May 12, 2024

MEETING SCHEDULE AND PROGRAM

TODAY

9:00 – 9:40 meeting for worship (unprogrammed): care of meeting, Mary Bosserman; Zoom host – Sandy O

9:45 – 11:15 monthly meeting for business: Stephen Snyder, clerk; Jeannette Raymond, recording clerk; Zoom host – Sandy O

11:15 – 12:15 meeting for worship (semi-programmed): Lindy Venustus, reader on behalf of Sigurd and Sara Hoppe; care of meeting, John Kraft; Zoom host – Marilyn J

Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org for the link to worship and monthly meeting for business this Sunday.

Friends are reminded to silence your cell phone before entering the meetingroom.

There will be an all-clerks meeting in the conference room TODAY at the rise of semi-programmed worship. Help orient and support new clerks and create an opportunity to make working together easier! Via Zoom: ID: 811 9538 0244, passcode: 122321, https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81195380244?pwd=dTExT2RoNDYvYkRjTWJPVWcrcGt4dz09. Contact Stephen S, presiding clerk, with questions.

NEWS FOR MINNEAPOLIS MEETING FRIENDS

Mid-Morning Program next Sunday at 10:15: My Spiritual Journey with Jeff Naylor.

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.

How grateful we are that since September, Minneapolis Meeting has had a Children and Families Coordinator to help welcome children and families, and who has offered relationship, care, and planned programming during worship! The time has come for the next step: additional adults coming forward to get to know the young folks now attending meeting. Ideally, we will develop a rotation of adult volunteers who will help once or twice every eight weeks. Implement a lesson already planned, or be interviewed about your experience of Quakerism! A sign-up sheet is on the elevator table. Questions? Email Cathy N. Haven’t gone through the clearness process to work with children of the meeting? Contact Rae Beth C. of the Child Welfare Committee.

International Friends Church is twelve years old this May! Friends at Minneapolis Meeting supported and encouraged the start of the church, now affiliated with Iowa Yearly Meeting, Friends United Meeting. MFM Friends are warmly invited to give thanks for this community and see how far it has come at a celebration on June 16th at 11AM, at Waycross Evangelical Church, 7733 W.River Rd. Brooklyn Park, 55444. In aid of planning, please RSVP to Stephen S. by TOMORROW, May 13.

Minneapolis Meeting needs you! The Tech Committee will offer regular AV training and refresher sessions through this summer. Running the AV system is not about technology, it’s more like following a recipe. We’re the process easy with step by step ‘recipe cards’ to operate the system. This is a call to a ministry of making connections – helping connect people remotely with the meetinghouse and back again. Willing to help? Contact Marilyn J. or Roger M.

Ministry and Counsel Committee (M&C) asks individuals who feel led to share a prepared message or a reading during semi-programmed worship, to contact Lolly L. or other members of M&C. M&C is also looking for closers for both worships. Serving as a closer is a ministry of service to the meeting.

HEADS UP: the summer schedule begins on May 27th with one worship at 10AM.

Being a Zoom Host or a substitute A/V Tech is a great way to support the Meeting’s worship. Interested in being trained for either of these positions, or just finding out more? Contact Marilyn J.

Join the Fun with Friends Bird Walk, one of the favorite Fun with Friends activities in the past, 10AM on Thurs, May 16th at Veterans Park in Richfield! Migratory birds like warblers and herons should be at their peak. We’ll most likely see and hear at least twenty different kinds of birds. Bag lunch in the picnic shelter after. Use West entrance off Portland. Meet at the picnic shelter by the playground. Bring binoculars if you have them! Veterans Park, 6335 Portland Ave, 55423. Rain date May 23.

