ministry & Worship, presented the committee's annual report (see attached). Marcia Reecer, Interim Clerk of Nominating, made one correction, reporting that Michael Cronin has taken on the service of participating in the Baltimore Yearly Meeting's Ministry and Pastoral Care Committee on behalf of FMW..
3. Hospitality– Tom Libbert, member of the Hospitality Committee, presented the committee's annual report (see attached). He also reminded the Meeting that FMW has Fair Trade coffee and tea for sale. The Meeting thanked the committee for their work.
10/11 – 7 Records and Handbook Committee –Montague Kern, Clerk of Records and Handbook, presented the committee's semi-annual report. The committee has listed a number of small suggested changes (see attached). Most were minor editorial changes rather than policy changes. The committee has been more closely examining the work of this handbook. The Handbook acts like the Constitution of FMW, but the practical policies of committee work are largely described in the appendixes rather than the Handbook. Changes to the Handbook require approval of Meeting for Business, but changes to appendices do not. The committee hopes to soon update the Handbook in hard copy and electronically.
1. Ministry and Worship Committee proposed changes– Faith Williams, Clerk of Ministry & Worship, presented the following suggested changes to the Handbook.
Ministry and Worship has the responsibility of ensuring that one of the Meeting's committees or task forces sits as Head of Meeting each first day and will prepare the listing at least one month in advance. Committees and task forces are encouraged to take this responsibility seriously because it nurtures our spiritual community.
Ministry and Worship will consider all requests for permission to record memorial services. Audio recording may be routinely approved at the family's request. Video recording will be considered on a case-by-case basis upon the request of family and in keeping with Quaker traditions.
Discussion: A Friend expressed a strong pause about video recording, which did not speak to his sense of modesty. Another Friend expressed that she did not find a video recording deeply rooted. Another Friend disliked the idea of forbidding such videos without first considering the reason for the request. A Friend asked for examples of why such videos might be allowed; Faith answered that it may be allowed if someone important to the memorialized Friend could not be present at the memorial. A Friend asked if such videos, if created, would be used only by the family, or the wider world? A Friend noted that it is important that the method used to create the video not disturb the worship. A Friend asked what the difference was to the Meeting between audio recording and video recording—what is the root problem? Is it a question of how discreet the method is for doing the recording? Is it possible to be as discreet with video as one is with an audio recorder? A Friend advised that the Supreme Court is undergoing the same discernment process regarding whether or not their sessions can be videotaped.
The M&W Committee will subject this language to further seasoning.
2. Healing and Reconciliation Committeemember Merry Pearlstein presented the following changes to the committee's description:
The Healing and Reconciliation Committee consists of members of the FMW Community asked to respond immediately, or after an event or situation, to limit any hurtful behavior in Meeting-related settings and to initiate processes of healing and reconciliation. Through its interactions with individuals, the Committee complements efforts of the Ministry and Worship Committee, which gives special attention to the overall spiritual state of the Meeting and its Meetings for Worship. The Healing and Reconciliation Committee undertakes activities such as the interruption of hurtful exchanges, active listening to help find ways toward spirit-led harmony in situations of conflict, and taking actions to foster healing and reconciliation. In addition to addressing specific incidents and situations that arise, the Committee may work more generally to nurture the spiritual state of the Meeting as it relates to the way we address and resolve conflicts, and to help make our peace testimony a reality in the life of the Meeting community. The Committee may recommend long-term actions to the Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business and other Meeting Committees, but it does not itself undertake any actions other than those directed toward healing and reconciliation.
Friends APPROVED this language.
10/11 – 8 Nominating CommitteeMarcia Reecer, Interim Clerk of Nominating, presented the following nomination:
Virginia Avanesyan to serve on the Ministry and Worship Committee for a term ending in December 2011
Friends APPROVED this request.
Marcia Reecer also reported on thefuture of the Peace and Social Concerns Committee. The Clerk of P&SC resigned at the beginning of the summer, and the committee was severely depleted. A meeting to consider the relationship between FMW and the Peace Testimony was held this summer; Minutes for that meeting have been published. Nominating now proposes the following: Meg Greene will poll FMW about what are the most important P&SC issues the Meeting should be concerned with. She will pick out three or four most important issues, and ask who will be willing to work on these issues. If there are no takers, we will consider laying the committee down. There is a leading that P&SC should be supporting people who take action rather than organizing the actions themselves. Perhaps it could serve as a clearinghouse for such leadings. Nominating will ask who would be interested in serving on such a clearinghouse. They hope to bring back the results of these polls to the Meeting in December.
A Friend suggested that one action we could take would be to go to Sidwell Friends this afternoon to attend the Open House.
A Friend asked whether we are talking about two different kinds of committees. Marcia said they are trying to find out whether people have P&SC concerns, and whether Friends would like to serve as their nurturers/supporters. The Nominating Committee doesn't feel easy deciding what P&SC could do or be, and is trying to find community P&SC concerns and people who could lead such a discernment process.
10/11 – 9 Approval of Search Committee MembersDavid Etheridge presented the following nominations for the Search Committee for a term which ends in October 2012.
Judy Hubbard
Steve Coleman
Friends APPROVED these nominations.
