Friends Bulletin-Pacific, North Pacific, and Intermountain Yearly Meetings of the Religious Society of Friends-September 1993

24 Pages·1993·3.2 MB·English

Friends
Bulletin
PACIFIC, NORTH PACIFIC, AND INTERMOUNTAIN YEARLY MEETINGS
OF THE RELIGIOUS SOCIETY OF FRIENDS
Volume 62, Number 1 September 1993
Yearly
Meeting
7
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PAGE 2 SEPTEMBER 1993 FRIENDS BULLETIN
Editorial Calendar
September 1993
Randy Herrick-Stare, Louis Webster, Sheila Smith, and
4-6 Gathering of Wyoming Friends, Pendle Hill on
EclolvieerHoufffthmiasnm,aFgraizeinndes,wrheoprseesepnitcttuhreesmaapnpyeaFrrioenndtshewhfroosnet 1177--19 CthoeloRroaaddo, CRaesgpieorn,aWlY.Meeting, Snow Mountain
hard work brought about the annual sessions of Intermoun- 18-
Ranch, WinterPark, CO.
tain, North Pacific, and Pacific Yearly Meetings. 19 New Mexico Regional Meeting, Ghost Ranch,
Ispendmysummergoingtotheseyearlymeetings. Ihave Abiquiu, NM.
found that each yearly me—eting is unique and s—pecial, yet I 19 Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting, Lazy F
noticecommonelements joysand difficulties thatmake Ranch, Ellensburg, WA.
them seem alike. 26 FCLHarvestFestival, HiddenValleyRanch, Los
Intermountainfeelsveryindividualistic,almostlikeacon- Altos Hills, CA.
federationratherthanaunion. ButFriendsdoworktogether. October 1993
Pacific seems settled with a sense of knowing what they're
2-3 WillametteQuarterlyMeeting, SkyCamp atFall
doing even while they're questioning it. There's a great con- Creek, EastofEugene, OR.
cern about doing business. North Pacific's schedule is very 8-10 Arizona Half-Yearly Meeting, Emmanuel Pines,
organized; it's arace togeteverythingdone inlessthan three Prescott, AZ.
days; even free time is scheduled. 1195--17 College Park Quarterly Meeting, John Woolman
All threeyearlymeetings are a wonderfulmixture ofnew School, Nevada City, CA.
and old Friends coming together to do business and good 16 SteeringCommittee,NorthPacificYearlyMeeting.
works and to experience fellowship. All three groups are 22 Quaker Tapestry Exhibit, George Fox College,
burgeoning with children, have simply "awesome" youth Newberg, OR. Exhibitcontinues untilNov 6.
groups, finditdifficultto find enoughpeople to dothework, 29-31 Breadmaking, QuakerCenter, Ben Lomond, CA.
and are questioning the purpose of their existence. All are November 1993
strugglingwithhardquestionsinalovingandcaringmanner. 21 QuakerWomen's Weekend, Quaker Center, Ben
This issue of Friends Bulletin is an attempt to reflect the Lomond, CA.
experiences of those meetings. Through pictures, personal
YEARLYMEETING OFFICERS
accounts,andepistlesfromyoungandoldyouwillreadabout
what happened this summer among Friends of the non-pro- PACIFIC
grammedpersuasionintheAmericanWest.Iurgeyoutoread PresidingClerk: EllieHuffman [phone]
and reflect on the epistles. They show "thewaywe were." PRpOsnBiopxr1*3A6Q%7?
