Peace and Social Concerns Committee, 9/19/18

Present: Ka R, Beth A, Frank G, George M, Dan G, Jane J, Roger C

1. We opened with a time of silence.

2. We thanked Dan for his two years of faithful service as our clerk.

3. We read the committee’s Handbook description. Perhaps the concert series should be added. Beth noted that the description seems lacking in a description of the spiritual grounding for the committee. Roger will contact Ken to see if a modification is still possible for the coming Handbook. The 2016 description is on page 21 of the Handbook: https://www.mounttobyfriends.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/2016-Handbook.pdf

4. We approved Beth as our new Clerk, promising to support her as needed and understanding that she may have issues that will make it hard for her to continue.

5. We decided to meet on the last Thursdays of the month, again at 7pm. Our next meeting will be on October 25.

6. Letter writing: we talked over the difficulties and advantages of the current system, but without resolution since all options have both advantages and disadvantages. For October 21, Ka and George agreed to share the responsibility, probably making use of FCNL’s suggestions for letters. Jane suggested, and we agreed, that other groups (the Immigrant Solidarity Group, Climate Witness Committee, Race and Class group) could be invited to take letter writing occasionally. Clerk Beth will contact these groups to offer them the possibility. Roger will update the document specifying how to manage letter writing, which Beth can use when contacting these groups.

7. Ka is willing to continue as our FCNL representative. She has been putting regular entries into the Newsletter. However she would like to be replaced as the representative to the Refugee group. She will announce this opening to the Meeting.

8. Roger will contact the Finance Committee about establishing a fund to pay, at least in part, for a person from Mt Toby to go to the annual FCNL meeting.

9. We are interested in supporting the Truth School, though our committee cannot afford to be an official sponsor, requiring a contribution of $300 or more. We expect to have two 11:40 hours per year and our first could be used to publicize the Truth School.. Dan will get an 1:40 hour date, and we will see if Andrea Ayvazian, the Truth School founder, could come to present then. Sojourner Truth School for Social Change Leadership, https://truthschool.org/

10. The Resistance Center for Peace and Justice: Adele is now clear that the Meeting should be supporting the Center. We agreed to present to the Meeting our suggestion to support the Center in principle and if appropriate to donate $300 to it. Beth will see if Adele could make the presentation to the meeting for business. http://www.theresistancecenter.org/

11. Concert series: George mentioned that one individual found that the suggested donations inhibit her attendance, and he will have a talk with her indicating that volunteering to help can be a form of donation to the series, and to see with her if there may be other possibilities. Roger noted that there are other issues for our committee to take up about the series.

12. Campaign Nonviolence: Beth spoke of this organization which this week is involving many groups across the nation, mainly faith groups, in activities for nonviolence. Campaign Nonviolence is a long-term grassroots movement for a culture of peace and nonviolence free from war, poverty, racism, environmental destruction and the epidemic of violence. http://www.paceebene.org/programs/campaign-nonviolence/

13. George suggested that if people from the Peace Pagoda come again as they did recently, they should be told how Quaker meetings operate. Apparently some who came through on the peace walk, when they were invited here, did not understand the process of our meetings for worship.

14. Beth announced several events: a hike in the Mohawk Trail State Forest, 9/23 10am; film “The Lost Forests of New England” 9/24 4:30 at Garden Cinema in Greenfield; film “Are Trees the New Coal?” 9/24 7:00, same location. Contact Beth for more information.

15. We closed with a time of silence.