10/11 – 10 Updates
1. Capital Improvements Task Force– Merry Pearlstein of CITF reported that they have designated Neil Froemming and Ken Forsberg to interact with the architects. These two have had one two-hour meeting with the architects, bringing them up to date and presenting our latest schematic drawings. They are asking the architects to review these drawings and see if they think it would be possible to get approval by the government for them and if the plans look workable, and to give us a rough cost estimate for the different parts of the plan. This review may cost more than the $5000 we have currently set aside for this expense. The expenditure of additional funds would require approval by the Trustees. We expect to get an estimate from the architects soon for doing this piece of work. A Friend asked if we are continuing to consider selling Quaker House. The CITF is not considering selling any part of the current campus. A Friend thanked the task force for their work.
A Friend pointed out that the wonderful work restoring the floor and stairs at the Meeting House had been completed and work continues on the leakage problem on the Meeting Room ceiling. He is grateful for this work.
10/11 – 11 AdjournmentWith approximately 18 Friends present, the meeting adjourned at 1:45 p.m. to reconvene as way opens on Sunday, November 13, 2011at 11:45 a.m.
Attachments:
1. Memorial Minute for Michael Jack
2. Finance and Stewardship Annual Report (Please note the 5 page budget is posted in the Finance and Stewardship Committee section on the FMW web page)
3. Ministry and Worship Annual report
4) Records and Handbook Semi-Annual Report
5) M &W Proposed Revisions to Handbook
6) Healing and Reconciliation Committee Proposed Description
Michael Alexander Jack
Jan. 11, 1967 - August 22, 2011
Michael Jack was born in the District of Columbia. Raised in Kensington, Maryland, he graduated from Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School. Michael often described his boyhood self in terms of a child who always had his own ideas about things. Those close to him know that this never changed.
He grew up in Bethesda Friends Meeting, attending with his sister and his grandmother, who came from a Huguenot family in France but who was a committed Friend from marriage onward. He wrote: “. . . my maternal grandmother was a huge influence in my early years. . . . she was . . . teacher, travel companion, and moral guide. She's behind my Quakerism [and] my love of travel . . . Grandma called things the way she saw them. And she was usually right on.”
He then studied English and communications at Guilford College in Greensboro, North Carolina. He wrote, “I began attending [Friends Meeting of Washington] . . . regularly when I moved into the District after graduation. It felt like home from the start, and after a year or two, I felt led to apply for membership.”
Michael worked for a business publisher and then spent five years as an editor at the American Institute of Architects, a gratifying position for the lifelong architecture buff. While there, he earned a master’s degree in public communication from American University.
On the Friends Meeting of Washington Records and Handbook Committee, the quiet young professional man wearing the horn-rimmed glasses proved to be both a very hard worker and diplomatic team player. It could, therefore, be something of a surprise to find him on Halloween, sans horn-rims, at the center of a highly competitive living tableau of the US women's olympic gymnastic team, all stretching, twirling and exhibiting excellent posture along 17th Street. One could begin to wonder if Quakerism and its witness to social issues were no longer quite what they used to be.
nto this iconoclastically Clark Kent and SuperGayman existence stepped Michael’s beloved partner, Dan Iglhaut. Dan, although in some ways longsuffering, was nobody’s Lois Lane, and Michael wouldn’t have had it any other way for the last 15 years of his life.
In 1997, Michael moved to San Francisco to be with Dan and became an account executive at a prominent public relations agency. Michael wrote, “At the time, in Washington and then in San Francisco, I was undergoing a lengthy series of tests, procedures, and treatments that would eventually lead to a diagnosis of ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease). In 1999, as my condition slowly began to decline, my partner, Dan, and I reluctantly decided to return to this area, where my support network would be stronger.”
His partner, Dan, taking up the mantle of caregiver, alternately joked with, sparred with and shepherded Michael, whether on expeditions of great beauty or in late-night health scares. Sharing in domestic pleasures over the years were their dogs Zap, Devo, and Sparkle, whose companionship was a source of joy for both of them.
Recently he wrote about his involvement with the “new” volume of Friends Meeting of Washington history, published last year, as a member of Records and Handbook Committee. He had served for several years in the 1990s: “And there I remained, eventually serving as clerk until late 1996, when I stepped down prior to moving to California.” “As the research, writing, editing -- and, yes, dithering -- ground on, I finished a graduate degree, fell in love, moved across the country, turned 30, changed careers, got diagnosed with ALS, tried various therapies, went on disability, moved back, bought a condo, and turned 40. I lived in six different places and owned three cars. I took at least six trips abroad and God knows how many domestic ones. I went from (relative) youth to middle age, from fitness to decrepitude.” That did not stop him, however, from rejoining the committee to help finally bring the volume to publication last year, which brought gladness to many. Editors like Michael are all about meeting deadlines, but running on Quaker time he got to savor being a decade and a half late.
In the Washington area, Michael became involved with the local chapter of the ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) Association, reaching out to newly diagnosed patients, lobbying on Capitol Hill, and forming a fundraising team, “the Jackals,” which brought in hundreds of thousands of dollars. He was also a longtime volunteer for the Whitman-Walker Clinic, which named him Buddy of the Year in 2001. A year ago he wrote, “On October 17th, I’ll be celebrating a favorite annual tradition: the Walk to Defeat ALS. This is the 11th year for the event and for my team, the Jackals. For me, the walk is an early Thanksgiving, with many of my favorite people gathered in support of a great cause.”