Marilyn Schiffman fromSeattlewrites "... (Iwish) thatall AssistantClerk: JaneMills (707)539-651
Epistles could be bundled together in a family round-robin 7899StHelenaRd
CA
letter for us to read in the Autumn crispness rather than SantaRosa, 95404
waiting for selected bits from some ofthe Epistles to be read Treasurer: PPhOylBliosxJ4o9n3e5s99 [phone]
the following summer. How has Truth prospered among Redding,CA96049-3599
FriendsintheUnitedStatesovertheyearofannualsessions?" NORTH PACIFIC
ThismagazinecontainsonlyasmallportionofTruthaswe PresidingClerk: MargeryAbbott [phone]
Western Friends see it, but it is genuine. 1830NEKOliRckitat
Portland, 97212
Nancy Yamall
SteeringCommitteeClerk:
Paula Butzi [phone]
14349 189thWayNE
WA
Cover Photos Woodinville, 98072
Top:RandyHerrickStare (Mountain ViewMeeting), Past Continuing Treasurer: C0h4a8r6l2iOecKeiamnbaalDlr [phone]
Committee Clerk, Intermountain YearlyMeeting. Staffphoto. Florence,OR97439
Center: Sheila Smith (CorvallisMeeting), Registrar, North Pacific INTERMOUNTAIN
YearlyMeeting,andLouis Webster (SpokaneMeeting), Assistant PresidingClerks: [phone]
Registrar, NPYM. PhotobyNorm Pasche,Marysville Worship Group. BillWandGenieDurland
Bottom: EllieHuffman (BerkeleyMeeting), PresidingClerk, Pacific 605 PineSt,Trinidad,CO81082
YearlyMeeting. Photo by Vanita Blum, BerkeleyMeeting. ContinuingCommitteeClerk:
VickieAldrich [phone]
NM
1517E BoutzRd, LasCruces, 88001
Correction:
Treasurer: JanMiller [phone]
Alicya Malik's name was misspelled in theJuly issue. 5672SParkPIE
Our apologies, Alicya. SaltLakeCity,UT84121
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FRIENDS BULLETIN SEPTEMBER PAGE
1993 3
Friends Bulletin Table Of Contents
Intermountain YearlyMeeting
TheofficialpublicationofPacific,NorthPacific,andIntermountain
YearlyMeetingsoftheReligiousSocietyofFriends Epistles, Selected Minutes, etc. 4-7
1620 NW Menlo Drive, Corvallis, OR EAxnpeIrMieYnMcesOvaetrIvMieYwM, GbaytAhleirceedSbtyokJeism Ray — 77
97330-2055
North Pacific Yearly Meeting
Editor, Nancy Yarnall
Epistles Selected Minutes, etc. 8-12
[phone] A Time o,f Change by De Kerr 9
Book Review Editor Dreams ofYearlyMeetingby Monette Thatcher— 10
—
Molly Bishop, PO Box 192, Duncans Mills, CA95430 NPYM A Kaleidoscope by Lois Barton 11
[phone] Pacific Yearly Meeting
IMYM Corresponding Editors Epistles, Excerpted Minutes, etc. 12-15
Mary Lou Coppock, 1127 E Belmont, Phoenix, AZ85020 The Core of OurFaith 14
Jim Ray, 2520 S Ivanhoe PI, Denver, CO80222 Excerpts from Registrars Report
Alice H. Stokes, 1722 Saddle Hill Dr, Logan, UT84321 by Betty Millerand—GaryWolff 15
Elizabeth BuckleyandDeborah Richards, 13418MountainViewNE, Friends Peace Teams A Proposal 16
Albuquerque, NM 87123-2052 Rich Richer, PoorPoorerby Dorothy Mack 16
NPYM Corresponding Editors
MadeleineCadburyBrown, 1412 Farrell Ln, Richland, WA99352 Hawaii Reportby Robert Stauffer 18
JimJohnson, 715 LexingtonAve, Butte, MT59701 College Park Quarterly Meetingby Patricia Silva— 18
SheilaSmith, 925 NW Merrie Dr, Corvallis, OR 97330 Mary Penington, Reviewby Lois Barton 19
PYM Corresponding Editors Memorial Minutes 20, 21
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Southern California position open. COs in the "Good" War...* by Dorothy Nichols— 21
Patricia Silva, 16557 S HighlandAve, Selma, CA93662 Announcements— — 22
Advertisements — 23
Friends Bulletin Committee
Clerk: Rob RoyWoodman,2532Westemessee Rd, Davis,CA95616 Vital Statistics 23
Old Man Stood on the Mountain by Holly Giffin - 24
[phone]
MollyBishop, PO Box 192, Duncans Mills, CA 95430 Memories of Kenneth byJim Best 24
Langdon Elsbree, 400 UniversityCir, Claremont, CA91711
Charlie Kimball, 04862 Oceana Dr, Florence, OR 97439
ThispoemwasprintedincorrectlyinourJuly1993issue.
Arden Pierce, 3498 South Ct, PaloAlto, CA94306 On The Unreality of Distance
Alan Strain, 260 High St, Apt 1, SantaCruz, CA95060
SendallcorrespondencetotheCorvallisaddress.Deadlineforcopyisthe Thisbench, your invitation, is welcome
firstofthemonthprecedingthemonthofissue.Wegladlyacceptcopyon a frame for reverie
31/2”PCorMACfloppydisksinanywell-knownword-processorformat. something tangible
arising from garden to garden.
Printed by Corvallis Web Press, Corvallis, OR What is itwe learned together?
Topographyofheart is nota wilderness.
Unbounded garden, all forms arise in it
require attention
• FRIENDSBULLETIN (USPS859-220)ispublished monthlyexcept claim shape
February and August by Pacific Yearly Meeting of the Religious
change shapes
Society of Friends at 1620 NW Menlo Drive, Corvallis, Oregon
perfect theirreadiness.
97330-2055. Telephone [phone]. Second-class postage
Surpass the touchable.
paidatCorvallis,Oregon.
