YPC Epistle XI & Calendar – October 2014

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Youth Program Coordinator Epistle XI – October 2014

Liaisons, Clerks, and Representatives:  Please distribute this epistle widely. Consider reading it aloud at Meeting for Business and including it in your newsletter. Thanks!

Dear Pacific Yearly Meeting Friends,

I’m back now from taking some time off after annual session. In September, Roger Price and I were married under the care of Davis Friends Meeting. We were touched by the number of Friends, including a strong showing of young adults and teens, who came to celebrate with us. For most of our other friends and family this was their first Quaker event or Meeting for Worship, and many of them remarked how welcomed they felt into a new, whole community. (And my non-Quaker sisters were very relieved after much concern about how open worship might go: what might people say or do?!?!)

Momentous events and changing seasons remind me to ask Friends and Meetings to let me know about transitions among your youth and families. Have any youth moved away for college or work? I can help make introductions with their new local Friends communities. Last year, for example, I introduced three new college students to the New England Yearly Meeting Young Friends & Young Adult Friends Coordinator. One college student asked me about Friendly summer internships in the Boston area, and I was able to introduce her to a local Friend in a position of servant leadership whom I had met at the 2005 World Gathering of Young Friends. Any new children among you? It would be helpful to me in my outreach and support efforts to have an updated list of your Meeting’s youth, ages, grades, and parents/guardians.

 

YAF Retreat at Redwood Forest Meeting, July 2014
YAF Retreat at Redwood Forest Meeting, July 2014, with special guest Jonathan Vogel-Borne

Speaking of transitions, as you might have heard, my supervisory committee was renamed to “Youth Programs Coordinating Committee” (YPCC). You can read more about this and the recent work of the YPCC in the Annual Session minutes and the annual report we presented together in July: pacificyearlymeeting.org/2014/pym-docs/ypc/youth-program-report-annual-session-2014

JYM and Young Adult Game Night, Annual Session 2014

As usual, this epistle contains the newly updated calendar of youth and intergenerational events throughout PYM and beyond. If you have events to add, please send them my way for the next edition. Take a look to see what’s on the horizon for 2014-2015! To highlight a few timely items:

  • Election Day in the U.S. is Tuesday, November 4th, with many important initiatives and local, state and federal seats on the ballots. Remind youth and others to register! Deadlines— Nevada: October 14th; California: 15 days before any election (October 20th); Hawaii was October 6th.
  • Deadline to register for SCQM Fall Fellowship is October 18th. Friendly Adult Presence (FAP) positions are available for the teen program, and teachers are needed for the children’s program; these volunteers’ registration costs (room & board) will be waived.
  • Western Young Friends New Year’s Gathering will be having its 40th anniversary this year and is planning for a special celebration at Camp Myrtlewood in Southern Oregon. All ages welcome.
  • Casa de los Amigos in Mexico City is hosting an educational tour in January 2015. Space is limited, so register ASAP. “Limited to 10 people, participants will learn about Mexican society and culture, politics and economics, and the struggles and triumphs for peace and justice in Mexico. Our goal is for this Learning Tour to provide a human face and a living context through the unique lens of Casa de los Amigos, helping participants shape their understanding of these key issues. We’ll also have plenty of opportunities to enjoy the city and fellowship with Friends in Mexico.”
  • Woolman Semester is accepting applications for Spring and Fall 2015.
  • Quaker Oaks Farm is making progress on its transformation into an independent non-profit, with the land now having been accepted to be held in trust by Visalia Friends Meeting. Many events are planned for this year, including the free public Harvest Festival activities this October, the annual winter holidays wreath making, a Young Adult Friends campout and service project, and the return of the Spring Youth Service Learning Camp in partnership with the Wukchumni Tribe.
Singing in the Evening, Annual Session 2014
Singing Together in the Evenings, Annual Session 2014

Have an idea for an event or project that can’t be funded otherwise, or need some help with design and implementation? Our YPC Committee manages the Youth Programs Fund (interest from the Bob Vogel Endowment) and is available for consultation. The next request deadline is December 20 for funding in January 2015. We accept applications on a rolling quarterly basis (Dec. 20, Mar. 20, June 20, Sept. 20), with decisions at least once every 3 months (January, April, July and October). We are open to requests for general support at any time. Description of the fund’s purposes, policies, and application are online at: pacificyearlymeeting.org/2014/pym-docs/ypc/resources-funding .