Michael, though physically challenged, never became disempowered. His ability to remain clear-eyed about his own situation with Lou Gehrig’s disease, even while discussing its details, was at times breathtaking. In a few words, he would be able to convey the fright of trying to breathe after having caught a cold or of finding himself caught up in the sheets at night, unable to move “ . . . I’ve trained myself not to contemplate the future. It’s a dark and scary place for me; even brief glimpses spark anxiety and depression. Better to focus on the present and count my blessings, something I rarely did before ALS.”
He also wrote, “As for the whole boring terminal-illness situation, one thing I've never done is ask ‘why me?’ To do so strikes me as hugely self-important. I mean, if x number of people are going to contract a dread disease, why not me? I'm not special (well, I'm plenty special, but not in that way), and my life is certainly no more valuable than anyone else's. Nor have I spent much time pondering how I got sick, a favorite topic among some ALS patients. That's a question without an answer, particularly with a disease whose causes remain thoroughly shrouded in mystery. I need my energy for other things . . . “
As for “other things,” these included his web blog. Michael knew well the limits of good taste, but gleefully refused to let himself feel overly burdened by them. He also refused to suffer fools gladly, particularly anyone trying to satisfy his or her own self-esteem as a prominent figure in the public domain. Part salon, part village green, part mountaintop experience, it was a place of great mirth, deep reflection and inspiration for his friends. Michael had something that others did not – time – and he made the most of it. Here he moved from editor to writer and raconteur, and he gave his friends the gift of allowing them to know him well.
In surviving and, at times, thriving, with ALS for 14 years, far longer than most people, Michael showed his courage, his patience, and his capacity to be irresistibly engaging to those around him. His family and friends may be forgiven for wanting to think that he would simply go on forever, although, of course, he is not gone from our memories and feelings. He wrote, “My vanity was the first thing to go, and my independence is under constant erosion. The one indispensable, as you're well aware, is a sense of humor. Without that there's no hope at all.”
Finance And Stewardship Annual Report
Report for FYs 2010 and 2011
7/1/2009 – 6/30/2011
The functions of finance and stewardship entrusted to the committee are very much statements of the Meeting’s faith in practice. In short, F&S works to ensure funding and to steward resources to finance whatever costs money in FMW’s Statement of Purpose, especially:
The purpose of the Friends Meeting of Washington, D.C., is to foster simple spiritual worship and such activities in various fields of service as Friends may feel themselves called to undertake. As a help to these ends we purpose to maintain a place of worship where Friends and others who are like-minded may meet in religious fellowship and seek through a waiting worship the renewal of their spiritual lives and the quickening of their powers of service to the Divine and to their fellow human beings.
The Friends Meeting of Washington Handbook sets out specific duties for the Finance & Stewardship Committee – shown below in bold italics. Following them are accounts of how F&S pursued them during the last two fiscal years.
The Finance and Stewardship Committee supports the Meeting through fund raising, accounts management, budgeting, and longer-term planning. It attempts to translate into dollars and cents the spirit of the Meeting’s temporal activities and to mobilize the needed funding. The Committee identifies the general operating costs, committee expenses, and support for organizations and projects beyond the Meeting that are in keeping with Meeting policies and leadings. Annually, the Committee recommends to Meeting for Business an operating budget to meet these needs.
The annual budget process begins each November with the appointment of budget subcommittee usually including the Financial Coordinator, two members of the Committee, and the Bookkeeper. They devote December and January to communicating with all of the Meeting’s committees to ascertain their financial needs for the coming fiscal year beginning July 1st. During this time, other financial and policy issues are identified – such as anticipated changes in utility expenses or the extent of child care –that could affect the budget. With this data, a first draft is completed by the Bookkeeper and presented to the full F&S Committee at its March meeting. For the next two months, F&S refines the numbers, leading to the first presentation of the draft budget to the MWCB in May. The draft is subsequently posted on the FMW website and sent to the FMWQuaker list serve. Questions and comments from the May meeting and from individual Friends are taken into account and the final draft is presented for approval at the Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business (MWCB) in June.
From time to time, opportunities for service arise outside the Meeting’s committee work and budget, and, with the approval of the MWCB, F&S manages related financial matters. Examples in which funding is received and expensed by FMW include the Shoebox Project sponsored by the World Bank, and Hlekweni Training in Zimbabwe. F&S ensures that support for such projects is not comingled with FMW funds. (All fundraising projects must be approved by F&S so as to avoid competition with the meeting’s own needs.)
In building and monitoring the annual budget F&S uses figures that are both realistic and conservative. It is tempting to compile the costs of all desired projects into the budget first and set an unrealistically high fundraising goal as an “plug” figure thereafter. It is more responsible to estimate the Meeting’s annual fundraising capacity as realistically as possible and to build the budget accordingly. It must be noted that over the last two years of global economic instability
Ø F&S has limited expenses to support essential operations; and
Ø Past deficits have largely been due to inadequate revenue – particularly contributions – rather than high expenses.
The Committee also develops, with the Property Committee and staff, a capital budget for expenditures, other than routine maintenance, to preserve Meeting property and provide longer-lived equipment; financing may come from a Capital Reserve Fund.