Come to the meetinghouse for an optimistic, upbeat evening on the topics of racism, organizing strategy, and how to work in coalitions and solidarity – 7PM, May 23rd. Author Garrett Bucks, a Milwaukee Meeting Quaker and Earlham College alumnus, will be discussing his new book, “The Right Kind of White”, as well as ‘The Barnraisers Project,’ an organization he founded which has trained nearly one thousand participants to organize majority-white communities for racial and social justice. As we approach the fourth anniversary of the murder of George Floyd, we must continue to reckon with race and what role we play in dismantling systems of oppression. Sponsored by Southwest Alliance for Equity (SWAE), and co-hosted by MFM, FNVW, and Comma Bookshop. REGISTER HERE: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-conversation-with-author-organizer-garrett-bucks-tickets-895335140507
If you are able to help out with chairs, greeting folks, setting up a few tables, or just being available, please contact Roger M. For a sneak peak at the book, see: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Right-Kind-of-White/Garrett-Bucks/9781982197209

Northern Yearly Meeting’s Anti-Racism Working Group is encouraging participation in the Friends General Conference Institutional Assessment, an opportunity to reflect on the anti-racism work which has occurred, and the areas for growth; sparking further collaboration and action. The NYM Anti-Racism Working Group will host a session to help Friends fill out the survey on May 13th, 7-8:30PM, addressing some common concerns and helping Friends navigate challenges. Call 608-256-2249 (Madison Meeting) to get connected to this session. Tips, the survey and available resources at https://northernyearlymeeting.org/anti-racism/

The Care and Counsel Committee facilitates pastoral care for Minneapolis Meeting members and attenders, understanding the Quaker tradition that Friends minister to each other. If you are dealing with illness, grief, a major transition, or a stressful personal problem, we would like to be there for you. Contact committee co-clerks, John S, or Ellen S.
If a confidential discussion would support you as you make a decision, we will set up a clearness committee with you. Email John S. to explore that opportunity.
Other committee members are Connie A, Mary G, Jill F, and Jimbo L.

SMALL GROUP OPPORTUNITIES AT MINNEAPOLIS MEETING

The Getting to Know You Storytelling Group will meet this Tues (and every second Tuesday!) at 1PM. This month’s prompt – If you were to write an autobiography, what would you call it and give us a vignette of one story you would tell. Come get better acquainted! Email Kate W-J for more.

The Deep Inner Work of Racial Justice group will meet this Tues, April 9, 7-8:30PM, via Zoom. VISITORS AND THOSE CONSIDERING JOINING US REGULARLY ARE ALWAYS WELCOME. Let Nettie S. know if you’d like a link.

Small group line-up: Writing Group, first Monday night; Conflict Soiree, first Wednesday afternoon; Getting to Know You Group, second Tuesday afternoon; Deep Inner Work of Racial Justice Group, second Tuesday night; Right Relationship with Indigenous People, third Tuesday night; Reading Group, fourth Tuesday night.

OPPORTUNITIES IN THE WIDER WORLD OF FRIENDS

Northern Yearly Meeting’s Annual Session – a great opportunity to meet with Quakers around the region! Come explore the theme Inward Guidance, Outward Action over Memorial Day weekend, May 24-27. Business meeting, time to enjoy the company of old and new Friends, opportunity to rest your mind and spirit, the opportunity for spiritual growth, campfires, walks in the woods, boating, swimming, singing, and much more. Children and youth participate in a lively and popular program. Take a look at the NYM Annual Session Brochure (on the NYM website.) Join virtually or in-person: Register for the weekend.
NYM – “A Great Place for Kids!” Last year, the Early Elementary group was running a restaurant with a very full menu. Later they were heard singing in the tent structure they had built. In Older Elementary the games often had physical elements like Electricity, Quaker Maze, Mirror a Partner’s Movement and Wacky Relay to mention just a few. During Middle School the activities often, but not always, became more complex: t-shirt tie-dyeing, archery, and folk dancing. And then of course Tag, You’re It and other chasing games. There are lots of activities to do during free time – intergenerational games like Everybody’s It, or Capture The Flag, and also boating, swimming, campfires and hiking. From the start the High School students know just what to do. They make an agenda to incorporate everyone’s desires for the session. They have meetings with serious discussions, but also they won’t miss a moment to play Mad LIbs or an impromptu board game. The Night Hike is a favorite joyful time for silent listening of night sounds and critters. There’s also time for stargazing. And many playful times, Belts ice cream excursion and the musical extravaganza playing homemade silly instruments made of grass whistles, bottles and something percussive. The last day saying their goodbyes is moving, exhausting and they fall asleep on the way home.

