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Quaker Spring Summer Gathering
June 14 - June 18
Would you like to attend a radically unprogrammed gathering with Friends?
June 2024 Quaker Spring Summer Gathering
We will gather in-person from June 14-18, 2024, at Woolman Hill Retreat Center in Deerfield, Massachusetts. Portions of the gathering also will be available to attend remotely online (as “hybrid” sessions) via Zoom. Woolman Hill is 5 minutes from the Greenfield MA Amtrak station. (Details on all travel options)
Our program will be shaped by God’s leading as the gathering unfolds. Each day will include: Bible reflection, worship, discernment together around concerns rising among us, quiet time, fellowship, and play.
We are excited to announce that Melinda Wenner Bradley is returning to Quaker Spring this year to lead a children’s program and intergenerational programming during our opening weekend (June 14-16) drawing on her extensive work using Faith & Play stories to nurture spiritual formation across the generations.
(More limited intergenerational activities and childcare support will be available during the final 2 days.)
Register now to join us in June!
All fees both for in-person & online attendance are on a “pay as led” basis. There are suggested donations on our Contributions Guide to help prepare you to register.
What Is Quaker Spring?
For the last 18 years in June, Friends from over 20 yearly meetings drawing on all branches of Friends have gathered together in Barnesville, Ohio or in New England to explore what Spirit-led Quakerism is about at its core—and to experience it together. These were truly “gatherings with a difference”—with most of the week left unplanned and open to the leading of the Spirit.
All are welcome regardless of age, background, or faith orientation. We welcome Friends of all branches and expressions of faith to join with us. Although Bible study happens each morning and many Friends who attend Quaker Spring have been drawn to the faith of earlier Quaker generations, Friends with many different spiritual paths have enjoyed this opportunity to seek, share, and worship with others in this open, relaxed retreat-like time. Friends from many different yearly meetings have attended Quaker Spring gatherings over the years including Friends from overseas. We especially welcome Young Adult Friends. One of the most exciting things about these gatherings has been the powerful sharing across generational lines between Young Adult and older Friends. Many in both groups have spoken of how powerful and unusual this experience has been.
Our gathering costs are always kept as low as possible to make it easier for younger Friends, families, and others with limited means to take part. All our fees are on a “freewill offering, pay-as-led” basis, so no one needs to stay away for financial reasons.
