Category: Representative Committee Docs

Minutes and Reports from PYM Representative Committee’s annual winter planning sessions.

2021 RepCom Reports and Minutes

Pacific Yearly Meeting’s 2021 Representative Committee meeting (“RepCom 2021”) took place Feb 26 & 27 and March 6, 2021, via Zoom.  Minutes for the meeting are now available on the PYM Minutes page.  This page contains information and materials for those attending RepCom 2021. For information about Representative Committee in general see the RepCom pages.

Overview

This year’s meeting of PacYM Representative Committee (RepCom) will be unlike anything we have done before. As always, everyone in PacYM is invited to RepCom–you don’t need to be your Monthly Meeting’s representative and you don’t need to be serving the Yearly Meeting in any particular role. New this year is that RepCom will be held virtually on Zoom (like so many things are these days) and the schedule will be very different from previous RepComs. In order to make good use of our time and not over-Zoom ourselves, we will meet on 2 successive Saturdays:  February 27 and March 6. The times have not been finalized, but we are planning three 90-minute sessions each day:  one in the morning and two in the afternoon. We will have substantial breaks between meetings. In addition, there will be a meeting of Monthly Meeting Representatives on the evening of Friday, February 26 (exact time TBD).
 
The theme of this summer’s Annual Session will be “Love and Justice:  Heeding the Spirit’s Power Within and Among Us.” The theme is further explained in the Clerk’s Call to Annual Session 2021.  In preparation for this summer, any business that committees, officers, or representatives to outside organizations intend to bring to Annual Session must be brought for a first reading to RepCom. The deadline for reports to RepCom will be  Monday, February 8 and proposals for Interest Groups at Annual Session are due by midnight on Sunday, March 7.

Evaluation

If you attended any portion of RepCom, please fill out an evaluation form by Friday, April 16, 2021.

Some Deadlines

Registration

  • The registration deadline was extended to Feb 19 and registration is now closed.

Advance Materials

Advance Packet

  • Packet of Advance Materials  This all-in-one PDF includes the Clerk’s Call, the schedule, and all committee and representative reports below that were submitted by the deadline.
  • Correction: Ministry Committee wishes to correct an error in the Advance Packet Friends of Color Subcommittee section of their report.  The worship group in Spanish is not an offshoot of the Friends of Color Subcommittee.  It is an independent worship group that welcomes all who want to worship in the manner of Friends and give their ministry in Spanish.  More information and the link to worship can be found here:https://westernfriend.org/qwfo-reunion-en-espanol.

Additional Materials

Committee and Officer Reports

All documents below are also contained in the Advance Packet (a single PDF) except where indicated otherwise.  Most will also be contained in the Minutes Packet when it is posted.

Representatives Reports

Reports from our Representatives and Observers to Outside Organizations.  These are also in the Advance Packet and will be in the Minutes Packet afterwards.

News from Outside Organizations

Newsletters and other communications coming directly from outside organizations to which PYM sends Representatives or Observers.  Because of their size, these documents are not included in the Advance Packet nor in the Minutes Packet.

Minutes Packet

  • In a break with past practice, minutes for this meeting are only posted on the PYM Minutes page.  That is where you will find minutes for not only this meeting but all other RepCom and Annual Session meetings as well.

Deadlines that Have Passed

  • INTEREST GROUPS FOR ANNUAL SESSION:  Sunday, March 7 (the end of RepCom weekend) was the deadline for committees to submit seasoned proposals for Interest Groups at Annual Session 2021.  See  How to Schedule an Interest Group at Annual Session for details.  Contact Sharon Gates if you need to discuss a possible late submission or modification of a submission.
  • REPORTS  deadline was Monday, Feb 8. Instructions are below.
  • REGISTRATION deadline was Friday, February 19.
  • BUDGET REQUESTS: RepCom is where we approve the Annual Session Budget as well as handle any mid-year General Budget augmentations. Requests should have been submitted to the Finance Committee well ahead of the Feb 8 report deadline.

