January 2024 – Meeting for Worship on the Occasion of Business
GRASS VALLEY FRIENDS MEETING
Of the Religious Society of Friends of the Truth
College Park Quarterly Meeting, Pacific Yearly Meeting
MINUTES & RECORD
Meeting for Worship on the Occasion of Business
January 14, 2024
We met in a hybrid meeting in person at the meetinghouse and on Zoom.
Present: Dorothy Henderson (clerk), Amy Cooke (co-recording clerk), Jennifer Smith (co-recording clerk), Marilyn Guida, Sharon Davisson, Chamba Cooke, Doug Hamm, Reed Hamilton, Judy Hamilton, Gordon Starr (elder to the clerk), Mary Starr, Dianne Marshall, fosten wilson, Kathy McCreery, Stuart Smith.
The Meeting opened with silent worship.
Clerks’ Remarks and Query:
● The clerk shared from the recent year end retreat at Ben Lomond Quaker Center, where a participant spoke of our Meeting as having a transformative effect on its members.
● Dorothy shared from Romans 12:2. “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may discern what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
● We come to Meeting expecting to be transformed. What might you expect, or have experienced, as transformation when you come to Meeting for Worship for Business?
● Friends spoke out of silence:
○ One Friend spoke of how the structure and committees in our Meeting, and in Quaker process, help deal with difficult issues. Several other Friends echoed this sentiment.
○ Another Friend spoke of how Meeting for Worship for Business can be frustrating, until a weighty issue arises. It is the practice on the simple issues that prepare us for the difficult issues.
○ One Friend recalled, when she was a new Quaker, how surprised she was at her first Meeting for Worship for Business. The wholeness of being in unity, rather than taking a vote, was something she had been searching for her whole life.
○ When faced with issues that aren’t simple or easy, transformation, both individual and for the greater group, can come through Quaker process over time.
○ Sometimes an agenda item can seem trivial. However, through the process of Meeting for Worship for Business, the importance of the issue can be revealed for the greater good of the Meeting.
ITEMS SEASONING or CARRIED OVER (see Committee sections below)
● The Meeting approves delegating the issue of how to manage the paper and digital archives to the Stewardship Committee, with the recommendation that a task force be formed to work on best practices.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
(see reports appended, committee clerk is noted in bold)
Spirit and Witness: Amy Cooke, Stuart Smith, Reed Hamilton, Sharon Davisson, Dean Olson, Dorothy Henderson (ex-officio, GVFM Clerk).
Amy Cooke gave the report, appended. Reed Hamilton read the report on the newly formed Witness Committee, Toward a Right Relationship, followed by the organization report on Interfaith Nevada County given by Dianne Marshall.
Stewardship: Mary Starr, Pat Phillips, Reed Hamilton, Gordon Starr, Doug Hamm, David Bowman. Dianne Marshall (ex-officio, Newsletter editor), Fosten Wilson (ex-officio, Treasurer), Don McCormick (ex-officio, Librarian).
Mary Starr, clerk, gave the report, appended.
Welcome Committee: Peter O’Rourke, clerk (ex-officio, Website and Facebook coordinator), Kathy McCreery, Don McCormick, Pat Phillips, Cheryl Hendrickson, Cindy Bliss, Lo Hamm, CJ Patterson, Hailey Wilson (ex-officio, tech support), Judy Hamilton (ex-officio, email coordinator).
Judy Hamilton gave the report, appended.
● A concern was raised about what information is going out to the community about our events and who is invited to attend.
● Discussion was held about what information should go out to the email tree, the newsletter, and the newspaper.
● For now, if a presentation takes place in the meeting, it will be publicly noted in the newsletter and could go to the Newspaper. If the presenter wants this to be just for GVFM members and attenders, it will be listed that way. Otherwise, it will be open. We acknowledge that we have multiple layers of public interfacing, and we ask Welcome to take this matter up and return to Meeting with additional recommendations if needed.
Children’s Program: Keely McDonald and Doug Hamm, co-clerks, Dorothy Henderson, Gordon Bishop, Judy Hamilton, Dean Olson, Reed Hamilton, Don McCormick, David Cowan, Lo Hamm.
No report.
Nominating Committee: (terms as noted) Judy Hamilton: 2022-2024, Gordon Starr: 2022-2024, Dean Olson 2023-2025, Sharon Davisson 2023-2025.
There was no report.
