Author Archives: Tom Ward

December 14, 2025 Minutes of Monthly Meeting for Business

Minneapolis Friends Meeting Posted on by

Minneapolis Friends Meeting (MFM)

Minutes of Monthly Meeting for Business  December 14, 2025

(Names and some information are edited for publication on the web)

Attendance:  Jane F. – fill-in co-clerk, Lolly L. – fill-in co-clerk, Tom W. – recording clerk, Attending in person – 26  Attending on Zoom -18

  1. Silent worship
  2. Land Acknowledgement—Jane
  3. Approval of the agenda—Jane
  4. Minutes from November 9, 2025 were APPROVED
  5. Ministry and Counsel Report—Lolly
    1. Membership Clearness committee recommendation   Lynda G. has been recommended for membership by M&C and her clearness committee composed of Kate W-J (convener), Connie A, Judith J and Benton R. Friends APPROVE Lynda G’s membership in Minneapolis Friends Meeting and welcome her to our fellowship.
    2. Thee Quaker Project (update)   An ad-hoc committee comprised of Lolly, Roger M, Kate W-J, Stephen S, Judith J, Lynda G, and Jeff N, met with staff from Thee Quaker Project to discuss making a short video profiling our Meeting. They are planning to film the video the first weekend in March with the first weekend in May as a backup. All of us are being asked to complete a questionnaire to give their staff an understanding of our Meeting and to provide focus for the project.  The questionnaire will be distributed by the end of January, and they request we return them promptly. The video will be 5-7 minutes in length and, when completed, MFM can use it however we want to market it, although Thee Quaker Project will retain ownership of the video. Permission slips will be needed from those participating on camera – people have the choice to opt out. The video will take a month to six weeks to complete once filming is done.  The videographer, Ellie W, has twenty years of experience and is interested in capturing aspects of our semi-programmed meeting for worship and mid-morning programming, since most of their previous Quaker video projects have been with unprogrammed worship. We will have access to any additional footage that is not contained in the finished project and we will be able to review the draft and to suggest changes. Before videotaping, Ellie will meet with us in the meeting house to get a sense of our space and to discuss the making of the video.
      • Discussion: How much will it cost? Payments to cover the video, up to $5,000, will be coming from the Nancy Peterson Outreach Fund that the Trustees manage. Money is there to cover the expenses.  Friend was concerned that both the unprogrammed and semi-programmed worship services might not be adequately covered in the short time allotted to the video. Lolly said their profile videos are usually 5-7 minutes in length, but they do make longer twenty-minute videos. Concern was expressed that our children’s programming needs to be included in the video. Friend suggested we incorporate two recent graduates of videographer programs at MCAD either to make the video or to help out as interns. One of them is our technician, Lavender, but both of them would benefit from participating in the project. Friend asked if Meeting would have a chance to preview the video before it is finalized. We should be able to review the draft video; but Judith J, who is on the ad hoc video committee and has viewed previous videos created by Thee Quaker Project, advised that we could trust the integrity and professionalism of the film crew and that we should leave it up to them to put together an excellent project.
    3. Labor Church Presentation – presented by Stephen Snyder   Meeting has received a request from Salem H, a former Quaker Voluntary Service fellow, to put on a program called Labor Church, that combines music, discussion and reflection to explore the labor and protest movement. The date would be Friday January 23rd, which is open on the calendar. The goal is to sing together and to learn new songs.
      • Discussion: Is there any cost associated with this?  There is no cost to do this.  While the message is not specifically linked to Quakerism, it would fit well with the culture of our Meeting. Concern was raised that our rich history of pacifism and protest is not reflected in the program title, and there was a desire to have Salem speak to this. Lavender will be available to assist with the technical aspects of the program and Dave Bostrom expressed willingness to help with the program. Others, who are interested, should contact Stephen S. Salem indicated that there will be times of silence during the program.  This is a chance to energize Meeting through music and to learn some new songs.
      • Friends APPROVED sponsoring the Labor Church program at the meeting house on January 23.
  6. Tech Committee Annual Report—Marilyn J/Bill H (co-clerks) other members: Brenda C, Lolly, Terry K, Stephen S (ex officio)
    • The committee’s charge: To oversee the implementation and operation of the technology needed to offer hybrid meetings for worship. This includes coordinating Zoom hosts for Sunday morning programming; developing and implementing support for those participating in Sunday morning programming via Zoom; overseeing the on-site AV technician; developing and implementing support for on-site AV technicians; developing and implementing an ongoing plan for maintenance, support and related funding for the hybrid meeting technology in cooperation with the Trustees and the Stewardship and Finance Committee.  Their accomplishments include the ongoing support of hybrid Sunday meetings for worship and mid—morning programs and special events, such as memorial services, with their slate of Zoom hosts, that include Sandy O, Kate W-J, Mary B, Rae Beth, John K, Lolly, Marilyn and John K. John K and Roger M also substitute for Lavender J the A/V Tech.
    • The committee has implemented new procedures to protect the Meeting’s Zoom account settings from accidental changes by hosts or intentional disruption from external internet players, all while trying to make access to the link for Meeting programmed activities easier and more reliable. There were some hiccups along the way, but things are running better now that the link has been taken down from the website (following a trial period).  The published link in the weekly bulletin has been working smoothly, with the Zoom ID address and password remaining unchanged for a longer period of time.
    • Thanks to Roger M and Stephen S for seeing that the conference room now has access to the hybrid system so committee meetings can be shared on Zoom.  And a special thanks to Roger for his continued efforts to keep everything in the hybrid system running smoothly, even though he is no longer on the committee. It has been a big job, but the committee has received a lot of support from Meeting. In the next quarter they anticipate some equipment maintenance expenses. They continue to search for and train new Zoom hosts, and they hope that the Zoom link can be posted safely on the website sometime in the future.  