Remain.
• SubscriptionRates: $20.00peryearforindividuals,$16.00peryear This map is real and timeless.
for group subscriptions through Meetings. $14.00 peryearfora A differentsightprevails.
student/low income subscription. First class postage $5.20 addi- Falling into Being, we discoverit.
tional. Foreignpostagevaries. Individualcopies$2.00each.
Shirley Ruth
• Postmaster: Send address changes to FRIENDS February 16, 1993
BULLETIN, 1620 NW Menlo Drive, Corvallis, OR
ForRickSaporitoontheDedicationofhisMemorialBenchatStow
97330-2055.
Lake,Golden GatePark, SanFrancisco,February20, 1993. a
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PAGE 4 SEPTEMBER 1993 FRIENDS BULLETIN
Intermountain Yearly Meeting
Epistle June 9-13, 1993
Greetings to Friends Everywhere:
The 19th annual gathering of Intermountain Yearly with the atmosphere ofrespect maintained in this session,
Meeting met at Fort Lewis College, Durango, Colorado, wefeltthepainofstrongbeliefsinconflictinacommunity.
fromJune9through13,1993.ThreehundredFriendsfrom Wehold eachotherinthe Lightaswe continue to struggle
Colorado,Utah,Arizona, NewMexico,andMexicoCity, organizationallyandspirituallywiththisissue.
with numerous visitors from around the country and We heard reports from wider Quaker organizations,
aroundtheworld,gatheredforfourdaysofbusinessand such as Friends Committee on National Legislation, the
fellowship. American Friends Service Committee, Friends World
Our first major effort to integrate the Senior Young Committee for Consultation and its Right Sharing of
Friends with the more senior parts of the meeting was a World Resources project. Our awareness of the interna-
very positive experience for all. This effort will be sea- tional fellowship among Friends has been strengthened
soned in preparation for next year to better balance the through this experience.
needforintergenerationalunderstandingandtheneedof We look forward to welcoming Friends from around
the Senior Young Friends to develop as a supportive theworld whenIntermountainYearlyMeetinghosts the
communitywithin the meeting. TheJuniorYearlyMeet- FWCC Triennial Conference in August of 1994 at Ghost
ing andJunior Young Friends are growingboth in num- Ranch in Abiquiu, New Mexico.
bers and in direction. Martin Cobin, Clerk.
Themeetingdealtwithissueswhicharebytheirnature
divisive. Yetwehaveaddressed theseissueswithloveand
with respect for the differences in opinion and practice Young Friends Epistle
amongus.Wefeelstrengthenedinoursenseofcommunity
evenwhilehonoringthediversityofourmembership. IMYM's Young Friends GreetFriends Everywhere:
As our keynote speaker, Eric Johnson, a Friend from Onthe9ththroughthe13thdaysofthesixthmonthof
Pennsylvania and a teacher, education consultant and 1993, Intermountain Yearly Meeting's Senior Young
author, set the tone for our meeting by exhorting us to FriendswalkedcheerfullythroughthehallsofBaderBat
walk cheerfully in the face of adversity. He gave us FortLewisCollege,creatingnewfriendshipsandrenew-
numerous examples of people who have brought their ing old ones.
capacityforjoyandhumorintodifficultsituations,often Wedeveloped a strongsense ofcommunity, incorpo-
bringinghealingintheprocess.Withhisencouragement, rating the new members. This sense of community was
manyFriendsaddedtheirownexamplesandexperiences strengthened by the intergenerational worship-sharing
to this testimony ofthe power ofgood humor. and other activities. We look forward to continuing to
We followed Friend Johnson's leading by gathering build our relationships with each other and the adults
forsongandskits,campfires andcamp-outs. Weplanted through more intergenerationalprograms nextyear.
more than 1,000 flowers as an intergenerational service Senior Young Friends discussed several controversial
project. Our sense of community is strengthened by this topics such as same sex marriage. Webegan to explore the
time spent together. topicandattemptedtounderstandourattitudesandprejudices.
Westruggledwiththeconflictbroughtbythepassage We grew closer as we shared such experiences as
of Amendment 2 to the Colorado constitution, an act sculpeysculptingandmattressmoving. Also,wediscov-
which prohibits the state and its political subdivisions ered closed cheeseballs, jello cubes, and the proper eti-
from passing any law or ordinance protecting gay, les- quetteinvolvedwitheach. Wegrewtoknoweachother's
bian, andbisexualpeople fromdiscrimination. Ourlarg- eccentricities in all oftheir diversity. Charlottehad sexy
estsingleblockofmembershipislocatedinColorado,and knees and of course Josh's hair always looked nice. To-
Colorado Friends have been engaged in opposing this getherweroastedmarshmallows,gummibearsandTivas.