Instructions for Authors of Documents for this Page

  • Officers, Committee Clerks and other authors of advance documents please do the following:
    • See the Guidelines for Reports to Representative Committee 2021 for more detailed style guidelines and a template Word file you may use.
    • Send in your report as a .doc or .docx file –or equivalent– (rather than as email text or .pdf).  This will help the Secretariat and Recording Clerks have access to the text and formatting as well as simplifying our document management process.  You are encouraged to use this template Word file.
    • Name your report file like this: CommitteeName-Report-to-RepCom-2021.doc or .docx.  For example:
      • Ministry-Report-to-RepCom-2021.doc,
      • Latin-American-Concerns-Report-to-RepCom-2021.docx
      • Note that the names are quite long enough without adding the word “Committee”.
    • Email by Feb. 8, 2021 to the Assistant to the Clerk (Sharon Gates) <pymassistanttotheclerk@gmail.com>.
    • We will post your report here as a PDF that we will create from your .doc.
    • Documents received by the deadline (Feb. 8) will be assembled into an “advance packet” distributed electronically to all participants.  Documents received late will be more difficult for participants to find and may be overlooked.  So please submit your report by the deadline or earlier if you can manage it.

Call to Representative Committee 2020

the theme of our Annual Session in July will be

 Radical Inclusivity:  Responding to the Persistent and Insistent Love of God 

WHEN/WHERE:

RepCom will be hosted by Quaker Oaks Farm (QOF), meeting at the Visalia Friends’ Meetinghouse (VFM) on the ancestral land of the Wukchumni Tribe from 6pm on Friday, March 6, through Saturday March 7 and continuing to Sunday March 8 if necessary.

REGISTRATION:

Please register for RepCom by SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15 by filling out the form on the PYM website:

www.pacificyearlymeeting.org/committee-newsletters-and-reports/representative-committee/2020-repcom-reports-and-minutes/

 (Persons registering after Friday February 15 cannot be assured of overnight hospitality.)

Before coming to RepCom, please review the advance documents on the website carefully.

HOSPITALITY:

Overnight accommodations will be provided in nearby homes and there is plenty of camping and floor sleeping space available at QOF, adjacent to VFM There are also inexpensive hotels/Airbnbs in Visalia and Exeter. Friday dinner through Sunday lunch will be provided (along with snacks/tea/coffee) for a suggested donation to QOF of $40. Please note any food restrictions in your registration.

TRAVEL & REIMBURSEMENT: 

Visalia is easily accessible by car, bus, or train and shuttles to the Meetinghouse will be provided. Travel expenses of officers, clerks, and Representative Committee members (Monthly Meetings’ representatives to PYM) are reimbursed 25¢ per mile for round trip road atlas mileage between the member’s Home Meeting and the location of the Meeting being attended or actual expenses up to $.25 per mile. Round trip travel from Mexico or Hawaii is reimbursed up to $600. Members are encouraged to reduce costs by taking advantage of special bargain rates (early reservation, two for one, special offers, etc.).  

PRESENTING AND REPORTING:

Please submit written reports by February 15 to Sharon Gates, Assistant to the Clerk (email address below).  Guidelines for reports are on the PYM web page. Reports sent after 2/15 might not be posted prior to RepCom. Contact Sandy Kewman, Presiding Clerk (email address below) if your committee is presenting at RepCom. 

Interest Groups at the 2020 Annual Session: 

The process for getting Interest Groups scheduled for Annual Session is on the PYM website. Please submit your proposals by Sunday, March 8 to Sharon Gates, Assistant to the Clerk (email address below).

Junior Yearly Meeting:  The youth leadership of Junior Yearly Meeting (JYM) and JYM  Adult Committee members will  meet at QOF March 6-8 to plan for JYM 2020 at Walker Creek Ranch. JYM planners look forward to worshiping and sharing meals with Friends attending RepCom.  If you have questions, please contact the clerk of the JYM Adult Committee, Dan Strickland danstrickland2001@yahoo.com.

Sandy Kewman, Presiding Clerk of PYM, will preside at RepCom. She and I will send you further information, including an agenda, in one or more follow-up mailings. 

Questions for the Presiding Clerk? Contact Sandy at PYMclerk@gmail.com

We look forward to seeing you in Visalia,
Sharon Gates, Assistant to the Clerk
PYMAssistanttotheClerk@gmail.com

RepCom 2017 – March 3-5 in Palo Alto – Clerk’s Call

Clerk’s Call to

PYM Representative Committee 2017:
AWAKENING TO THE PRESENCE
Click for Downloadable PDF Version of the Call to RepCom

WHEN/WHERE:
RepCom will be held at Palo Alto Friends Meeting and begin on Friday, March 3 at 6pm, continuing to Sunday, March 5 if necessary.