OFFICER REPORTS and REPRESENTATIVE REPORTS
● Pacific Yearly Meeting: Doug Hamm gave the report, appended.
● College Park Quarterly Meeting: Doug Hamm gave the report, appended.
● Treasurer: fosten wilson. See report, appended.
○ There were questions raised about the various funds the meeting holds.
● Interfaith Nevada County: see Spirit and Witness report.
CLERK’S REMARKS
● The clerk did not offer remarks in closing.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
● Facebook: please follow the Grass Valley Friends Meeting page, or join the Facebook Grass Valley Friends Meeting group. If you share a post from the page, your friends will see it, and it helps our visibility. Follow this link.
● The 2023-2024 PacYM General Directory is available. It can be found on the Yearly Meeting Website at: pacificyearlymeeting.org > Resources > PacYM General Directory and Database > Obtaining the Directory
The Directory is available for use by members and attenders of monthly meetings and worship groups within Pacific Yearly Meeting and by Friends serving on Pacific Yearly Meeting committees. It is not to be shared beyond this community. Dorothy, Doug, and Don have the new password for the PacYM Directory.
● Carl Magruder: You can follow Carl’s healing journey on the CaringBridge.org website HERE. Friends have also set up a daily Meeting for Healing from 7:30 to 8 am (Pacific) on Zoom here or contact Amy Cooke at amylisette@gmail.com for the link.
● Please remember Grass Valley Friends Meeting in your annual giving. You can give by mailing a check to fosten wilson or through Tithely on the website.
● January 28-June 23 (4th Sundays): Quaker Seminary: Amy Cooke
Quaker Seminary (this program is open to all) via Zoom and in person at Grass Valley Friends Meeting.
In this series of six sessions we will explore Quakerism and our faith and practice through sharing our living experiences of the Inward Light/God/Spirit.
This series is called a “seminary” in the spirit of the origins of this word ~ literally, a “seed plot!” In other words, we are forming a garden for growing the seeds of our spiritual lives. Along the way, we will explore Quaker writings from other fellow travelers on this path, Quaker terminology, and Quaker practices.
Session 1: January 28, 2024 11:30 – 1 pm
In this session we will explore what might be the most foundational piece of Quakerism – an unmediated relationship with God. We will explore how our Quaker practice supports this relationship, both individually and in community, and how these practices were formed historically and how they live among us today.
Recommended reading: What Can We Say? The Essentials of Quaker Faith by Steven Dale Davison. This will be sent via pdf to the GVFM email list. Please contact Amy Cooke for a copy if you did not receive it.
● Saturday, January 20: The next College Park Quarterly Meeting, online only. Register by clicking here. The theme is “Hard Truths; Great Hopes”.
○ Rather than travel to a host site, CPQM will hold the entire day’s program via Zoom. The clerk and organizers are encouraging us to invite our neighbors – up to 5 Friends – with whom we can share the experience, as well as lunch and worship-sharing. Advice on how to do this will be on the registration form.
● January 26-28, 2024. The Life Cycle of Quaker Meetings with Sandy Kewman and Anne Pomeroy at Ben Lomond Quaker Center.
Do Friends Meetings experience cycles of life? What are members of the Meeting community called to do in response? What opportunities do these cycles bring?
At this weekend retreat, we will look at the Life Cycles of Meetings through the lens of community care, which is based on listening for Spirit, and trusting in that.
Click here to register
● January 21, 2024: Spirit and Witness Program with Gordon Starr. Singing from the Center. As a “Universal Solvent”, music has, for ages, been used as a vehicle to move us past our minds and concepts, into our feelings of love, connection to each other and to the Divine. We Quakers do have some experience at how to find that center, how to access that place in us that is still, present and open. Singing from that place can enrich and expand the experience of wholeness. Come give it a try.
ITEMS SEASONING or CARRIED OVER
● The Welcome Committee will discern how we share information with the public, including the newsletter, Facebook, the newspaper, and Interfaith Nevada County.
READING OF THE RECORD AND MINUTES
The record and the minutes were read, corrected and approved.
If you are giving a report to GVFM, please send the actual report to the recording clerk at grassvalleyfriends@gmail.com THE FRIDAY BEFORE MEETING FOR BUSINESS.
GVFM Newsletter Reminder: Please have items into Diane Marshall by Tuesday at 10 am.
The Meeting closed with silent worship.
