NEYM young friends NEYm
2003 Fall
Calendar 2003
*******************************************************************
Sept
6-7............... ............... Northwest
Quarterly Mtg Retreat at Farm & Wilderness, Plymouth VT*
Sept.
5-7............... ............... Vassalboro
Quarterly Meeting Retreat at Friends Camp, China ME*
Sept.
20............... ............... Yearly
Meeting Sessions Committee (for YF Clerk only)
Sept
26-28............... ............... YF
Officers and Ministry and Counsel Retreat at Allen’s Neck MA
Oct
4............... ............... ............... Committee Day (for YouthQuakers and perhaps for
YF reps to Youth Prog Comm)
............... ............... ............... at Cambridge Friends School
Oct. 10-13........... Young Quakes Conference (FGC) – Kingston Springs near Nashville TN
Theme:
“Strength in Vulnerability” Info
below
Oct
17-19........... Young Friend
Retreat at Portland Meeting, ME
Theme: “Creative Splurge!” flyer enclosed
Nov.
21-23........... Young Friend
Retreat at Hartford Meeting, CT
...........
........... Theme:
“Quakerism and World/Politics” – flyer enclosed
Dec
27-Jan1........... YouthQuake 2003
– Estes Park, CO – info
below
Jan
16-19........... Young Friends
Midwinter – Friendly Crossways, Littleton MA...........
........... ........... Theme:
“Mind, Body, and Soul” – flyer enclosed
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some
2004 dates, GET A CALENDAR AND PUT THEM ON!:
Jan 3 - Sessions Committee for YF clerk; January 31 – Committee Day
for YF reps to Youth Programs Comm.; February
20-22 - Young Friend retreat, Relationships and Sexuality, at Wellesley
Meeting; March 12-14 – Gender
Retreats; March 27 – Sessions
Committee for YF Clerk; April 3 – Committee Day for YF reps to Youth
Programs Comm; April 16-18 - Young Friends
retreat at Mt. Toby, Simplicity and Silence;
May 7-9 – Young Friend Seniors retreat
Questions? call Chris
Jorgenson, NEYM Youth and Education Secretary, 617-625-4494 or cmjorgens@aol.com
About
Young Quakes:
It is “a YouthQuake-like
experience in the unprogrammed Friends tradition to explore our Quaker
Biblical roots and the Christian and universalist expressions of our faith” sponsored
by Friends General Conference.
It could be great prep YouthQuake;
there will be presentations, workshops, small groups, games, music, and
getting to know Young Friends from many different places.
It may give you insight about how the “Christian and universalist
expressions of our faith” relate to you and how you live your life.
You can find registration forms on the FGC website:
www.fgcquaker.org or get one by
calling me (see Chris info above)
About
YouthQuake, Estes Park CO:
The brochure
came in a July mailing – and now is the time!!
“YouthQuake
is a conference for Young Friends ages 14-20 from all Quaker traditions.
You are invited to build a spiritual community based on love, respect,
truth, and understanding across the breadth of Friends investigating these
queries: What
does it mean to be a Quaker follower of Jesus Christ?
What is your response to the biblical witness and message?
How did early Friends live the message of Jesus Christ?
How do we practice the presence of the Living Spirit of Christ in our
midst?
The
cost of YouthQuake itself is $425 (signup deadline October 15).
The plane flight to Denver looks to be about $500.
By the time you get this flyer, I expect to have confirmed the number
of seats (which are scarce) and price. That
means if you are interested in going and haven’t contacted me, you should
do so right away! We can also
talk about whether it’s the right conference for you.
Estes Park is a great place with lots of fun things to do, ringed by
mountains. Meeting other Quaker
youth from around the country is really cool.
The speakers and workshops and worship will be engaging.
We hope all participants will come ready to speak about their own life
and faith, to listen well to others, and be open to the spirit of love, to
experiment with ‘practicing the presence of the Living Spirit of Christ in
our midst’. It could be an
exciting experience.
Let me
know if you want to go and what your financial needs are.
Let’s meet at Committee Day on October 4 and talk together about
it. We have always been able
to send all Young Friends who wanted to go.
Ask your family, your meeting, maybe your quarter for help.
Raise money together. Then
come back and report.
