Philadelphia Yearly Meeting

of the Religious Society of Friends

Philadelphia Yearly Meeting

Annual Sessions Recap: Mott Memo for Wednesday, July 26

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This is the 343rd Annual Sessions of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting! We’re sharing the Mott Memo daily recaps here on the website, a loving tribute to the august Quaker, Lucretia Mott. Each Mott Memo is a brief look-back on the day’s events. We hope you enjoy taking part in Annual Sessions through this tradition. Shared below is the news from Wednesday, July 26.

The College of New Jersey is buzzing with preparations for online and onsite programs! Staff arrived today on campus to set up tech spaces, childcare and youth rooms, tents for conversations on the lawn, tables for registration and welcome, and more. In this time of preparation, special attention is being given to how we will gather in hybrid ways when Friends arrive on campus on Friday. Three years of online Annual Sessions and our Continuing Sessions programs in the past year have set the stage for us to connect both across Zoom and in person as a blended community. Close to 400 Friends are registered for this year’s Annual Sessions, joining on Zoom, as commuters to TCNJ, and staying on campus in the dorm. [Read more…] about Annual Sessions Recap: Mott Memo for Wednesday, July 26

Caregiving for the Aging: A Family Story

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Following a Friend reading the June 6 story, “History & Vision of Quaker Aging Resources” on the PYM website, I had the opportunity to connect and learn their family’s story. A member of a PYM meeting, the Friend and their family went through various stages of long-term care needs with both their parents. One parent requested to age in place at home while the other parent, although initially having the same wish, needed increased care and supervision 24/7.  

The Friend’s parents had written living wills. A living will is a legal document that details how you prefer to receive medical treatment when you can no longer make decisions for yourself. This link provides examples of living will documents for all states within the PYM region.

[Read more…] about Caregiving for the Aging: A Family Story

An Invitation from Presiding Clerk, Melissa Rycroft

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Dear Friends,

I am so excited to invite you to join me at Philadelphia Yearly Meeting’s 343rd Annual Sessions. We’ll be gathering at The College of New Jersey and on Zoom, hopefully in ways that are accessible to as many Friends as possible across the Yearly Meeting.

[Read more…] about An Invitation from Presiding Clerk, Melissa Rycroft

12 Days to Annual Sessions … 12 Reasons to Join!

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We’re counting down to Annual Sessions! Here are 12 great reasons to join, July 26-30.  [Read more…] about 12 Days to Annual Sessions … 12 Reasons to Join!

Newtown Quaker Meeting Kids Raise $4,008 at Lasagna Dinner for MicroLending

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NEWTOWN BOROUGH, PA — The Quaker Kids at Newtown Meeting served its annual lasagna dinner for charity at the historic Quaker Meetinghouse and raised a whopping $4,008 for their designated charity, Right Sharing of World Resources (RSWR)!

[Read more…] about Newtown Quaker Meeting Kids Raise $4,008 at Lasagna Dinner for MicroLending

History & Vision of Quaker Aging Resources

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PYM’s Aging Support Coordinator, Sheila Sorkin, invites you to participate in an important survey on the Quaker Aging Resources website. The vision for this project may still hold true; however, we will value your input in discerning the future of this valuable website.

New York and Philadelphia Yearly Meetings of Friends (Quakers), through generous funding from Friends Foundation for the Aging and the Thomas Scattergood Foundation, collaborated to develop Quaker Aging Resources (QAR). The project was designed over 13 years ago to assist Meetings and individuals in responding to the needs of aging Friends including age related changes, chronic illness or disability. The resources are intended to uphold a culture of care for the body, mind, spirit and community of the individual, which is consistent with our Quaker faith, and address the following needs: [Read more…] about History & Vision of Quaker Aging Resources

PYM Call for Nominations!

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Service on the committees and councils, and in clerking and treasurer roles, in the Yearly Meeting is nourishing for both the individual and their meeting. Friends who serve in this way help the yearly meeting both to be productive and communally follow where spirit is guiding us as a faith community.
[Read more…] about PYM Call for Nominations!

Chester Meeting Minute of Love for the Ugandan LGBTQAI Community

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June 13, 2023,
Chester Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends,
To Friends of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting

Friends,

In this time of pandemic, Chester Friends Meeting has held blended worship, and in these years we have been blessed with visitors. One, Karl Malchut from Evanston, IL, has become a regular attender.  He has been zoom visiting with concerns for transgender and gender minority youth and has actively been supporting a faith community, the Talented Youth Community Fellowship of Uganda.

As that community has been facing increasingly punitive threats due to persecution unto death from the highest levels of government, Karl was moved to bring a minute to the meeting.  It was shared by us broadly to our meeting community, and on Sunday, June 11, we heard it and united.  We committed to sharing it widely, not knowing what response would be but knowing that out of love we had to do something. [Read more…] about Chester Meeting Minute of Love for the Ugandan LGBTQAI Community

Meet the Father and Daughter Co-clerking Duo of Old Haverford Meeting

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When Kristin Simmons’ youngest daughter was born, her husband Tim was working at Delaware Valley Friends School. As lifelong Catholics, they were feeling disillusioned with church, and decided it was time for a change. Together the family turned to Quakerism, looking for a simpler, connected life to the divine Light. It was both faith and community that drew the couple to Old Haverford Monthly Meeting seventeen years ago. When Kristin was young, her mother worked as a librarian at a Quaker school for 20+ years and committed time focusing on social justice issues and sharing key insights among various faith groups. Kristin’s father, George Salloom, and his wife remained practicing Catholics until about seven years ago when George became a member of the Quaker community.

The father and daughter duo, George and Kristin, now serve as co-clerks at Old Haverford Meeting. They both hold master’s degrees in social work; George graduated from Howard University while Kristin graduated from University of Pennsylvania. Kristin also currently serves as PYM’s Youth Engagement Coordinator on the Program and Religious Life team. Their stories of how they became Quakers and co-clerks of Old Haverford Monthly Meeting are heartwarming and engaging.

[Read more…] about Meet the Father and Daughter Co-clerking Duo of Old Haverford Meeting

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