    • Discussion: Praise was given for all the work the Tech committee has done addressing the challenges Meeting has faced since the pandemic and how far we have come. Linda C, a Trustee, affirmed that some Trustee funds are still available to help with maintenance expenses for the hybrid technology.
    • Friends accepted the report with much support and love.
  7. Library Report  – Dave B   Susan H, Mary L, and Dave are the librarians.  While they are not an actual committee, they provide regular updates to Meeting about library activities. They oversee the lending and acquisition of all materials in the library. There has been an increase in people using the library. They added 30 items recently, two-thirds of which were donated, the remaining materials were purchased from their $125 annual budget.
    • If you wish to donate an item to the library, please leave it in the library in the box with a donation form or a note stating why this should be added and whether you want it back should we decide not to add it.
    • There is a library catalogue on the library webpage at minneapolisfriends.org containing over two thousand items listed by title, author and category.
    • The library is challenged by limited shelf space and poor mobility access – due to the round display table; and the committee has to routinely cull the collection to make room for new materials.
    • Historically, many items remain checked out for a very long time. If that applies to you, please make every effort to locate and return items that have been checked out for an excessive period of time. If possible, return reading materials within a month of borrowing them so others can access them.
    • The library is a place new attenders often visit. We need to add more books that would appeal to people exploring Quakerism and to make all materials easy to find.
    • Friends accepted the report and expressed appreciation for all the effort and excellent work done by the librarians.
  8. Request to Host Northern Yearly Meeting (NYM) Interim Session—Stephen S  The clerk of NYM has asked MFM to host the Spring Interim Session on March 27-28, the last weekend in March. They especially like our hybrid capabilities and would like to broadcast the session on Zoom. They need an answer this month. Our expectations would be to provide hospitality for 5-8 people, to provide a simple lunch on Saturday, and to make sure we have a hybrid host available. Before approving the request, we want to identify individuals who would volunteer to help make this happen. Carolyn will coordinate the food. John K is willing to help with the hybrid setup. Lin volunteered to assist with the meal on Saturday, and Marilyn will work to identify hosts, although NYM has usually coordinated hospitality in the past. Stephen can provide some hospitality. Bill will open and close the meetinghouse and Roger and Kim will help wherever help is needed.
    • Friends APPROVED hosting the Interim Session of NYM at the meeting house on March 27-28, 2026.
  9. Formation and Charge of Ad Hoc Website Review Committee—Rae Beth   Liaison and Review Committee has requested we update the Meeting’s website. 90% of newcomers to Meeting check out the website before attending, so it is important to keep it current. Two volunteers have been identified – Bill H, who teaches web design, and Dave B, our current webmaster. We have the technical wherewithal to make the changes, but need input on changes to be made to the content. Ariel will assist as part of the design team and will be paid for extra time spent on the project. Bill wants us to understand that this is not a complete tear down and rebuild of the website, but an expansion of what is in place, already. It is proposed that Bill would be clerk of the committee, and both he and Dave will find people to be on the committee. The ad hoc committee will report regularly to Meeting. Beau D volunteered to help since he has experience in copy-writing ideas on websites.  Carolyn and Lolly expressed interest in being involved.
    • Friends APPROVED establishing an Ad Hoc Website Review Committee with Bill H as clerk.
  10. Winter Envelope Gift Update—Nettie    At last month’s business meeting Peace and Social Concerns Committee (P&SCC) recommended we split the Winter Envelope Gift between Immigrant Defense Network and Quaker Direct Action. Some confusion has been expressed regarding the gift to Quaker Direct Action. The proposal is to make a one-time donation to Quaker Direct Action, which is an off-shoot of Friends for a Non-Violent World (FNVW). Friends from our meeting and from Twin Cities Meeting developed Quaker Direct Action following People Camp this past summer, as an umbrella group for Quakers to come together and be supported when addressing issues in the community and country. One group has already formed within Quaker Direct Action to pursue activities in the community, so P&SCC is making the same recommendation as last month.
    • Discussion: Friends spoke in favor of supporting Quaker Direct Action, but a concern was raised about Meeting’s legal status when contributing to a group that is not a non-profit. Allen G clarified that as long as the activities of Quaker Direct Action are within the realm and spirit of what we do and reflect the Meeting’s values, their tax-exempt status is not an issue.  Meeting is tax exempt and that status is not affected if we make a donation to a non-tax-exempt group. This is an expression of our religious beliefs. Quaker Direct Action does not need to be tax-exempt to receive money from us. Some question still remains as to whom to send the checks. The Immigrant Defense Network does not have a contact listed, although they are under COPAL (Comunidades Organizando el Poder Y la Accion Latina). P&SCC needs to identify to whom we are to send the checks.
    • For a second time, Friends APPROVED the Winter Gift recipients – Quaker Direct Action and the Immigrant Defense Network.
  11. Holiday Fair Report-Rae Beth   This is a preliminary report showing that FNVW made about $8K from the Holiday Fair, which is similar to last year but less than in previous years. Next month, a more complete report will be given. The lower amount may be due to all the recent changes impacting FNVW. Food receipts from downstairs were good.
  12. Memorial minute for Sydney Campbell—Lolly L  We want to write a Memorial Minute for Sydney C, who died recently. Judith J and John D volunteered to do the writing.
  13. Correspondence and Announcements—Lolly  There is no correspondence to report.
    • December 21st is the Sunday before Christmas and there will be a program of carol singing during Mid-Morning Program. Bring your voices and instruments.  Light refreshments will be shared.
    • Also, a clerks meeting will take place at the rise of semi-programmed worship on January 11th.
  14. Closing Silence