Every year the budget includes a transfer of funds to the Capital Reserve Fund – for major maintenance and/or renovation projects . Until the last couple of years, the Fund languished due to two causes: 1) the Fund was underfunded in order to balance annual budgets; and 2) funds already in the reserve remained unspent due to lack of agreement over their use. Thanks to the energy of the current Property Committee, the Capital Reserve Fund is being put to its proper use. Beginning with major support from the fund in FY10, FMW is benefitting from a decisive commitment to the maintenance and renovation of our property. Deferred maintenance is being performed, and the reclamation of valuable space continues. FMW is gaining safe and attractive space for our own use as well as for fee-paying organizations whose causes we espouse.
The committee develops plans for community annual giving and other fund raising, encouragement of bequests and other planned giving, and, with Trustees, a capital campaign as needed.
FMW recognizes local Quaker organizations with modest contributions, the rationale being that such groups are doing what the Meeting would do if it could. These contributions are intended as exemplary giving for individual Friends to follow beyond their contributions to the Meeting. Several years ago when the Meeting’s once annual bazaar proved ineffective in raising funds for these community contributions, a line item was added to the annual budget. In recent years, that budgeted amount has been divided equally among four organizations: American Friends Service Committee (DC), Baltimore Yearly Meeting’s camping program, Friends Committee on National Legislation, and William Penn House. However, payments are made semiannually and F&S retains the option of reducing or eliminating the second payment according to the Meeting’s own needs; this has only happened once in recent memory. F&S will reexamine both the choice of recipients and grant amounts in the next budget cycle.
F&S has prepared a brochure on planned giving which is available from the Meeting office. It will soon be posted on the F&S page of the website.
Over the past two years as the Meeting has continued its consideration of major improvements to our property, F&S recommended the re-engagement of fund-raising consultant Henry Freeman for a capital campaign. His updating of an earlier study of the Meeting fund-raising capacity was completed before the worst of the current economic downturn took hold, but he estimated that FMW would be able to raise approximately $1.5 million. He added that the most important element to the success of such a campaign would be the unity of the Meeting behind the project. He also emphasized that additional staff would be needed to run a campaign.
The Committee is also responsible for communicating the financial needs of the Meeting to members and attenders, so that those who are part of the various Meeting communities may provide financial and other material support to the Meeting.
Throughout the year, F&S monitors the Bookkeeper’s financial reports on both expense and revenue and is sensitive to any significant deviations from the budget. Regular reports are made to the MWCB and requests for support to Friends generally at rise of meeting and via the FMWQuaker list serve as appropriate. Friends are encouraged to make monthly gifts by automatic deductions from their bank accounts. Over 100 Friends currently take advantage of this program which is the Meeting’s most reliable source of contributed support. FMW’s fund-raising has traditionally been limited to appeal letters, which F&S sends two to four times each year. Direct mail fund-raising is proving less and less effective, not only because of the limitations of the Meeting’s database.
Ø Most money is raised by friends asking friends – and FMW’s current fund-raising culture does not support any such personal solicitation. Stewardship needs to be the concern of the entire Meeting. F&S will work to encourage FMW to build such a culture of giving.
The Committee exercises broad oversight of the Meeting’s financial management; this oversight is in consultation with Trustees where the budget involves disbursement from bequests, endowment funds as permissible, or the Building Campaign Fund.
The annual budget does not include line items that would qualify for expenditures from bequests and endowment funds.
Day-to-day financial matters are conducted by the staff. The Committee is responsible, together with the Administrative Secretary, for the oversight of the Bookkeeper, who attends Finance and Stewardship Committee meetings as requested by its Clerk.
In these days of economic challenge, Tom Cooke has been especially helpful in finding cost effective solutions to the Meeting’s administrative needs. In the past year, he has done so without an assistant and is rising to the challenge of doing more with fewer resources. Laurie Wilner continues her minute attention to detail that keeps FMW within various governmental regulations and often saves money; she is essential to the annual budget process. Laurie is also our only expert in the Logos data base.
Observations
The budget and actual results for FYs 2010 and 2011 follow along with Dick Bellin’s analysis of contributions. Please note:
Ø Expenses are shaved to the bone; as often stated, FMW’s endemic financial difficulties stem not from excessive spending but from insufficient contributions.
Ø FMW’s relatively robust results in FY 2011 stem largely from vacant staff positions – the assistant administrative secretary and the proposed property manager. The resultant net revenue will help build capital and general reserves, as approved by the Meeting in June 2011.
Ø Child care expenses continue to rise as more young families come to FMW.
Ø Investments (both income and principal) were down sharply in FY 2010 but were recovering through FY 2011.
Ø FMW’s median annual giving per household has risen to $600 – an improvement but still lower than other Protestant sects. (The attached analysis will enable Friends to see ‘where they are’ in supporting FMW.) Contributions were 49% of total revenue in FY11, up from 47% in FY10. However, donations accounted for 60% of FMW’s revenue as recently as FY09. F&S expresses continued concern over Friends’ shyness over donations, believing that giving is a joyful experience to be shared.
Ø The repair and redefinition of Meeting property and its resulting generation of revenue may be the greatest financial development since FMW’s founding. By the end of FY11, space usage fees accounted for 15% of our revenue as opposed to 8.9% in FY10; they are expected to rise to 25% in FY12. It is our hope that this newfound support will spur Friends to greater generosity rather than less.