Young Friend
retreats
are usually held at Quaker
Meetinghouses around New England, are open to high school students (or older)
who are Friends or friends of Friends or otherwise interested teens.
THEMES are chosen at Young
Friend business meetings that are held at Yearly Meeting sessions in August
(with occasional interjections by the coordinator).
RESOURCE PEOPLE are
usually recruited by the coordinator (Chris Jorgenson, the NEYM Youth and
Education Secretary), at a ratio of at least one adult to eight teens.
These adults are present for the whole weekend, guiding the program and
being a Friendly presence. We
also have adults who come to make program presentations.
We are always looking for
both program and “general purpose” resource people. PLEASE RECRUIT FOR US!
SCHEDULE of the weekend
varies, but here’s a sample:
Friday:
6:00
Resource people meet at meetinghouse
7:00
Registration, greeting, making nametags
7:30 Program session I:
get acquainted, theme intro
9:30 Snack and free time
10:30 Quiet hours
11:30 Lights out
Saturday:
6:30
Breakfast preppers up
7:00
Everyone up
7:30
Breakfast
8:00
Breakfast cleanup
8:45 Morning Meeting
9:45 Program session II
11:45 Lunch prep
12:15 Lunch
12:45 Lunch cleanup/ free time
3:30
snack/group picture
4:00 Program session III
5:30 Dinner prep
6:15 Dinner
6:45 Dinner cleanup
7:30 Program session IV
9:30 Snack and free time
10:30 Quiet hours
11:30 Lights out
Sunday:
6:30
Breakfast preppers up
6:45
Everyone up and pack up
7:15
Breakfast
7:45
Breakfast cleanup and facility cleanup
8:45
Evaluation process
10:00 Meeting with host Meeting (time
varies)
11:15 Lunch prep
11:30 Lunch
12:15 Lunch cleanup
1:00
Goodbyes
FOOD is simple, mostly
vegetarian, with some meat options available.
Snacks and drinks are always available.
Young Friends assist in food prep and cleanup, with guidance from a
Culinary Resource Person, a stipended position. Being the “cook” and doing food shopping are valuable ways
Meeting members and parents can contribute to the Y.F. program.
THE PROGRAM includes
games, singing, name games, discussion, exercises to help Y.F.’s learn about
the topic, and meeting with a small group we call an “affinity group”.
We aim for a variety of group size, activity level, and
physical/intellectual/emotional intensity so individual needs can be met.
There are also business meetings at some retreats for Young Friend
decision-making, led by the Y.F. clerk and recording clerk.
FREE TIME is tucked in
around meal times, as the prep and cleanup crews are working, and a chunk on
Saturday afternoon. Outside
activity, playing musical instruments, talking, browsing books in the YF book
collection, taking a nap, inventing games . . . there’s always lots to do.
SLEEPING is on the floor
in sleeping bags. There is always
a quiet room for early sleepers. At
lights out everyone is expected to have found their spot for the night and
quiet. Adults take on a certain
amount of shushing duty, but are not expected to be “sleep cops”.
We must rely on Young Friends to respect their program enough to get
some sleep in order to function.
COMMITMENTS to abstain
from alcohol, drugs, and sexual intimacy at retreats are taken seriously.
Smokers are asked to limit their smoking as much as possible and there
is no sharing of tobacco or group smoking.
We also uphold positive commitments to contribute to the group process,
be cooperative and helpful, be open to friendship, inclusive of others, and
generally respectful and nurturing of the
Light within oneself and others. Young
Friends has a committee, which they choose at Yearly Meeting sessions, called
Ministry and Counsel, pledged to
respond to individuals’ needs and help the community live up to its
commitments.
QUAKERISM is the basis for
our program, striving to understand and live out the testimonies of Equality,
Peace, Simplicity, and Community as it relates to high school age Friends.
Each weekend has a meeting for worship on Saturday morning, and we join
our host meeting for Sunday morning worship.
We hope to create a safe, welcoming environment where Young Friends can
take time out from the pressures of school and society with people they can
trust. It’s a time to
experience God’s presence, learning about love and becoming one’s best
self.
FOR
MORE INFORMATION, you can call Chris Jorgenson, Young Friends Coordinator, at
617-625-4494
