2020 Annual Session Information

Pacific Yearly Meeting’s 2020 Annual Session took place July 10-15, 2020, online via Zoom.  This year’s theme was “Radical Inclusivity:  Responding to the Persistent and Insistent Love of God” as described in the Clerk’s Call to Annual Session 2020.

This page contains information and documents related to the preparation for and conduct of the 2020 Annual Session, as well as its outcomes (epistles and minutes).  For information about PYM Annual Sessions in general, please see the Annual Session Information page.

Click on any item in the Table of Contents to jump to that section.

Epistle

  • Pacific YM 2020 Epistle
  • Note: Since Children’s Program and Junior Yearly Meeting were much abbreviated this year and did not run concurrently with the Adult session, there were no epistles from those groups.

Minutes

  • The final minutes and attached reports from the business sessions are posted on the PYM Minutes page.

During the Session

A message from the Clerk (updated 7/12):
An Experiment in Learning for White Friends and Safeguarding Space for Friends of Color at Annual Session 2020 (as web page) (as PDF)

Schedules and Agendas

See also  AS LIVE 2020 for Zoom links and additional information for registered attenders only.

All of the following documents are either not in the Advance Packet or have corrections over what is in the Advance Packet.

Keynote Speaker

Mica Estrada gave the keynote on Saturday, July 11th at 10:30am this year at Annual Session.  We are deeply grateful to have had Mica speak to us at the Annual Session.  Following is an audio recording of her presentation: 

Here is the video recording:

Mica earned her doctorate in Social Psychology from Harvard University. She is an Associate Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the Institute for Health and Aging at the University of California, San Francisco. Her teaching and research focuses on the ethnic populations who are historically underrepresented in higher education, are most vulnerable to impacts of climate change, and have potential to provide diverse and creative solutions to pressing challenges.

Mica is  a member of Strawberry Creek Friends Meeting in Berkley, CA. She serves on the Pacific Yearly Meeting Racial Justice and the Eldering Subcommittees. Mica also serves on the Geneva Quaker United National Committee, Mica’s spiritual development was informed by ‘The light within’ from an early age. It was a guiding principle of her life for many years even before she came to know Quakers. The writings of Parmahansa Yogananda, Daya Mata, Pema Chodron, Thomas Kelley, and Khalil Gibran have been instrumental in forming Mica’s spiritual practices. Mica follows her spiritual leading to make the world a kinder place.

The keynote began with a story appropriate for all ages. Children were invited to accompany their parents to the keynote for as long as they like.  

Zoom Information

 AS LIVE 2020:  Registered attenders check your email from pymassistanttotheclerk for the password to this page.  The AS LIVE 2020 page contains links to all the Zoom meetings and other materials for attenders only.

Advance Information

Clerk’s Call

Registration

Deadlines

Information for Specific Age Groups

  • Information for Registrants (all ages):  You will not be able to attend Annual Session offerings without registering.  Registration deadline was July 3.  Check whether late registration is still possible.
  • A brief Children’s Program will take place on Friday morning, July 10. The session will be 75 minutes, children will be divided by age into two groups: ages 4 to 7 or 8; and ages 8 or 9 to 12. If we have enough children for a second 75-minute session, it will occur from 11:00-12:15pm with the same fun-focused lesson plans. 
  • Teen Program (Junior Yearly Meeting, aka JYM). Teens will be leading intergenerational games on Saturday evening-we would love to see you there! The rest of JYM’s gatherings will take place the week/s following July 15. For more information on the teen schedule, please see our intergenerational calendar page here. We are still looking for a few (adult) Friendly Responsible Adult Presences (FRAPs) to work with and or hold the space for our youth.
  • Young Adult Friends (aka YAFs) program will start Friday evening. YAFs may still be able to register late and take part in the general Annual Sessions. Many YAFs will attend the YPCC interest group on Sunday evening to discuss our work on mutual aid within the yearly meeting. The rest of YAF activities will also take place the week/s following AS. See our intergenerational calendar page for more information.

Advance Packet

The Packet of Advance Materials is an all-in-one PDF containing (nearly all of the) committee reports and some other materials you will need.  If you just want an individual report, you will find it below under Committee and Officer Reports.

  • Packet of Advance Materials (posted 7/3) Note that the Schedule and the Interest Group listings have changed slightly from what is in the Advance Packet, so for those two documents use the versions linked below.

Updates:  The following are reports and information that are either “new” (i.e. not in the Advance Packet) or have been revised or corrected from the version in the Packet.

Committee/Officer Reports

The individual reports listed below are also (unless otherwise indicated) included in the all-in-one Advance Packet as well as in the Minutes Packet.  If you are submitting a late report please contact the Assistant to the Clerk.

Reports from Representatives to Outside Organizations

The individual reports below are also included in the all-in-one Advance Packet linked above.

Deadlines that Have Passed

Late Registration

  • “Normal” registration is closed (deadline was July 3).  To register late, send a request by email to pymregistrars@gmail.com.
  • Annual Session is Pay-as-Led this year, meaning you are invited to pay whatever amount you are led to pay to help cover PacYM’s costs.  A suggested range is $40-$60 for adults age 25 and over attending “full time”, and lesser amounts for those under 25.

Evaluations and Nominating Committee “Pink Sheet”

If you participated in all or part of the session, we hope you will fill out the 2020 Annual Session Evaluation Survey. 

If you participated in Worship-Sharing, please fill out the 2020 Worship-Sharing Evaluation Survey.

THE DEADLINE FOR EVALUATIONS WAS EXTENDED TO July 25, which has now passed.

Help the Nominating Committee match your gifts with needed service to the Yearly Meeting by filling out a “Pink Sheet” describing your skills and interests.

Contacts

These are contacts specifically related to Annual Session 2020.  More general contacts for PacYM can be found on the Contact-Us page.  Contacts for specific activities during Annual Session (e.g. Worship/Sharing, Affinity Groups, Games, etc) can be found in the Schedule Explained 2020 document linked here.

General questions about PYM and Annual Session:
Sharon Gates, Assistant to the Clerk, pymassistanttotheclerk@gmail.com

Registration:
Lawrence Alderson and Brylie Oxlie, Registrars: <pymregistrars@gmail.com>
Mailing Address for checks (made out to “Pacific Yearly Meeting”) for completed registrations:
Pacific Yearly Meeting Registrar
c/o Lawrence Alderson
10 Leeds Lane
Aliso Viejo, CA, 92656 <— note correction in Zip code 7/10 (was showing 92626)

Youth Programs:
Overall:  Rebekah Percy, Interim Youth Programs Coordinator: <pym.youthcoordinator@gmail.com> (Available for general youth-related questions.)
Children:  Suellen Lowry, Clerk of Children’s Program Committee: <suellenquaker@gmail.com> www.pacificyearlymeeting.org/youth/children/
JYM (teens): Dan Strickland, Clerk of JYM Adult Committee: <danstrickland2001@yahoo.com> www.pacificyearlymeeting.org/youth/jym/

Daily Miracle:  There will not be a “Daily Miracle” bulletin this year.  Program information will be on the website (on this page or, for registered attenders, on the password protected AS LIVE 2020 page).

Discourse (for Attenders only): See AS LIVE 2020 (a password protected page) for a link to Discourse.  Discourse is the place to share personal announcements you might have submitted to the Daily Miracle in other years.

Website:
Website Editors: <pym.website@gmail.com> to report errors or submit material for the website.

Zoom:
Andrea Harman, Zoom Coordinator: <ams573@alumni.psu.edu> for technical issues with Zoom

See more general PacYM contacts on the Contact Us page