Respectfully recorded by Amy Cooke, recording clerk (outgoing) and Jennifer Smith, recording clerk (incoming).
APPENDICES:
- Spirit and Witness Committee report
a. Witness Committee:
b. Interfaith Nevada County - Stewardship Committee report
- Welcome Committee report
- Children’s Committee
- Pacific Yearly Meeting Monthly Report
- College PArk Quarterly Meeting Report
7. Treasurer’s Report
Spirit and Witness Report
Our committee met on January 6 of this month.
We were inspired to hear that our meeting was recognized in the recent Year End Retreat at Ben Lomond Quaker Center as being a transformative meeting where “people know each other.” The committee members also held the level of clerking present in our meeting at the committee level. We have many talented clerks who bring worship, organization, and depth to the work done on our committees.
The news about the escrow with CHIRP and the Woolman board had not yet come when we met, and we spent time in dialogue and worship about this upcoming land sale. We hold the recent news that the lease with GVFM will be part of the sale conditions. We continue our commitment to practice deep listening as this sale progresses, and to moving slowly and with great care.
The “Toward Right Relationship Witness Committee” is ready to begin gathering members (see appended description). At this time we are limiting participation to Grass Valley Friends Meeting members and attenders, with an ongoing discernment about future membership. Reed Hamilton is the convenor. The committee will begin by drafting a job description and will report back to Spirit and Witness each month. If you are interested in taking part in this work, please contact Reed. We held how this committee is the fruit of combining the Peace and Social Justice Committee and Ministry and Oversight in our committee restructuring.
Our upcoming Spirit and Witness programs include:
i. January 21: Gordon Starr: Singing from the Center
ii. January 28-June 23 (4th Sundays)
- Quaker Seminary: Amy, Jan-June. The committee recommended that Amy seek an elder for this work.
Respectfully submitted,
Amy Cooke, clerk
APPENDED to the Spirit and Witness Report:
Witness Committee—Toward a Right Relationship
Over the past few years our Meeting has engaged in education regarding the history and current
situations of Native Americans, in particular the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan tribe. We are aware
that our meeting house and our homes are on Nisenan land that was never ceded. We have learned of
the genocide of the Nisenan people with the gold rush in our area , as well as the genocide of native
people throughout California and across the continent. We have become aware of Quaker
involvement in the Indian boarding schools that attempted to destroy Indian culture. Committed to
further learning and action, we began reading the Nevada City Ranchería Nisenan land
acknowledgement at the beginning of each Meeting for Worship. We began educating ourselves and the
children of our meeting about native peoples’ relation to the natural world. We understand that their
teachings can help us see, and perhaps repair, the damage we have done to the earth, the place where
we all live, changing how we live our lives. This understanding of indigenous relationship offers
pathways to reforming our food systems, land and species preservation, and our consumption of
resources . We are now ready to go beyond land acknowledgment and take steps toward a right
relationship with the Nisenan, other native peoples and our home, the earth. This Witness committee is
formed with that intent.
This is an invitation to anyone who would like to participate in this committee (limited to members and/or attenders of Grass Valley Friends Meeting).
Organization Report – InterFaith Nevada County
What is this organization’s mission statement? InterFaith Nevada County (INC) exists to provide
solace and support to Faith Community Leaders in a confidential, spiritual setting.
What are their current activities or plans? INC was impacted by the confines of the Covid-19
epidemic resulting in members having to have access to zoom technology and then having confidence to
return to face-to-face gatherings. Active INC members are reaching out to faith leaders we’ve not seen
in quite a while to encourage their return to our monthly meetings. INC members make an effort to
circulate information re: events faith communities are hosting so that interested congregants may attend.
What is exciting? Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital’s Director, Mission Integration & Community
Health, Brian Stoltey, is striving to address the absence of a chaplain on staff at the hospital. He is
reaching out to INC faith community leaders to explore an opportunity for spiritually trained
congregants to be available to provide spiritual care at the hospital. There are some congregations such
as the Unitarian Church and Twin Cities Church who have congregants they call “chaplain” or serve on
a spiritual leadership committee, to support the primary spiritual leaders. These are the congregants who
will be initially invited to participate in the new approach to using volunteers to provide spiritual care at
SNMH.
Brian will be exploring this approach with INC members able to participate in our January 18, 2024,
meeting. This opportunity will be shared with Grass Valley Friends Meeting in greater detail as it
develops.