Northern Yearly Meeting will have two virtual pre-sessions on Sun, May 19 (before Annual Session gathering starts May 24). The Finance Committee Budget Review is a deep dive from 1-3PM, and the State of Society Reports are the topic from 6:30-8PM. Info at: https://northernyearlymeeting.org/events/.

Friends General Conference Annual Gathering: General registration for the in-person and virtual Gatherings at Haverford has re-opened! Workshop, housing, and program spots are first come, first serve, so please don’t delay in registering. For more and to register, see fgcquaker.org/fgcprograms/the-gathering/registration-and-logistics.

Friends Committee on National Legislation will have an Iraq and Afghanistan Wars Documentary, What I Want You To Know, Screening and Q&A on Thurs, May 16th, 5PM(CT). Register and more at https://act.fcnl.org/survey/film-screening-FP-5-16/. RSVP by TOMORROW, May 13.

Friends General Conference hosts a monthly worship for Newcomers and Seekers. It introduces Quaker worship practices as well as allowing for questions and reflection. Every second Monday evening, 5:30-6:30; next meeting on May 13th. Register at https://www.fgcquaker.org/event/newcomers-worship/

Invest in Main Street, not Wall Street! Learn how supporting small enterprises can boost community resilience, next Sat, May 18, 6:00-7:30 p.m. at Twin Cities Meeting, 1725 Grand Ave, St. Paul. Rebecca Blumenshine, financial educator, will speak about crowdfunding and what it means to invest locally. Refreshments served.

Friends for a NonViolent World People Camp registration is now open! Get Early Bird rates (until May 31) to attend camp this summer – a rich experience of shared community life and work, recreation and connection, social justice learning, and action opportunities for children and adults. Find out more and register here.

American Friends Service Committee
* join AFSC every Friday at 11AM for an Action Hour for a Cease-fire Now.
* worship with attention to peace in Palestine and Israel with Friends across the U.S. every Thurs, online, at 4:30PM. Sign up to get the link at https://afsc.org/events/meeting-worship-attention-peace-palestine-israel.
* urge Congress to resume U.S. funding for life-saving Palestinian aid. Palestinians in Gaza are starving and facing disease, and ongoing military attacks. The entire population is in urgent need of humanitarian aid. But the U.S. has suspended funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, the main provider of aid in Gaza. The FY24 budget has made that cut permanent through this year. Stopping these funds deepens the humanitarian crisis.

OPPORTUNITIES IN THE WIDER COMMUNITY

World Without Genocide will present a webinar on Tues, May 14th: Genocides on Trial: Israel, Russia, China, Myanmar, and Serbia, examining the apparent impunity of China and charges against Israel, Russia, and Myanmar against a precedent set years ago in a case against Serbia. More and register at: worldwithoutgenocide.org/programs/upcoming-events/may-14-genocides-on-trial-israel-russia-china-myanmar-and-serbia

The Neighborhood Choir, which practices at MFM, will have its spring concert this Thurs, May 16, 7PM at Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd at France and 48th Street. Linda C, Suzanne F, and Carolyn V. are currently part of the choir!

Donations for refugees needed! Since January, MN Council of Churches has welcomed 392 new arrivals, providing them with housing, clothing, and all the other necessities they need to have a good start in MN. In April, there have been 100 arrivals and many more are expected in May. One easy way to extend a welcome to our newest neighbors is by donating hygiene and household products. There are gift registries with Amazon and Target with items that are included in every welcome kit. If you already have supplies that you are looking to donate, bring them by the MCC offices, located at 122 Franklin Avenue W, Suite 100, Minneapolis MN, 55406.

OFFICE HOURS

The Meeting Coordinator, will be in the office Wed – Fri afternoons. Phone messages checked daily; email checked W-F. Bulletin deadline, noon Thur. Bulletin items can be phoned in to the office (612-926-6159) or emailed (office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org).