REGISTRATION:
Please register for RepCom by Feb 10th using the online form:
http://www.planetReg.com/E13010501642486

Continue reading “RepCom 2017 – March 3-5 in Palo Alto – Clerk’s Call”

YPCC Report to Representative Committee 2016

Download:

Continue reading “YPCC Report to Representative Committee 2016”

2016 RepCom Reports and Minutes

This post contains reports and minutes for the 2016 Representative Committee meeting. Reports are organized alphabetically by committee/officer.

RepCom Minutes

Reports

AdHoc – Transitions between Children’s Program & JYM

Arrangements Committee

  • No report

Children’s Program Committee

Discipline Committee

Finance Committee & Treasurer

Holding Corporation

Junior Yearly Meeting (JYM) Committee

  • No report

Latin American Concerns Committee

Ministry & Oversight Committee

Nominating Committee

Peace and Social Order Committee

Registrar

  • No report

Secretariat Committee

Statistical Clerk

Treasurer

  • See “Finance Committee & Treasurer” above

Unity with Nature

Young Adult Friends

  • No report

Youth Programs Coordinating Committee & YP Coordinator

Discipline Committee-Report to Representative Committee 2015

Discipline has begun its task of a revision of our current Faith and Practice. To date we have gathered for two face to face meetings and one conference call. Our next meeting is planned for late this Spring and we plan to try utilizing the video conferencing software the Western Friend has acquired, to see how this newer technology can help us further our work, and still shrink the size of our carbon footprint. We began by asking one another how we envision a new edition of our book of discipline will look in 5 years. At our first meeting we became clear we need to start a dialogue within this Yearly Meeting, both with the Monthly Meetings as well as individuals, how they use the current Faith and Practice (or not); what within the current Discipline speaks to them and what does not. He have written a group of initial queries to the Monthly Meetings, to Junior Yearly Meeting and to Young Adult Friends, asking them to respond to us with their initial thoughts, asking them to respond to our committee by the end of April which we expect will help us in our work. (see attached letters) . To date, we have received thoughtful responses from San Diego and La Jolla MM, and several others Meetings have indicated they’re in the process of preparing a response to us. We have also recently received thoughtful from two individuals with their thoughts.

Our committee sees this as the beginning of a dialogue, not the sole opportunity for input. We already have more questions to pose to the Meetings, but are loath to do so just yet, as so many have not yet had the time to season and respond to our first queries. We are balancing our need for input, & our whole community’s need for transparency in this revision process, along with the desire we have heard voiced that this revision considerably less than the decade the last revision took, & not wanting to be experienced as an undue burden by the Monthly Meetings. We have at our most recent committee meeting divided the responsibility for primary contact with each of the Monthly Meetings within PYM. In the months ahead, sometime in the months ahead the clerks of each Meeting will hear from one of our committee members, an effort to further communication in this revision process.

We have formulated a 6 month timeline for our initial work, and as individuals have divided some of the responsibilities for drafting sections of the discipline where clear updates need to be made, for the whole committee to season. We are still in the process of crafting a further 5 year timeline for how we will proceed.

Today we bring you word on our proposed interest group our committee plans to hold at the next annual session, on membership: What does it mean to be a Quaker? We plan to present a brief history of membership followed by worship-sharing and discussion, in the hopes of helping Discipline committee clarify what the PYM community believes on this subject, as we begin to revise Faith and Practice.

One final note from your Discipline Committee’s clerk – in our early deliberations, it has become quite clear to this Friend, the various connotations our words can have, are often connotations other individuals may not share. In revising our Discipline, we will need to labor tenderly with one another, listening with an open heart as we choose the words, the terms, las palabras y los dichos that convey to all the spirit of our Quaker thought and practice.

Respectfully submitted,

DJ Bloom, Clerk of Discipline

Attachments

Latin American Concerns Committee report

LATIN AMERICAN CONCERNS COMMITTEE

REPORT TO REPRESENTATIVE COMMITTEE 2015

In 1997, PYM annual session established a standing Latin America Concerns Committee to gather and disseminate information to Pacific and other Yearly Meetings regarding Friends groups and service projects in Latin America. The intention is to support rather than replace spirit-led projects already supported by Monthly Meetings, Worship Groups and individual Friends.