Are there any concerns? INC continues to look at ways to work together with “mainline” church
leaders. To this end, Hospice Chaplain Gregory Ingram has offered to host an INC meeting to which all
the Faith Communities will be invited. INC is also gaining traction on the effort to share a public
gathering re: how faith communities are addressing climate challenges.
How can Friends get involved if they feel inspired? INC monthly meetings are for Faith Leaders
which makes Quaker participation interesting…given that Friends did not eliminate the clergy, they
eliminated the laity. That said, INC welcomes the GVFM representative, Dianne Marshall, and the
current Clerks of the Meeting to the monthly meetings. How the new spiritual care volunteer
opportunities unfold at the hospital will be shared with GVFM.
Is anyone in our meeting particularly involved? How? Dianne Marshall is GVFM representative to
InterFaith Nevada County and was the organizer of the Community Singing for Peace. She has also hosted an INC meeting at the Meeting House annually for the past twelve years. In the past Sierra Friends Center staff provided INC members a report re: their activities and offered a tour of the campus.
When GVFM hosts an INC meeting, it is expected that food will be provided. Anyone who’d enjoy helping us meet that expectation is welcome to let Dianne know.
Stewardship Committee
Minutes from meeting on January 4, 2024
Present: Mary Starr, clerk, Gordon Starr, recorder, Fosten Wilson, treasurer, Don McCormick,
Librarian, Dianne Marshall, newsletter editor, Reed Hamilton.
Finance. Fosten reported expenses for December totaled $763, which included rent and Friends Journal subscription. The insurance premium was the same as last year, but the broker added a $200 fee on. Maybe shop around for insurance next year? The big news was that we received $3,228 in donations in December, due in part to the response to the appeal letter. Thanks to all who contributed and to Dianne for writing the letter.
Fosten is in the process of applying for a credit card. Covid has slowed down the process.
Newsletter email list. Dianne, Judy and Peter O’Rourke continue to clean up, edit and update
the three Meeting contact lists: The directory, the email contact list and the list for the newsletter.
Archival Storage of Meeting records. Dorothy Henderson has sorted through the clerk’s boxes
and files of old meeting records and has approached the committee about the need for a person(s)
to serve as archivist, and find a place to store them. Don and Gordon (with Dianne assisting)
agreed to form a sub-committee to explore systems and processes of archival storage.
Piano Tuning. Gordon brought the question of getting the piano tuned and how the cost might be covered. It was pointed out that, with an uncertain future of our being in the Meeting House, it would be best to wait until that becomes clearer.
Meeting House Cleanup. Gordon also mentioned that the cushions on the chairs in the M.H. are very dirty and wondered if someone in the meeting has a steam upholstery cleaner, we could use to clean them. It was noted that presently, with no staff, there is no cleaning getting done. We may organize a clean-up day.
Next meeting: February 1, 2024
Welcome Committee
03 January 2024 / 7:00PM / Zoom
Attendees – Kathy, Judy, Don, Dianne, CJ, Pete
Agenda/Action items
- Greeting Checklist
a. Consistent good resource - Outreach
a. “Camp Out” and Communication to Union Newspaper – Kathy
i. Kathy contacted Newspaper; January ad is active
ii. Still pursuing Camp Out idea
b. Review “How to make your meeting known to the community” – Don
i. Don provided overview (will continue discussion next meeting) - Key item is T-Shirt, similar to Olympic Friends Meeting
a. Our Group will look into creating draft copy that would
allow us to get T-Shirt pricing
c. Explore welcoming behavior at Gatherings (Parties, Quarterly, Fellowship,
Potlucks) – Don
i. Discussion focused on expanding engagement with new visitors
d. Discuss Newsletter, Announcements/Communication survey results (Dianne
provided good overview of current status and opportunities)
i. Pete will reach out to Nancy Anderson for Directory maintenance process
ii. Pete will email Judy list of names who did not respond to survey - Judy will research
iii. Pete will look into platform that allows 100+ email distribution
Next Meeting Agenda
- Next meeting will be Monday, January 29, 2024, 7pm PST
New Business
○ Explore Physical Facilities checklist – Don
○ Review/discuss Church Growth Literature from (Fusion: Turning First-Time Guests
Into Fully Engaged Members of Your Church by Nelson Searcy – Don
■ sending first-time visitors a follow-up email the next day, and what the
email would say,
■ sending first-time visitors a one month follow-up email,
■ sending first-time visitors an event follow-up email. For us an event might
be one of our potlucks or a spiritual life program.