Ministry and Worship Annual Report 2011
This year the Ministry and Worship Committee focused on clarifying meeting needs, establishing a peaceful, inclusive spiritual community, and continuing to increase our welcome.
SpiritualStateof the Meeting Report.
This year, we used an online survey, answered by 145 members, to answer questions posed by Baltimore Yearly Meeting. We included written comments from a Meeting for Worship for Business session. The response was overwhelming, much more than for any year we could remember. Our presentation to Meeting for worship for business included some gorgeous graphs.
Heads of Meeting. We continued using two six-month schedules of committees to provide some transparency as to the way the Meeting proceeds. We hope newcomers will be able to see how the work is done. Committee assignments are posted on the listserve each week. We created and posted new signs to discourage latecomers from entering through the side and back doors.
Hearing Issue. We discussed with Property ways of making spoken ministry in the Meeting Room more audible. We long for a solution that is inclusive, not intrusive and which does not rely on a designated person or group to pass the microphone around (since such people would not be able to fully enter into worship) or require the speaker to wait for the microphone to deliver the message. We have not yet come to a satisfactory solution.
Welcoming visitors. We discovered that nothing was actually done to respond to visitors who signed our guest book, and so created a postcard which can be sent snail mail, or email depending on the legibility of the information there. We have responded to last year’s visitors and are now working on the present. See illustration at end.
Workshops.We participated with nominating committee and the clerks in holding a worship sharing to consider the work of the Peace and Social Justice Committee. In March we co-sponsored the visit by Elizabeth Cazden to speak about Quakers and Slavery.
Miscellaneous.We oversaw Matthew Gravett in his grant from the Pickett endowment. We supported scholarships to YAF members and others for travel to BYM and other Quaker gatherings. Ministry and Worship provided active listeners to facilitate the work of the Planning Committee.
WashingtonPost. We have responded to a request from the Washington Post to help publicize our Quaker Presence., after reviewing its requests with the Meeting for Worship for Business.
Clearness Committees. We organized three this year and held several less formal listening sessions with members who had raised particular concerns.
Memorial Services: There were three held under the care of the Meeting : Winnie Walker Jones (at Friends House) , Joan Oehser, and Raoul Kulberg M. Elois Rogers had ashes committed to Rock Creek Cemetery with Riley Robinson assisting.
Omissions. We did not work with Nominating Committee to recommend someone with a concern for ministry or pastoral care to participate in the meetings and responsibilities of the Baltimore Yearly Meeting Ministry and Pastoral Care Committee. Welcoming task force appears to have quietly dissolved.
Hospitality Committee Annual Report, October 2011
Members of the Hospitality Committee are tasked with serving refreshments provided by the Meeting community each first day and for the clean-up of the kitchen and assembly room after coffee hour. The Committee's refreshment provisions vary each week depending on the Meeting community's contributions. Particular appreciation goes to Bob Meehan for consistently providing his Quaker Treasure Chest Bread which is normally the first thing on the table to be consumed. Everyone enjoys this sweet dessert bread which Bob also makes available for purchase during the holidays and the proceeds are donated to the Personal Aid Committee.
Members and Attenders who attend the Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business on the 2nd Sunday of each month normally provide foods for a pot luck meal afterward. The Hospitality Committee may be involved in the presentation of this food but the responsibility for putting it out and for the clean-up normally falls to attenders of the Business Meeting which often includes members of the Hospitality Committee.
Members of the Hospitality Committee are asked to serve at least once per month and it is best when there are at least two members on each shift. Although we maintain a sign-up sheet, members often do not add their names there but simply show up for duty.
Members are often asked to help with memorial services, weddings, or other functions. Most of the time we are able to find volunteers for these activities.
The Hospitality Committee would like to show its appreciation to the Meeting Administrator, Tom Cooke, for his hands-on assistance in maintaining our orders for coffee, tea, etc. and for getting milk for each first day meeting. Tom maintains contact with us to let us know what is needed and if there any budgetary constraints to something that we may propose. We feel fortunate to have Tom's attention to the committee's needs.
Friends Meeting of Washington
Records and Handbook Changes
Oct. 3, 2011
This report reflects proposed changes to the Handbook from 2007-2010. Note that the Handbook contains FMW committee definitions and similar broad statements of purpose. In many instances during 2007-2010, Monthly Meeting for Business requested committee policy changes. Committee policy statements are found in the FMW Resource Documents Notebook. The Records and Handbook Committee plans to address this series of documents in 2012.
1. Information Technology Committee
The Information Technology Committee description shall be added to the list of Special Committees, Handbook p.30, and to the table of Special Committees, Handbook p.31, and the description below shall follow that of the “Hunger and Homelessness Task Force,” Handbook p.33:
“Information Technology Committee
This Committee, in conference with staff develops policies for and assists in the use of information technology, such as websites, databases, e-mail, and develops policies for creation and distribution of electronic and print communications, such as the newsletter, announcements, and directories.
The Committee is responsible for managing and maintaining the Friends Meeting of Washington website, assisting the Meeting community, officers and committees with page design, creation, editing, posting, revision, and organizing services, establishing style and content rules where appropriate.”
2. Marriage and Family Relations Committee
The following sentence shall be added to the Marriage and Family Relations Committee description, Handbook p.22, immediately prior to final sentence that begins with “Changes in marital…”:
“It may also periodically schedule Meetings for Grieving.”