amendment and its implementation. After considerable TheSeniorYoungFriendswouldliketothankConnie
soul searching, we have reached consensus that we will GouldandJessicaMillerforbeingouradultcoordinators.
continuetomeetatFortLewisCollegeforatleastanother WearealsoverygratefulforallthetimeSabrinaGodfrey
yearanduseourpresencetowitnessagainstthisdiscrimi- andMelanieBrookshavegivenusintheirtwoyearsasco-
natory constitutional provision. clerks. All thebestofluckto ournew clerks MattKowal
The issueofsame sexmarriagewasbroughtbeforeour and CaitlinTaylor. We loveyou, and we'll supportyou.
meetinginathreshingsession.Ourdiversityofopinionand Melanie Brooks and Sabrina Godfrey
belief was expressed honestly and compassionately. Even Co-Clerks, SeniorYoung Friends
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FRIENDS BULLETIN SEPTEMBER PAGE
1993 5
Selected Minutes carefulstewardshipofresourcesisrequired. We
acknowledgetheneedforeachofusindividually
Meetinggatheredinsilentworship intheballroomof and as a group to develop an awareness of the
the Union Building at Fort Lewis College in Durango, underlying assumptions and institutions of our
Colorado. economic system which foster injustice, and to
93-2. RegardingrepresentationtoFCNL,theMeet- movefromthatawareness. As Friends,weseek
ingagreedthathenceforwardColoradowillappointtwo the opportunity to share with others the gifts
delegates. New Mexico will appoint two, Arizona and God intended forallpeoples; toparticipate con-
Utah will each appoint one delegate and one alternate, structively and without greed in the economic
with the alternates to serve in the absence of any of life of the community; to make our lives a testi-
IMYM's delegates.... monyoffairdealingand thepromotionofsocial
93-8. Meetingagreedthatresponsibilityfororganiz- justice; to live simply that others may have the
ing the children's program will remain with Colorado for wherewithaltolive;and toconserve theworld's
1994and1995andhenceforwardrotatebyregionasdoesthe resourcesontheonehand and sharethemfairly
restoftheadministrationofyearlymeeting,butlaggingby among allpeoples on the other hand.
twoyears,sothatmanagementofyearlymeetingisalways 93-14. ToestablishaprocedurefordevelopingaFaith
sharedbytwoormoreregionalmeetings. andPracticeforIMYM, themeetingagreed asfollows:
93-9. Itwasagreedthatin1994IntermountainYearly Each monthly meeting of IMYM is encour-
MeetingwillmeetfromJune15toJune19,withJune14as atogeadc,taasswcaooyrodpienantso,rtoofsealelcotcaolnegroofuiptsomfemvobleurns-
anextraday,atFortLewisCollegeinDurango,Colorado, teers who are willing to work on such a docu-
and that during the intervening months Friends will ment;thecoordinatorwillrepresentthemeeting
explore ways in which we can help members of the on the Faithand Practice Committee ofIMYM.
meetingfamilywhofeeltheneed toboycott, tojoinusin 93-17. The meeting asked eachmonthlymeeting to
Colorado. consider the concern of Utah Friends Fellowship that
93-10. Following consideration of the report of the IMYM form a committee for ministry and counsel and
Finance Committee and the proposed budget for 1994, provide information to Continuing Committee for con-
Meeting agreed to increase membership assessments by sideration in February of 1994.
$5 permember, from $7 to $12 annually.
93-12. With appreciation for the efforts of a few
Friends to express our concern concisely, the meeting
approved the following declaration:
AsFriendswedeclarethatourfaithcallsusto
valuethatofGodineveryperson. Weencourage
a vision of wholeness that does not exclude
We Photo
people because of their culture or identity.
seek to foster love and understanding and to
lessenhatred, intolerance and fear. courtesy
We recognize the sufferings of lesbian, gay
andbisexualpeopleinColoraaoand elsewhere, of
and we honor theirwitness againstinjustice. the
Therefore, IntermountainYearly Meeting of
the Religious Society of Friends supports
monthly meetings in spirit-based, nonviolent Durango
witness against injustice in all its forms. This
includes oppositiontoAmendment2 (ArticleII,
Section 30B of the Constitution of the State of Herald,
We
Colorado). declare this in a spirit of love, MarshallMassey (Mountain View Meeting) felt led
which is the rootofour faith. toboycottIntermountainYearlyMeetingbecauseofits
93-13. ...Themeetingapprovedthefbllowingtext,brought locationinColorado,thestatewhichhadpassedAmend- Durango,
forwardtoyearlymeetingbyPimaFriendsMeeting: ment 2. He camped in New Mexico, and when IMYM
The Friends testimony on right (just/fair) was in session he sat in silent worship on the New
sharingofworldresourcesgrows fromourfun- MexicosideoftheNewMexico-Coloradoborder.Friends
Colorado.
damentalbeliefthatthereisthatofGodinevery fromUtahFriends Fellowship, feeling theneed tosup-
person. Becausewearepartofthevastweboflife portMarshallinsomeway,organizedcarpoolsofFriends
andmembersofthecommunityoftheEarth,our from IMYM to worship with Marshall.