LACC has met once since last annual session. LACC, along with Peace and Social Order Committee, encouraged the invitation of Paula Palmer of Boulder Meeting to present a workshop at Annual Session 2015 titled Toward Right Relationship with America’s Native Peoples. The director of the Guatemala Friends Scholarship Program, Miguel Costop, is planning to attend this coming Annual Session. The committee has requested Interest Group time for his presentation on Quakerism and Mayan Spirituality.

The Child Refugee and Migration subcommittee led by convener Lynnette Arnold has met 20 times since Annual Session and continues to meet regularly. We have a very dedicated group of 4 members who are on every call with another 4-5 who are generally on the calls. We also have an email list of about 25 who are kept in the loop of our work. A Western Friend article, Leading of the Spirit in Support of Child Refugees, was written by participants of the subcommittee. A letter and resource packet has been developed and was distributed to all meetings in PYM along with Minutes from four PYM monthly meetings (attached). Leading and Mission statements were posted to the PYM web site under LACC along with the Resource List and monthly meeting Minutes. An Annual Session Interest Group on Child Refugees and Migration is being requested along with Peace and Social Order Committee, as co-sponsor.

CASA DE LOS AMIGOS

Casa de los Amigos has had a full and productive year of diverse peace work in Mexico City, and has been held by our local and international community. The Casa’s Hospitality Program, which includes our social justice oriented guesthouse, has been active as ever, all year long. Our flourishing Migration and Economic Justice Programs are built on this fertile ground. We have strengthened our rich partnerships with many Mexican and international organizations, and continue to provide temporary emergency housing and daily Spanish classes to migrants and refugees from around the world. We installed a rainwater catchment system as part of an ongoing process of lightening the Casa’s environmental impact. This year the Casa has also expanded opportunities to share our work and witness with our community, by coordinating educational and awareness-building activities for many of our visiting groups. We offered a Quaker Social Action in Mexico Learning Tour and are planning more! Above all, the Casa’s daily life of faith, fun and good will is the Casa’s offering to the city and open to all.

EL SALVADOR PROJECTS OF PALO ALTO MEETING

The El Salvador Projects of Palo Alto Meeting currently support 13 university students from poor rural communities with student loans that can be repaid in cash, through community service, or through financial support for another student. The students’ fields of study are varied and wide-ranging, from law and medicine to art and teaching. Many students live in a house in San Salvador that we rent in partnership with other programs that also support university students.

Annually, our Field Director, Robert Broz, is the principal organizer of a university fair in Suchitoto, El Salvador, that brings prospective students together with representatives of institutions of higher learning and programs that offer financial aid.

The Projects also help to fund a few positions in rural schools that do not receive adequate support from the government. We also help to support periodic skills workshops in rural villages on such topics as how to build efficient and inexpensive stoves and alternatives to violence training. We collect unneeded reading glasses in the United States and send them to El Salvador, where they enable older people to resume work and activities that had been beyond them due to vision loss.

 

The Projects are overseen by a committee of Palo Alto Meeting that supports the Field Director in discernment and planning and raises funds, largely through newsletters that are sent to supporters 2-3 times per year.

 

GUATEMALA FRIENDS SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

In 2014, 20 students graduated from the Guatemala Friends Scholarship Program (known as Progresa in Guatemala) 15 at the secondary level and5 from university. We accepted 28 new students including 4 who are in medical school. Our total number of students for 2015 is 77 with the possibility of 1 to 3 more being added.

Last summer, a group of 20 Junior Friends from North Pacific Yearly Meeting toured around Guatemala with our director Miguel Costop. During their travels, they met several Progresa students and graduates. They learned first hand about the hardships Guatemalans face and came to realize how important Progresa has been in overcoming obstacles. The sixth Teaching English Experience was held in January with 14 North Americans teaching 14 Progresa students. It is such a rewarding experience that half of the teachers were returnees. We are looking forward to our Annual Student Conference in May when our students and former students come together to learn and network.

For all the work involved, we continue to feel encouraged and blessed when we see how lives and communities are enriched by the opportunities for social justice that education provides.

Submitted by

Donna Smith, Clerk