3. R&H Committee is moving forward with the following unresolved matters:
-Text for the Capital Improvement Task Force description is incomplete.
-Text for the Healing and Reconciliation Committee description is incomplete.
-Text for the Child Safety Committee description is incomplete.
-Tables titled “Business Meeting Agenda” (Handbook p.A-2) and “Committee Responsibility for Sitting Head of Meeting” (Handbook p.A-3) appear to be out-of-date. R&H will assess these tables with the committees charged with their implementation.
Ministry and Worship Committee-Proposed Revisions to Handbook
1. Ministry and Worship has the responsibility of ensuring that one of the Meeting’s committees or task forces sits as Head of Meeting each first day and will prepare the listing at least on month in advance, Committees and task forces are encouraged to take this responsibility seriously because it nurtures our spiritual community.
2. Ministry and Worship will consider all requests for permission to record memorial services. Audio recording may be routinely approved at the family’s request. Video recording will be considered on a case-by-case basis upon the request of family and in keeping with Quaker traditions.
Healing and Reconciliation Committee – Proposed Description
The Healing and Reconciliation Committee consists of members of the FMW Community asked to respond immediately, or after an event or situation, to limit any hurtful behavior in Meeting-related settings and to initiate processes of healing and reconciliation. Through its interactions with individuals, the Committee complements efforts of the Ministry and Worship Committee, which gives special attention to the overall spiritual state of the Meeting and its Meetings for Worship. The Healing and Reconciliation Committee undertakes activities such as the interruption of hurtful exchanges, active listening to help find ways toward spirit-led harmony in situations of conflict, and taking actions to foster healing and reconciliation. In addition to addressing specific incidents and situations that arise, the Committee may work more generally to nurture the spiritual state of the Meeting as it relates to the way we address and resolve conflicts, and to help make our peace testimony a reality in the life of the Meeting community. The Committee may recommend long term actions to the Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business and other Meeting Communities, but it does not itself undertake any actions other than those directed toward healing and reconciliation.
FMW NEWSLETTER
November 2011
FALL EVENTS
William Penn House
William Penn House, a Quaker Center on Capitol Hill, hosts monthly potluck dinners on a scheduled Sunday at 6:30 p.m. There is a topic, speaker, and open discussion afterwards. The potluck dinner starts at 6:30 p.m. and the presentation will begin at 7:30 p.m. All are welcome to the potlucks –bring a dish to share. I addition to the monthly potlucks, the William Penn House provides low cost accommodations and Quaker centered programs seminars.
All are invited to attend a potluck and Quaker dialogue at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday November 6.
The program this First Day is presented by Ann Wilcox and Micah Bales and the topic is:
“Occupy…” The outcry against the political influence of financial institutions that has swept the country in recent weeks has crossed many boundaries, including class, gender and age. "Occupy" events are growing in cities and towns throughout the world. Here in DC, there are two groups occupying different parks. The movement has energy, and is gaining attention. But how much do we know about what is driving this? Are there certain issues and an agenda? Is this a culmination of many issues of our society coming together, or is it something completely different? Is ignoring the movement a good idea? Is presuming to know what is going on too presumptive? These are among the questions we will be exploring and discussing.
Ann Wilcox will be leading the discussion. She is an attorney in Washington, DC, and has been practicing for more than 20 years. She is active with the National Lawyers Guild, which provides legal representation and works on issues of social justice and economic equality. She provides Demonstration Support for many activists who come to DC to advocate for peace, the environment and other issues. She is currently providing legal support for the October 2011/Stop the Machine and Occupy DC groups, and can speak about issues related to the occupations. Ann has attended Friends Meeting of Washington and is currently active at Foundry United Methodist Church.
Micah Bales is coordinator of Young Adult Engagement for Earlham School of Religion and lives in Washington, DC. Micah has been an active presence with Occupy DC since its inception. Micah, a graduate of ESR, is a member of Rockingham Friends Meeting of Ohio Yearly Meeting Conservative
Join the weekly Yoga class at the William Penn House on Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. All ages and all skill levels are welcome. There is a charge of $15 per class.
For more information contact the William Penn House. It is located at 515 East Capitol St. SE, Washington, DC 20003. (202) 543-5560.
Explore Your Relationship With Money
Are you satisfied with how you live the testimonies in your choices regarding money?
Do you combine freedom and integrity in your decisions easily?
Are you comfortable that your commitments to equality and community are as you want them?
Do you embrace simplicity and justice in ways that are meaningful and harmonious for you?
Would you love more ease and peace in your relationship to money?
If you have some uncertainty in your answers to these questions, consider coming to the workshop, Explore Your Relationship With Money presented by Jim and Jori Manske on Saturday, November 5, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30p.m., and Sunday, November 6, from 1:30 p.m.-5p.m at Friends Meeting of Washington. This workshop is co-sponsored by the Finance and Stewardship Committee and Religious Education Committee.
The Manskes are sharing an approach to the integration of money and spiritual values that I believe has great relevance for Friends. Several of our FMW members have personal experience supporting that assessment.
“We went from food stamps to financial independence using a time-tested, proven program that integrates all aspects of life – personal and spiritual values, work, family and play. We now spend our lives doing work we love – supporting others in creating the lives they want for themselves” -Jim and Jori Manske, who are certified trainers of Nonviolent Communication and Co-developers of Compassionate Leadership Program.