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PAGE 6 SEPTEMBER 1993 FRIENDS BULLETIN
Junior Yearly Meeting Epistle
Herewe are together.
Thinking ofthe fun we had. 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Grades
WWeewtaolukceheddthneatruoraed'sofhlaonvdeandhappiness. WWeedsiaidlaedploauyr. bIolaitkse.dtMheyrobyoaaltiwdeionttsadnodwtnhethgeymrinvaesr.ts
Bywalking the road ofher freedom.
and the royaljumpers.
It was nice to swim in the pool provided WewenttoNewMexico. AndwesawancientAnasazi
by our friends. ruins. It's like a maze. You go through a low door. We
ONuorwgwreouhpagvoettaolpoanrgt.like no time before. pretendedspiritslockedusin. AndGrandmotherSpider
got us out.
WBuetwhoepweiltlhakteetphiosnelxipveirnig.ence will come houWseetwheanttDtaovMeadyisDcaovyecreadm.pgTrhouenndw.eWfeousnadwtthhee ffaaiirryy
to us next year.
king's chair and the fairies' hideouts.
Junior Young Friends Tom Carr told us good stories every day. And we
made friends. Itwas a lot offun.
Junior Young Friends Report
Our thanks to those who helped us make this yearly
meeting a good experience, especially Art Warner, Nina
McDonald, and Kate Glaberman.
AtFortLewiswehaddiscussiongroupsonviolencein
our culture and on nonviolence. We held Meeting for
Worship every day. We played soccer, basketball and a Schroeder.
detective game, "The Murderous Wink ofan Eye."
We
tooka trip toaconferencecentercalled Endaba;it Tom
wasagoodidea. EndabaisSpanishfor"gatheringplace," by
and there was a lodge with many bedrooms, six bath-
rooms and a large kitchen. We swam in the naturally Photo
heated pool, hiked, and played card games.
This year we all got along well; there was no teasing
and there were no cliques. Everyone was nice to each
other.
Next year our clerk willbe RosarubyGlaberman; the
assistantclerkwillbeEttaHilligoss. Regionalrepresenta-
4th, 5th, and 6th Grades
tives are Elias for Arizona, Etta Hilligoss and Hannah
Hilligoss for Colorado; Rosaruby Glaberman and Sierra Having learned that "epistle" is a word that comes
StockdaleforNewMexico;andNickSandersandRebecca from Latin, this group wrote and drew on a large scroll
Macloud for Utah. Our adult coordinator will be Nina about14feetlong,workinginbrightcolorswithpaintand
McDonald. markers. Theydressedinbed-linentogastopresenttheir
Peter Herrick-Stare, Co-Clerk work to the meeting.
The messages included paintings of flowers, trees,
hills, theswimmingpool,manyhands,rainbows,people
playing soccer, feet that walk cheerfully, IMYM in logo
style, and several messages:
Manypeoplehad a smile. Family is everything.
CreativityNight. Parentswanttogetridofyou.Baby-sitting.Butwegot
Photo byTom to do whatwe wanted to. So we won'tbebored.
Schroeder, EMYMfun;walkcheerfully. I'mherebychoice. Many
Logan Meeting. handsworking together! Whydo theywant to getrid of
us? We're the children. So they can have quiet time.
Kids make me feel really happy; they help me walk
lightly on the earth (an adultvolunteer).
Friends. Walk cheerfully.
'
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FRIENDS BULLETIN SEPTEMBER PAGE
1993 7
IMYM
Experiences at
by Alice Stokes, Logan Meeting
Firstofall this year's IMYMwas thebesteverforme.
One thing thatmade it so was that all Friends felt free to
come up to the microphone and express themselves on
bothwalking cheerfully upon theearth, oruncheerfully,
in response to Eric Johnson's keynote speech, and to
express themselves on Utah's Minute for Same Sex or An IMYM Overview
SameGendermarriage. Itmade for an open feelingwith
all Friends feeling they had a part in it. And there was Gathered byJim Ray, Mountain View Meeting
ample opportunity for us to talk with each other. ...WriterEricJohnson...tookasthebasisforhistalkthe
Pat Trostle and others wanted some positive action admonishmentofGeorgeFox's"walkcheerfullyoverthe
taken regarding Colorado's passing of Amendment 2. earth, answering that ofGod in every man."