○ Explore welcoming behavior at Gatherings (Parties, Quarterly, Fellowship,
Potlucks) – Don
Children’s Committee Report
There was no report this month
Pacific Yearly Meeting Monthly Report
1- With the beginning of the new year, many of our Quaker organizations are wanting to reach out to you and invite you to engage with their programs. Brief descriptions are provided here. Please use the links to find out more.
a. Friends General Conference (FGC) has two upcoming online conferences. The first is titled “In These Changing Times, How is Spirit Rising Among Us?” taking place Thursday, January 18 – Sunday, January 21, 2024. More details are HERE. The second will be “Encountering Spirit”, Friday, February 16 – Monday, February 19, 2024. Both are intended to help Friends across yearly meetings. Find out more HERE.
b. Ben Lomond Quaker Center has a full calendar for 2024, which you can peruse HERE. Be sure to see whether your meeting has an annual pass that you could use to attend a workshop for free.
c. The Quaker Leadership Center (QLC) is a resource for Friends across the branches of American Quakerism. It is a ministry of the Earlham School of Religion. In this time of rapid cultural and congregational change, the Quaker Leadership Center equips Quaker leaders to faithfully adapt and innovate by:
- cultivating new connections among diverse Quaker expressions
- collaborating with existing partners to revitalize leaders and their Meetings & churches
- curating relevant resources
- creating spaces for Friends leaders and congregations to discern their unique vital future.
The QLC is offering a session for Quaker Trustees on January 30, 1-2:30 pm EST, facilitated by Emily Provance. Register HERE. Please direct questions to qlcoffice@earlham.edu
2- Minutes related to the Israel-Hamas war
The Indigenous Concerns Subcommittee of the Pacific Yearly Meeting Ministry Committee would like to hear from any monthly meeting that has produced or is in the process of producing a minute in any way related to the Israel-Hamas war. We encourage monthly meetings to send their minutes to the Peace and Social Order Committee so that we all can share and be encouraged by the efforts and ideas of others. Minutes are submitted to peaceandsocialorderclerk@pacificyearlymeeting.orgwith the directions HERE
College Park Quarterly Meeting Report
The next quarterly meeting will be online on Saturday, January 20. Register by clicking here.
The 253rd session of College Park Quarterly Meeting will address the theme of “Hard Truths; Great Hopes”. Just as in the early years of the Quaker movement, it is our intent to discover Truth, however far from our hopes it may be. And it is our intent to maintain and strengthen hope for our community of Friends and for the troubled world we live in. Among the “Hard Truths” is the fact that some of our Monthly Meetings feel unable to maintain themselves; we will hear first-hand accounts from two such Meetings. On the “Great Hopes” side, we will hear from Friends who have started or are planning to start new Worship Groups. As their wider Quaker community, how can the Quarter be of service to these Friends?
Rather than travel to a host site, we will hold the entire day’s program via Zoom. Rather than the typical one-person-per-Zoom-window, we encourage you to invite your neighbors – up to 5 Friends with whom you will share the experience, as well as lunch and worship-sharing. Advice on how to do this will be on the registration form.
Rather than hold concurrent interest groups in the afternoon, we will continue to all hear a series of Friends’ short presentations about their work, so that everyone has the same information on activities within the CPQM region. Time will not allow each speaker to explain their work in depth, so you will be encouraged to sign up for continuation in Zoom online interest groups under CPQM sponsorship.
Treasurer’s Quarterly Report
1-13-2024
summary = A strong beginning, thank you all.
This report covers October thru December 2023. The contributions you provided in those
months ($5,157) were welcome and appreciated. Our spending ($3,374) was as expected
except for a $200 increase in the annual cost of Liability Insurance.
The “Fund Balances” & the “Actual Spending vs Budget” reports are available in the Meeting
House — near the library — and by contacting me. Our Sharing fund has been active & our
Placer County Worship Group fund has increased. The other Restricted Funds are unchanged.
Thank you for your help. All gifts, both in service to the Meeting & financial are deeply
appreciated. Money contributions to GVFM can be in-person, mailed to my address below, or
online by using the “give” button at grassvalleyfriends.org
Fosten Wilson, Treasurer,
15719 American Hill Rd
Nevada City, Calif. 95959
email = fwkm at protonmail dot com