9:00 AM unprogrammed meeting for worship: Anne Luce on the facing bench
10:15 AM Easter brunch, brought to you by the men of the Meeting
11:15 AM semi-programmed meeting for worship: no planned speaker; Nancy Lichtenstein, musician; Mary Leikvold on the facing bench

HOLD IN THE LIGHT

Friends World Committee for Consultation World Gathering in Kenya, those preparing for it, and all those traveling to attend including MFMers, Connie Archbald, Mary and Steve Snyder and Annette Smith.

MEETING MATTERS / CALENDAR

Friends are encouraged to shake hands with those immediately around you to signify the close of worship. Standing and extending wider greeting is invited after introductions and announcements.

Worship in Bloomington is this Tuesday, April 10th, at the home of Louise White, 7:00. All are welcome to come!

Next Sunday, April 15th, monthly meeting for business will start at 9:45.

There will be a meeting for all MFM committee clerks (or committee representative), the new clerk of meeting, Ranae Hanson and the Director of Ministry next Sunday, April 15th, at 12:15, downstairs.

Save April 18th for storytelling at MFM! All are welcome. A special invitation to visitors and new attenders – come listen or share or both. This is a sterling opportunity for us to get to know each other better.

“Sounding the Divine” workshop April 28th, at Twin Cities Friends Meeting (1725 Grand Ave. St. Paul). Vonn New, a released friend of New York Yearly Meeting, will present a day-long workshop to explore non-verbal forms of creative expression and sensory experiences which can be doorways to deeper union with the Spirit and may be the most effective way to defy violence and build peace. Participation is limited, pre-registration is required. Register at 715-220-3212. Sponsored by Metro Friends CC and NYM’s A and O. There will be a potluck supper at 5:30 and family folkdance at 6:30. Come for the whole day or come for the evening! See salmon flyers for more.

Our next Loaves and Fishes Dinner at Holy Rosary Church is Mon, April 30th. Help is needed for food prep, serving and cleanup. Sign-up for service and/or donations of fruit, bars or healthy cookies with emphasis of Spring! Contact Anne Luce for more.

Dan and Janis Reuter invite F(f)riends to their annual Shearing Day Sat, April 14th. If you’ve wanted to come for a visit this is a great day to come! The shearer arrives at 9 and will be working until about noon. There might even be brand new baby goats to see. To join the workforce, email Janis. Koru, 9531 – 253rd Ave NE, Oxford, 55079.

The next NYM Middle School retreat is April 20-22 at the Twin Cities Friends meetinghouse in St. Paul. The schedule, sign-up sheet, what-to-bring list, and directions can be found: nymyouth.org/middle/index.html, but can also be found by going to the NYM website, selecting “Links”, “Northern Yearly Meeting Youth”, and then “Middle School”. It’ll be a weekend full of fun, food and F/friends. We will do a service project at a local animal shelter (basically petting cute animals that need attention) and cook our own meal on Sat. night. Questions, email Thomas Greenler.

The next NYM High School retreat will be at Duluth Superior Friends meetinghouse April 27-29th. The retreat will focus on exploring spirituality through self-expression. For more, email a request for details: nymhighschool(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)gmail.com
Friendly adult presences are being sought as well!

Offering boxes are located on small tables near the meetingroom doors. Our new fiscal year begins today. Our approved budget for the year is $114,624.00. To meet our budget obligations, we need to average $2,204.00 in donations per week. Thank you to Friends who generously support the Meeting in all manner of ways.

OUR WIDER COMMUNITY

There will be a meeting for worship with attention to marriage equality Thursday, April 12, 7 PM, at TCFM. There will be a half-hour for worship followed by discussion.
Defeat the Amendment! Thurs, April 12, 7:00 at Friends School of MN gym. Come see the eighth grade video about saying no in upcoming vote on the marriage amendment. Learn about the topic and the implications for all MN families.

Have you ever thought about traveling to Central America? Are you interested in learning about other forms of Quakerism? The El Salvador Committee of Northern Yearly Meeting is sponsoring a trip to visit El Salvador Yearly Meeting in August, 2012. Open to Friends ages 15 and up – teens, adult young Friends, adults and physically fit elders. Interested or more: Ruby Steigerwald at 612-721-7040 by 01-31-2012.