Tom Schroeder read Logan Monthly Meeting's letter to He proceeded in warm humor such as an old story
the Editor regarding the removal ofpart ofa comic strip aboutaboywho told whyheliked his dog. Hesaid, "He
because it dealtwith a gay issue. doesn't say 'do' like my mother. He doesn't say 'don't
UtahFriends Fellowship feltthisisa timeforpositive likemydad.Hedoesn'tsay'stop'likemybrother.Hejust
action and educational outreach. Our call is to reach sits there quietly.... I like him and he likes me."
towardtheLightineveryindividualandtowitnesstothe Gail Hoffman, Mountain ViewFriends Newsletter.
equalityofpersons.Letusgenerateafaith-based,positive The rest of the IMYM program covered a range of
statement supporting gays and lesbians. topicsandreports.Themainthrustoftheworkseemedto
Under the guidance of clerks, Tom Moen and Linda make the business meeting(s) go more smoothly than a
Smoke, itwas recommended that the Committee on Ag- year ago, when some business seemed extraordinarily
ingbe laid down and so it was. We felt individual meet- contentious. This was so because issues had been dis-
ingswillbebetterabletodealwiththeirownsituations.* cussedinmonthlymeetingssothatmanyofthosewhofelt
theneedtospeakandbeheardalreadyhadhadopportu-
nity to do so.
... IMYM will meet at Fort Lewis College again. New
MexicoRegionalhadproposed thatIMYMmeetatGhost
Ranch in New Mexico in 1994 due to opposition among
Friends to the passage of Amendment 2 in Colorado...
FriendsseemedtogenerallyagreethatFortLewisCollege
should be the site because it could accommodate more
people. Ghost Ranch could only accept at the most 230
people inJune; this year's attendance was 298.
Recording Clerk, Carol Clark, Mountain ViewMeeting.
Jonathan and Suzanne Taylor(Fort CollinsMeeting)
plantflowers. Staffphoto.
Service Project
Friends brought gloves and small hand gardening
tools. The Fort Lewis Conference Center also provided
tools and many flats of bright colorful flowers. Small
children and old alike took turns planting flowers to
brighten the campus. The Conference Center used their
profit from IMYM to finance the planting; Friends used
theirlabor and love to make the flowers grow.
Carol Clark, Recording Clerk. Staffphoto.
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PAGE 8 SEPTEMBER 1993 FRIENDS BULLETIN
North Pacific Yearly Meeting
July 22-25, 1993
Epistle Selected Minutes
93-1-1. Presiding Clerk, Marge Abbott, welcomed
To Friends Everywhere: Greetings.
Friendstothe21stannualsessionofNorthPacificYearly
As we gather for the 21st annual session of North Meeting. She reported that 461 people had pre-regis-
PacificYearlyMeetingonacomerofthegreencampusof tered....
OregonState University inCorvallis,we seek toputinto
93-1-2. Junior Friends: De Kerr shared a concern
practicethethemeofourgathering.ExtendingtheBound-
aries of Our Community. We are 306 adults, 63 Junior from Junior Friends. Theirs is a special community in
which they canbe themselves. They wish to protect that
FrieAnd"sR,aainndbo70wcohfiDledcreandeasn"dgirnfeawntosn. one lobbywall. All fromadults,whooftendisregardthecentralprinciplethat
noonepersonisbetterthananother. Adultsarewelcome
Friendsattendingwereaskedtoattachacoloredsquareto
in the Junior Friends community only if they come as
the rainbow representing the decade of their birth. The
participantsratherthanauthorityfigures. Anyonewitha
rainbow remained up through the session, reminding us
concern aboutJunior Friends was asked to take it to the
ofthe age diversity ofour Yearly Meeting.
JuniorFriendswelfarecommitteewhichwasestablished
Gordon Browne of FWCC, Section of the Americas,
lastyeartoresolve disputesandto actas amediator. She
our Friend in Residence, inspired us with the query,
"How large are our hearts?" Joy causes us to open our notedthatsomeJuniorFriendsdonotfeelwelcomeinthe
wholeyearlymeeting. TheyarewillingtodoaUtheycan
boundaries; fear causes us to close them. He asked us to
approach our communityas wewould a meadow full of to change that, but on their terms, as equals, not as
children in an adultworld.