Some of the topics to be addressed include:
• When you think about your finances, do you feel peaceful and at ease?
• Do you have time to participate in things you think are worthwhile?
• Are you free of debt and money worries?
• Do you feel fulfilled with your work?
• If you lost your job today, would you see this as an opportunity or a loss?
• Do you spend as much time as you want with family and friends?
• If you knew that you would die in a few years would you be satisfied with your legacy of contributions to your family, your community and the world?
If you answered even one “No” to these questions, this program is for you.
No matter where you are in your life, you will find support for a happier and healthier relationship with money and the things that matter most to you.
Cost: $110 - $40 (sliding scale, you choose the amount). Please note that NO ONE TURNED AWAY FOR LACK OF FUNDS. For more information call Jane Connor, 202-684-5974, or janemconnor@gmail.com to register go to - www.radicalcompassion.com
FMW Adult study Group
The Adult Study Group will meet on November 6 at 9:15 a.m. in the Assembly Room and will view a documentary/DVD obtained from the Nantucket Historical Society on the history of Nantucket Island, which covers the central role of Quakers, It is a film produced by Rik Burns. On Sunday, November 20, a member of the group will lead a discussion on the book- Kaballah: A Very Short Introduction”, by Joseph Dans. The Kabballah concerns Jewish mysticism. All Friends are welcome to attend the Adult Study Group. No prior notice or readings are required. For more information, contact John Scales.
FMW’s Senior Center
Programs of slides or talks are held on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month in the Decatur Place Room at 1:30 p.m. On Wednesday, November 9 thetopic is to be announced. The second Wednesday of November the Senior Center will not be meeting as it is the day before Thanksgiving. In December, the Senior Center will meet on December 14.
End of Life Planning Workshop
As we have seen in our own Meeting community as well as outside it, serious illness and death can occur unexpectedly, and frequently without any preparation for the legal, financial, and medical issues that accompany what is usually a highly emotional period. Based on our own awareness of the burden and turmoil these questions can provoke, as well as interest expressed in having more information and help on these matters, the Personal Aid Committee is holding an End of Life Planning Workshop at FMW on Saturday, November 12 from 10 a.m. to noon. A potluck lunch will follow the workshop. Please bring a dish to share.
We hope you will attend and you are welcome to bring others who may be interested. The subjects covered will include: 1) advance medical directives; 2) powers of attorney; 3) wills and living trusts; and 4) beneficiary designations for retirement plans. The Workshop will be held in the Assembly Room at the Friends Meeting of Washington. There will be no charge to participants.
The Workshop will be lead by Joseph Lapp, JD, who is a representative of Everence Financial and the Mennonite Foundation and a former President of Eastern Mennonite University. Mr. Lapp’s perspective is a spiritual as well as a legal one, and we believe his Mennonite beliefs align closely with Quaker values. Some may recall that several years ago the Finance and Stewardship Committee sponsored a successful Financial Planning workshop led by a representative of Mennonite Mutual Aid, the predecessor organization to Everence.
Because Everence employees do not provide individuals with legal or tax advice, the Personal Aid Committee plans to put together a roster of local advisors/attorneys whom participants may contact to obtain specific post-Workshop documentary assistance. Please let us know whether you would like to be included on that list or can recommend other experienced professionals in the local area. We would prefer to confine the list to professionals in the Meeting community, but that may not be possible. Please include a thumbnail sketch of your background in providing end-of-life assistance as well as contact information. If you have a standard fee for such services, that could be included. Note: we are not suggesting attorneys or others provide free services.
Please let us know as soon as possible whether you plan to attend the Workshop as it will be helpful to know the number of participants we can anticipate in terms of materials, etc. If you have questions about the Workshop or would either like to register as a participant or volunteer as an advisor, please contact Jim Steen at jimsteen@starpower.net (202) 244-2195, or Janet Dinsmore at jldinsm@aol.com (202) 686-1035.
Forgiveness Workshop
-A workshop facilitated by Sue Regen
Life brings to each of us, experiences of anger, fear, hurt, and pain. What we do with these is up to each individual. Choosing to practice forgiveness can bring healing and inner peace. Forgiveness work helps us reconnect with our selves and others in more loving ways. Research shows that it’s great for our physical health, too!
Come, join with others who are willing to take some steps along this spiritual path. Focus is on tools and techniques, not on therapy. Workshop will include presentations, quiet worship, guided meditation, practicing techniques, and group and individual time.
Sue Regen, is a member of Rochester Friends Meeting (Quaker), has been working in the area of forgiveness since 2002. It is part of her personal journey. She has led forgiveness workshops at Attica Prison, Friends Conference on Religion and Psychology, Friends General Conference Gatherings 2004 to 2007, Rochester Friends Meeting, and at retreat centers in Pennsylvania, California, and Old Chatham, New York.
This workshop will be held at Friends meeting of Washington, on Friday, November 18 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday, November 19, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. A registration fee of $50 covers material and food. (Make checks out to Friends Meeting of Washington- with “Forgiveness” in the “memo line”). Please note that drinks, lunch and snacks will be provided. Registration is due by Friday, November 11. Registration will be limited to 20 participants. For further information contact Sue Regen at sregen@frontiernet.net.
Thanksgiving Day Meeting for Worship
There will be a Meeting for Worship held on Thursday, November 24, at Noon in the Decatur Place Room. All are welcome.