Nightingales Spring Gathering at Beaver Creek Reserve, Fall Creek, WI, Fri, April 27th – Sun, April 29th. Nightingales are mostly Quakers, mostly from WI and MN, who gather to sing over a weekend three times a year. Rise Up Singing and Friends Hymnal are favorites along with songs from other sources. Start at 7 pm on Fri with singing. Sat may include a sharing circle, hiking, work shifts, visiting, eating, and singing. Sat evening is the largest and longest singing time. Sun includes worship followed by lunch and clean-up. Musical instruments may be used at times. Anyone who likes to sing is welcome. Come for all or part of the weekend. Contact Janet for more: 651-642-1371.

Project Homeless Connect is a one-stop shop model for delivering services to people experiencing homelessness. Mpls and Hennepin County partner with service providers, businesses, citizens, and faith congregations to bring multiple resources to one central location where people can come to access the services they need. The next Project Homeless Connect is May 14th at the Mpls Convention Center. There are a variety of volunteer opportunities, many as guides, partnering with guests to help them find the resources they want. Go to homelessconnectminneapolis.org to volunteer.

Iowa Yearly Meeting of Friends mid-year meeting, “Who We Are Today and Where Are We Called?” will be at Bear Creek meetinghouse near Earlham, IA, April 21-22nd. See posted schedule and registration forms for more.

Friends School of Minnesota’s plant sale will be at the MN State Fair Grandstand Fri-Sun, May 11-13. The catalog is available online: FriendsSchoolPlantSale.com . Hard copies can be found around the meetinghouse.

Creating a Culture of Peace, a national program of training in the practices, principles, and spirituality of nonviolent peacemaking, will be holding a weekend workshop Fri afternoon, Apr 13th through Sun, Apr 15th, with executive director Janet Chisholm and professor and activist Phil Stoltzfus. Explore dimensions of violence in our culture, resources for interpersonal nonviolence, dynamics of nonviolent social movements, perspectives on community building, and strategic action planning. All are welcome, both newcomers and those wanting to deepen their understanding. Faith Mennonite Church, 2720 E. 22nd St., Mpls. Details and registration forms: faithmennonite.org. For more: minstaff(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)faithmennonite.org, or creatingacultureofpeace.org.

FNVW is co-sponsoring a presentation by Roxana Saberi on Sun, April 15, 11:00 AM at Hennepin Ave United Methodist Church. Roxana Saberi moved to Iran in 2003 to work as the Iran correspondent for the U.S.-based Feature Story News. She filed reports for organizations such as NPR, BBC, ABC Radio and Fox News and was working on a book about Iranian society when she was arrested in January, 2009. She was sentenced to eight years in prison on charges of espionage. In May 2009, an Iranian court overturned the sentence and she was released. Since then, Saberi has worked to bring attention to the situation of human rights in Iran through interviews, speaking events and written articles. Her book, Between Two Worlds: My Life and Captivity in Iran, was published in March 2010. Saberi grew up in Fargo, ND.

Parker Palmer will speak on “Healing the Heart of Democracy” at Westminster Town Hall Forum, Thurs, April 19th. Music at 11:30, forum 12:00, reception and discussion at 1:00. Westminster is at Nicollet Mall and 12th Str. Mpls. Free.

The Islamic Media Center is offering an eye-opening speech by Odeh Muhawesh about Islamic shariah law along with a question and answer time and a free lunch (from Holy Land deli) April 21, 12:00-3:15, Ridgedale Regional Center, Robert Rohlf Room, 12601 Ridgedale Drive, Minnetonka. RSVP by April 19th: or 612-216-2478.

Dining Out for Life is Thurs, April 26th. 180 restaurants across MN are participating in Dining Out For Life this year. A portion of each restaurant’s proceeds April 26th will go to The Aliveness Project and Rural AIDS Action Network which jointly offer programs to HIV-positive individuals and their families including food shelf, hot meals, HIV testing, holiday baskets, integrative therapies, case management, nutritional counseling, support groups, transportation assistance and workshops. Don’t just eat, volunteer! The services of volunteers are needed at participating restaurants (breakfast, lunch and/or dinner). Training dates are listed on our website www.aliveness.org. DO GOOD. DINE OUT April 26th.

Counter-Summit for Peace and Economic Justice will gather May 18-19 in Chicago. While NATO meets in Chicago and the G8 summit meets at Camp David, peace and justice activists will meet to map an alternative path toward a future free of war, want and occupation. More at natofreefuture.org

OFFICE HOURS
Pat Jones will be in the office Wednesday from 2:00-5:00 and other times Wed, Thurs, Fri. and Sat.
Carolyn Sherer VandenDolder, the Admin Assistant, will be in Wed. afternoon and Thurs evening. Bulletin deadline, noon Thur. Bulletin items can be phoned in to the office, emailed or written and put in the bulletin file of the blue box.