May 29, 2022

MEETING SCHEDULE AND PROGRAM

TODAY

10:00 – 11:00 AM meeting for worship (unprogrammed): care of meeting,Jane Downes; Zoom host – Rae Beth Cornelius

Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org by noon Friday for the link to worship.

HOLD IN THE LIGHT

The children, families, and teachers of the United States.

People who are grieving or suffering from injustice, conflict, racism, colonialism, displacement, loss, and the climate crisis, and all those who are aiding victims and the dispossessed.

NEWS FOR MINNEAPOLIS MEETING FRIENDS

Happy birthday Lindy (June 6,) Rick (June 10,) Patrick (June 11,) Ellen (June 12,) Roland (June 13,) Allen (June 16,) Jacque (June 22,) and Roy (June 24)! Let Friends celebrate YOU! Send the month and date of your birth to Judith J.

There is mid-week worship every Wed night, 7PM. Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org by noon Wed for the link.

Planned vocal ministry: Take the opportunity to nurture and encourage each other! If you think someone might have a message for the meeting community, recommend them to Ministry and Counsel Committee or encourage them to speak with someone from M&C themselves. Likewise, if you feel you have been given a message to share, contact John C. so a Sunday may be made available to you.

People who are interested and willing to learn the new AV system at the meetinghouse are now being sought. Let Terry K. or Roger M. know if you are interested.

Zephyra and Roland Shepherd created the Shepherd Scholarship in 1977 for the post-secondary education of Minneapolis Meeting members or children of members. Applications and eligibility criteria are available from the office (office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org,) or on the long table in the east hallway. Applications should be mailed to the meetinghouse or emailed to the office by June 25th.

Quaker Voluntary Service has two program Fridays each month. Could you provide a vegan lunch for seven (two gluten-free) on June 10 or 24? These are the last lunches for this cohort of Fellows! Sign up with Miranda, QVS Local Coordinator: miranda(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)quakervoluntaryservice.org . THANK YOU, Friends, for this gesture of care and support.

Friends who visit the meetinghouse for errands or committee meetings or who want to meet on the meetinghouse grounds are asked to schedule those visits with the office to help avoid conflicts: 612-926-6159; office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org . Please remember to wear masks in the common areas of the building.

OPPORTUNITIES AMONG FRIENDS

WORKSHOPS, FILMS, RETREATS, PROGRAMS, PRESENTATIONS

The 2022 Friends General Conference Gathering, “. . . and follow me” will be July 3-9, online. Find the list of offered workshops here. Learn more and register for the Gathering on the FGC website.

Early Bird registration for Friends for a NonViolent World’s People Camp (Aug 7-13) ends May 31st! People Camp is an intergenerational experience of cooperation, exploration and community living. Come rest and refresh your mind, body, and spirit through a variety of workshops, group activities and recreation. More here.

Check out summer conferences at Pendle Hill. Among the offerings this summer: Claiming Our Collective Power: Social Witness Among Friends (June 1- 26); Kairos, A Spiritual Journey (July 28-31); and Aiming for Freedom: Race, Reparations, and Right Paths (Aug 14-18).

VOLUNTEER

From Friends Committee on National Legislation: Urge your US legislators to co-sponsor the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies in the U.S. Act. The act would establish the first formal commission in U.S. history to investigate and document the policies and practices of 367 federally-sponsored, faith-run institutions from the 1860s through the 1960s. This includes assimilation practices, attempted termination of cultures and languages of Indigenous peoples, and human rights violations. Read more here. For easy access to your representatives, click here.

Join Friends School Grounds Day, Sat, June 4, 9-11AM at Friends School, 1365 Englewood Ave, St Paul, 55104. Come for a fun Saturday morning to help take care of our grounds! We’ll be weeding our garden beds and pulling dandelions in the lawn. This grounds day helps us avoid having pesticides sprayed on the lawn.

Help Reduce Deaths From Gun Violence: Our hearts are sick with the recent mass shootings and killing in Buffalo, NY, and at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, TX. In the 22 weeks of 2022, there have been 214 mass shootings in the US. The damage of gun violence goes far beyond the tragic deaths of the 10 precious people in a convenience store in NY or the 19 innocent children and 2 teachers at a school in TX. In 2020 there were 38,355 deaths from guns: 23,941 were suicides and 14,414 were homicides. Since 2021 there has been a 50% increase in active killings involving firearms. Currently, there are 120.5 firearms per every 100 residents. Following their own horrific experience with mass shootings, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom all reduced gun violence by restricting or banning some firearms along with other initiatives like gun buy-back programs. What you can do in the face of this devastation:
— Call your representatives. Tell them to support a Senate vote on HR 8 (The Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021) and HR 1446 (The Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2021, expanding the Brady Background Checks Act). Click here to search for your Senator.
— Plug into local actions: Protect Minnesota, (Susie K is a member,) Gifford’s Law Center, or text “ACT” to 64433 to receive updates from Every Town for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action for actions against gun violence where you live.
–Call or email Susie K. to brainstorm ways to reduce gun violence in our state and country. Sources: PBS News hour, BBC News, America’s Gun Culture, and FNVW.

EMPLOYMENT IN THE WORLD OF FRIENDS

Friends School of MN is in search of a K-8 Music Teacher (.8 FTE) and a first / second mixed grade lower school Lead Teacher (1.0 FTE). Both positions are for employment beginning this fall for the 22-23 school year. For details and application instructions, see: https://fsmn.org/about/employment/

Friends for a NonViolent World is hiring a new part-time Volunteer Engagement Specialist. Put your belief in nonviolent social change and your desire to bring people together to build safe and healthy communities into action! Responsible for recruiting, training and supporting new FNVW volunteers and student interns; play a key role in planning, implementing, organizing and coordinating the volunteer and community engagement opportunities that drive FNVW’s mission forward. Learn more at fnvw.org/jobs. Send resume and cover letter to Leah(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)fnvw.org. Interviews are underway!

OFFICE HOURS

Carolyn VandenDolder, Meeting Coordinator, will be out of the office most of the week. Do not be alarmed if the bulletin is sent out on Saturday. Bulletin deadline, noon Thur.