Announcements
School for Friends Auction
The Annual Auction for the School for Friends will be held on Sunday, November 20, from
5p.m.to 9 p.m. at the Capital Hilt, 1001 16th St. NW, Washington, DC 20036. This is great way to support the School. “Festive attire - light fare – cash bar”. Everyone is welcome.
The Mary Walcott Lucy Foster Educational Fund
The Mary Walcott Lucy Foster Fund has a limited amount of money to distribute this year and will accept requests for through November for financial assistance to attend a Friends school PK to 12th grade, for children of members and active attenders of Washington, area Meetings. Please forward a brief written request, a copy of the school’s Parents’ Financial Statement & Report of Financial Need, and most recent IRS Form 1040 to Bruce Kellogg, MWLF Educational Fund, 1202 Half St. SW, Washington, DC 20024. Friends are invited to contribute to the MWLF Educational Fund. Even small amounts make a difference.
From The Vault
A monthly series of edited extracts from the historical material of the Friends Meeting of Washington.
Several of our more recent Recording Clerks have written advice for their successors. Here are some samples:
“Advises on the Taking of Minutes in Meetings of Friends” - Elois Rogers 1979
As one listens to Friends speak to business one takes the measure of what is being said, listening for Truth and right ordering, in the matter. It should then be written down clearly and concisely with as much brevity as possible without damaging the whole. Friends’ principle of simplicity is wanted here, without extravagance or detraction.
The sparse use of personal names in recording Minutes is based on the principle that spoken ministry has its source in the common good and it really doesn’t matter just which Friend expresses it.
“Thoughts on Writing Minutes and Related Duties of the Assistant Clerk”
-Marney Akins 1986
I have found it most helpful to draft in advance some of the routine items. Since I do not know shorthand, this saves time at the meeting. However, scrap what you have drafted if it doesn’t happen that way. Write up the minutes as soon as you can after the business meeting; it is easier to decipher your scribbling when it is fresh in your mind.
Avoid non-words and jargon. If someone speaks in governmentese, summarize it in plain English. The ‘in’ words of the moment may not be understood by future readers. Sometimes people use simple words but don’t say what they mean, or don’t say anything. If you are mystified, probably most other people are too.
“Thoughts on Writing Minutes” - Hayden Wetzel 1993
Go to the bathroom before the meeting. Face up to the probability that multiple changes to your minutes might make for a very confusing draft. I switch to a different color pen after a certain point.
Never lose control of the minutes; letting other Friends take the initiative in writing your minutes leads to frustration, insanity and ultimately suicide. Consider the wording suggested by Friends but then use exactly what you feel is best – do not become a cipher for everyone else. When meeting is over resist attempts by Friends to come up and add this or change that on the spot. The wording you have has been approved by Friends in gathered meeting, and to change it is not a small matter.
Hayden Wetzel, FMW Historian
Thinking About Race
“All are responsible”
“At the historic March on Washington in 1963, Rabbi Joachim Prinz, making reference to the Holocaust, to slavery, and other historical outrages, declared, “Few were guilty, all are responsible.”
“… All who bemoan multigenerational poverty as a social phenomenon must also bemoan and condemn the policies that make it difficult to escape poverty, including tax policy, housing policies, criminal-justice and wage-labor policies. If we limit our analysis and indignation to the most visible manifestations of poverty, inadequate education, impoverished dreams, and crude or rude behavior, then we risk blaming the victims of failed economic and political policies. … Few of the people living in poverty … played a role in designing wretched school systems. Few made the decisions about locating businesses and new jobs in faraway suburbs, or commissioned the housing that no average working people can afford. Few of us are guilty. But all are now responsible for this new and more selfish version of the American dream.” From Crisis in theVillage: Restoring Hope in African American Communities, by Robert M. Franklin, p. 48.
NOTE: Friends who wish to comment on this or any other “Thinking About Race” items, may do so at the BYM web page. To leave comments, register first by emailing webmanager@bym-rsf.net. For other Quaker discussion of race and diversity issues, check out http://www.quakerquaker.org/group/diversityor the “Quakers Talk About Racism” group on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/groups/6801537363/
Catoctin Weekend
Dear FMW Friends:
I want to report to you that some 25 FMW family members shared in fall fellowship at Catoctin Quaker Camp this past weekend. (October 21-23). We canoed on the lagoon, sat around a fire in the hearth in the main cabin, prepared and ate meals together, sang songs long into Saturday evening, and held Meeting for Worship at 10:30 a.m. There was an alternate Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Fishing ;)
Our children went on outside adventures, played tetherball, climbed trees, bashed the FMW-traditional Halloween pinata, and enjoyed catching salamanders.
Our next FMW Camp Catoctin weekend is May 26-28th, 2012 -- which is Memorial Day weekend. Please mark your calendars now! The lagoon will be warm enough for swimming and lots of outdoor playing.
This blessed fellowship in nature is special, and the bigger our FMW family, the more warmth is spread around. With much fondness - Tracy.
NEWS of FRIENDS
Hayden Wetzel visited out Friend Denny Hartzell in October and found him enjoying Florida and living a fairly decadent life, He attends Fort Lauderdale Friends meeting and recently started a job at a local non-profit agency. He welcomes news of FMW Friends and visitors.