On a trial basis, the YPCC is dedicating some of the Youth Programs Fund to support teen intervisitation to each other’s quarterly meetings (CPQM and SCQM). Contact the adult clerk of your quarterly teen program for more information.

Please remember my open invitation to consult with your Worship Group, Meeting, organization, or committee. In fact, I’m looking for two Meetings or Worship Groups interested in hosting the annual YPCC workshops, Becoming Adult Allies to Youth: Friendly Adult Presence (FAP) and Beyond, this coming spring (one in Southern CA and one in Northern CA/NV). If you have at least 5-8 interested Friends, are willing to host me and other Friends for the day, and an available Saturday at your meeting place, let’s talk soon and get it on the schedule!

Happy Autumn,

~Alyssa

Alyssa Nelson, Youth Programs Coordinator, Pacific Yearly Meeting

(530) 563-6369 (cell) / pym [dot] youthcoordinator [at] gmail [dot] com

Youth Programs Coordinating Committee members: Lynnette Arnold, Jennifer Carr, Natasha Herrera, Mary Klein (co-clerk), Steve Leeds, Stephen Myers, Kylin Navarro, Thomas Rios, Jim Summers (co-clerk). One youth slot is vacant.

YPCC Members at Tabling Fair, Annual Session2014
YPCC Members at Tabling Fair, Annual Session 2014

 

~ Intergenerational and youth-focused activities in PYM and beyond ~
2014-15 Ongoing Calendar of Events (updated 10/10/14)

Email pym [dot] youthcoordinator [at] gmail [dot] com to have events included on the calendar.

Please support young Friends and families in your area to attend events by helping them register, figure out payment and/or scholarships, and arrange transportation.