flowers and grasses, valuing each other for the range of
our differences as well as for the ways in which we are 93-4-3. VisionofNPYM: Theprocessofdiscovering
alike. ourvisionandgoalswasstartedwithqueriespresentedto
We are attempting to reduce the separation among Meetings through the Steering Committee representa-
generations. Junior Friends have challenged us to accept tivesandinFriendsBulletininMarch.Threespeakerswere
them as equal partners in our search for the Light. One asked to share the history of our yearly meeting and
response thissessionhasbeen theformationofcross-age possible visions. Harold Carson...reviewed our ownhis-
worship groups, co-led by adult and Junior Friends. tory. Jane Snyder spoke of the importance of annual
We continue to expand our boundaries. After a long sessiontoherasanisolatedFriend....PabloStanfieldnoted
and sometimes painful seasoning we welcome a new that what is important is who we are and what we are
editionofourbookofFaithandPracticewhichreflectsnew about...Ward Miles noted one more aspect ofvision was
Light and growth on the issue of marriage, including the sense of being caUed. The fundamental unit is the
same gender marriages. We continue to seek new Light worshippingcommunity.SometimesweneedtobepuUed
concerning different experiences of faith and search for togethertorespondtowhatGodcaUsustodoinourEves.
ways to express them in language that aE can hear. 93-5-4. Junior Friends: Kirin Robinson and Rachel
We
devoted one plenary session to renewing our vi- WBdflower-WBEamsclarifiedtheJuniorFriendsconcern
sion of the Yearly Meeting and re-examining its current presentedinPlenarySession I(93-1-2). Theyunderstood
structure.WedividedintosmallgroupstogatherFriends' thattherehadbeensomestrongemotionalresponsesand
input on this subject. We now pass on to the Yearly apologized ifthe statementfeltintimidatingorhostile. It
Meeting Mulling-Over Committee the reams of paper wasmeanttoclarifyhowJuniorFriendswishedadultsto
generated by this process. participate with them on the basis of equaHty. They de-
Asweleaveourannualsessionwehopetorealizethe sired opencommunicationandinvited concerned adults
prediction of Gordon Browne's visiting committee for tomeetatasecondinterestgroupintheafternoonand/or
membership, who told him, "As a Friend, you willbe at to talk to any Junior Friend. Strong appreciation was
home in any devout community." expressedtotheJuniorFriendsfortheon-goingdialogue.
Signed onbehalfofNorth Pacific YearlyMeeting, 93-6-3. On-going Concern for Gay and Lesbian
Marge Abbott, Clerk Rights: Marge Abbott ... noted that at last year's annual
session a minutehad been approved which continues to
be relevant in relation to the anti-gay, lesbian, and bi-
sexual rights initiatives inWashington and Idaho and to
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FRIENDS BULLETIN SEPTEMBER PAGE
1993 9
A
Time of Change
by De Kerr, Moscow-Pullman Meeting
theon-goingworkagainsttheOregonCitizen'sAlliance. MuchhaschangedsinceIfirstdroveintoCorvallisfor
Meeting asked that the 1992 minute be reapproved for Yearly Meeting this July. I was looking forward to an
1993. incredibleweekend. IexpectedtofindwhatIhadalways
The minute follows: found before, a warm welcoming community where
For over 300 years the Religious Society of peoplecouldbethemselveswithoutretaliation.Thiswas
Friends has struggled to understand and testify expected because Quakers were different than anyone
to our belief in basic human rights. We affirm else.Theylookedfor"thatoftheLight"withineveryone.
again that there is that of God in every person. This madeQuakers something to respect. Quakers were
We are reminded that "God is love and those myheroes. I saw in them what I wanted tobe.
who abide in love abide in God and God abides Itishardtobehurtbyone'shero.Thus,whenmetwith
in them (1 John4:16)." We find that the Spiritof anger and misunderstanding after bringing a valid con-
Godispresentinalllovingrelationships,regard- cern before the Meeting, I felt betrayed. The strength to
less ofthe genders of those involved. We abhor read thespeechhadbeen taken froma quoteinFaithand
all forms ofsexual violence or coercion and rec- Practice. "Whenanotherspeaks,weshouldlistenwithan
ognizethattheseformsofabusehavenothingto open spirit, seeking the thought behind the words and
do with sexual orientation. holding the speaker in love."
Therefore, North Pacific Yearly Meeting of WhatIwassayingwashardtohear,butIhadexpected
theReligiousSocietyofFriendsendorsesefforts people to listenwith an open spirit. Instead it was taken
toprotectthecivilrightsofallpersonsregardless as a personal insult. It was considered by many to be
oftheirsexualorientation. Ourloveandsupport merely a vicious attack and not a statement of concern.
isforallpersonsandisnotbaseduponthegender Because of this, rather than being held in love, I was
ofthe person they love. personally attacked. The entire Meeting did not rally
We oppose all legislation or policy which againstmeandthereweremanysupporters,evenoutside
disparageslesbians,gaymen,bisexualsortrans- theJuniorFriends. Nevertheless, Ihavelearned a lesson.
sexuals or abridges their constitutional or civil Never again will I expect people in opposition to offer
rights. respect. IfQuakers can't manage it, who can?
Yes,Ihavechangeda lotsinceYearlyMeetingbegan.
I'm a little more cynical, a little less trusting. I no longer
lion Room expectto find a community, outside theJuniororYoung
Friends,whichiscompletelywelcoming.Ihavebeenhurt
andthoughIwillhealIwillneverbethesame.Asalways,
experiences at Yearly Meeting have changed my life
forever.Theonlydifferencebeingthistimetheywerenot
good experiences.
A
"Rainbow ofDecades" grew onone lobbywall. All
Friendsattendingwereaskedtoattachacoloredsquareto
the rainbow representing the decade of their birth. The
rainbowremained up through the session, remindingus
ofthe age diversity ofourYearly Meeting.
NPYM Epistle. Photo byNorm Pasche, David Walker, Marysville Worship Group, andMaryLou Kenny,
Marysville Worship Group. TacomaMeeting. PhotobyNormPasche..
—
PAGE 10 SEPTEMBER 1993 FRIENDS BULLETIN
Junior Friends Epistle NPYMPlenary. Pablo Stanfieldspeaking. Photo byNorm Pasche.
Greetings to all.
This year North Pacific Yearly MeetingJunior retreat
dealtwiththeevolutionofgainingresponsibilitywithour
groupwhilecampingontheOregoncoast.Thoughwehad
difficultissuestodealwith,wealsohadrelaxingmoments
during our camp on the coast. The beachwas a beautiful
setting for late night campfires, swimming, and sand
castle building. We continued our tradition of getting
caught in natural disasters. Okay, maybe we exaggerate,
butitdidrainanawfullotthelastdayandnightofcamp. Dreams of Yearly Meeting
North Pacific Yearly Meeting's focus this yearwas on
by Monette Thatcher, Eugene Meeting
community. Thiswas especially appropriatebecause our
Junior Friends group was dealing with the process of AsIlistenedtoNorthPacificYearlyMeeting'splenary
gainingmoreresponsibilityforourselves.Thisdesireand session about our vision of Yearly Meeting, I was re-
needforanincreaseinresponsibilityhasbeenevolvingfor minded of my own experience in our Yearly Meeting's
manyyears.Currentlywestrugglewiththeconceptofthe infancywhenIhadbeenselectedtosucceedHaroldCarson
adults in our community. asClerk.Asheoftendoesforpeoplewhoaredoingadifficult
job,Haroldhadwrittenmeanencouragingpostcard,saying,
"Clerkingtheannualsessionislikedrivingabus."
A few days after the postcard arrived we had visitors
who had been to the annual session of Pacific Yearly
Meeting. According to their report, PYM that year had
been so caught up in controversy over the question of
whetherornottobannudeswimmingthattherehadbeen
little time forother considerations.
ThatnightI dreamt that Iwas driving abus. As Iwas
pulling outofaparking lot, preparingto make a leftturn
ontoabusystreet,Isawanapproachingmotorcycledriven
byamanwhowascompletelynude.IrealizedthatIwould
need tolookout,notonlyforthemotorcycle,butforother
vehicleswhose driversmightbe distractedbythebizarre
sight presented by the lack of attire on the driver of the
JuniorFriendspresent BetseyKenworthywithaplaque
motorcycle.
ofappreciation. PhotobyNorm Pasche. For me that dream suggests an apt warning for us at
A statement was read requesting adults to be partici- this time of re-examining the purpose and structure of
pants in our camp and yearly meeting activities rather North Pacific Yearly Meeting. Our Yearly Meeting may
than authority figures, with the exception of our two chooseadifferentdirectionfromthatchoseninitsbeginning,
advisors.Awelfarecommittee,appointedlastyear,helped buthoweverwechoosetogo,weneedtobecarefultoavoid
to mediate along with the advisors. The response to the wreckingourvehiclebecauseofirrelevantdistractions.
statementwas mixed. Some adults felthurtbywhat they
interpreted tobe a negative tone in the statement.
Inaninterestgroupformedtotalkaboutthestatement,
many Junior Friends and adults recognized the lack of
communicationbetweenourgroups.Althoughtherehave
beenfeelingshurtonboth sides,wewould hope that this
isthebeginningofagreateramountofinteractionbetween
the different generations ofYearly Meeting.
NPYM
In keeping with the idea of community, tried
intergenerational worship-sharing groups. For many, it
seemed a goodwayto get to knowpeoplefromotherage
groupsthatwemightnothaveotherwisemet.MostJunior
Friendswouldliketoseethistypeofactivityhappenagain The Corvallis Cheerleaders, ledbyConnie Battaile,performfor
in the future. FamilyNight. "Give usa 'Q.'"Photo byNorm Pasche.