  • October 11, 18 & 25, Saturdays 2-6 p.m.: Quaker Oaks Harvest Festival Activities (Quaker Oaks Farm, Visalia, CA). Free and open to the public! quakeroaksfarm.org
  • October 17-19: College Park Quarterly Meeting (Sierra Friends Center, Nevada City, CA) collegepark.quaker.org
  • October 24-25: Race, Power, Privilege & Leadership Symposium – a mini White Privilege Conference (Friends Center, Philadelphia, PA), hosted by Friends Council on Education, friendscouncil.org > Programs > Events.
  • November 1-2: Southern California Quarterly Meeting Fall Fellowship (Temescal Canyon, CA) scqm.org
  • November 4, Tuesday, Election Day in the US
  • November (weekend TBD): AVP Basic Workshop for Young Adult Friends (YAFs), (held at San Jose Meetinghouse, CA). Contact Kylin Navarro, YAF co-clerk.
YAF AVP Workshop, July 2014 Retreat
YAF AVP Workshop & Retreat, July 2014
  • December 5-7: Music and Dance Retreat (Ben Lomond Quaker Center, CA, see website for complete list of workshops) quakercenter.org
  • December 12 & 13: Woolman Semester Baccalaureate & Graduation (Sierra Friends Center, Nevada City, CA): All are welcome. Woolman Semester is accepting applications. semester.woolman.org
  • December 28-January 2: Western Young Friends New Year’s Gathering & 40th Anniversary (Camp Myrtlewood, Southern Oregon). All ages welcome.  newyearsgathering.org
  • January 10-18: Mexico Learning Tour (a project of Casa de los Amigos), casadelosamigos.org/en/quaker-social-action-in-mexico-learning-tour
Learning about the Mexico Trip and Casa from the New Director, Haylee Hathaway, Annual Session 2014
Learning about the Mexico Trip and Casa de Los Amigos from the new director, Hayley Hathaway, Annual Session 2014
  • January 16: Teen Clerking Workshop (Berkeley Meetinghouse, CA) – all PYM teens welcome. Sponsored by CPQM Teen Program Committee. Contact Adult Clerk of Teen Program, Kathy Runyan.
  • January 17, Saturday (plus likely teen overnights on Friday and Saturday): College Park Quarterly Meeting (hosted by Berkeley Meeting, CA) collegepark.quaker.org [SCQM Friends are always invited, especially when the Joshua Tree Campout isn’t happening.]
  • February 13-16: PYM Young Adult Friends Campout and Service Project (Quaker Oaks Farm, Visalia CA) quakeroaksfarm.org . Contact Alyssa Nelson.
Learning about Quaker Oaks Farm and Reflecting on "Spiritual Homes," Annual Session 2014
Learning about Quaker Oaks Farm and Reflecting on “Spiritual Homes,” Annual Session 2014
  • February 13-16: FLGBTQC MidWinter Gathering (Location TBD) Friends for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Concerns flgbtqc.quaker.org
  • February 27 – March 1: PYM Representative Committee Meeting & JYM Planning Meeting pacificyearlymeeting.org
  • March 11-14: White Privilege Conference “Resistance, Action, Courage & Equity: The South Leading the Way!” (Louisville KY). Group discount through FGC. whiteprivilegeconference.com
  • March 12-15: FWCC Section Meeting of the Americas (Mexico City). Registration opens November 2014. fwccamericas.org/events/2015_SectionMeeting/index.shtml
  • March 14-17: FCNL Young Adult Spring Lobby Weekend (Washington, DC) fcnl.org/events/slw
  • March 31 – April 4: Spring Youth Service Learning Camp at Quaker Oaks Farm (Visalia, CA), with the Wukchumni Tribe and the Youth Programs Coordinator & Committee. Theme is Restorative Justice through sharing and learning about the history of Native American people in California and how to be allies to indigenous people everywhere. Interested high school aged youth and potential adult staff please contact Melissa Lovett-Adair, mladair@charter.net. org
  • Spring (Dates & Host-Meeting sites pending – offers welcome): Becoming Adult Allies to Youth Workshops: Friendly Adult Presence (FAP) and Beyond, one in Northern CA and one in Southern CA, with the PYM Youth Programs Coordinator.
  • April 25 (plus teen overnight TBD): Southern California Quarterly Meeting (hosted by La Jolla Meeting, CA). scqm.org
  • May 15-17: College Park Quarterly Meeting (Ben Lomond Quaker Center): collegepark.quaker.org
  • May 22 & 23: Woolman Semester Baccalaureate & Graduation (Sierra Friends Center, Nevada City, CA): All are welcome. Woolman Semester is accepting applications. semester.woolman.org
  • May 29-31: Clerking Workshop (Ben Lomond Quaker Center, CA, see website for complete list of workshops) quakercenter.org
  • June 5-10: Continuing Revolution: A Young Adult Friends Conference on Equality (Pendle Hill, Wallingford, PA). “Designed for all young adult Friends who feel a movement in our generation to create the world we believe is possible, and to live into Right Relationship with the Divine, one another and the earth.” Rolling application period: apply early. pendlehill.org/yafcon
  • June 14-21: Woolman Family Work Camp (Sierra Friends Center, Nevada City, CA) woolman.org
  • Ben Lomond Quaker Center Youth Camps quakercenter.org Quaker Center’s annual passes can be applied to camp!
    • Peace Action Camp: outdoor adventure and nonviolent direct action for rising 10th through 12th graders, June 21-27, field location TBD.
    • Quaker Camp (4th-6th grade) & Service Camp (7th-9th grade) run concurrently at Ben Lomond Quaker Center, August 1-8.
  • Camp Woolman (Sierra Friends Center, Nevada City, CA) woolman.org/dates-rates
    • Teen Leadership Camp (ages 15-16): 2015 dates TBD
    • Sierra Friends Camp (ages 9-14): 2015 dates TBD
  • Mountain Friends Camp (Santa Fe Tree House Camp, New Mexico) for 10-15 year olds. Teens ages 16-17 can apply to serve as Counselors in Training. Come for 1, 2, or 3 weeks. 2015 dates TBD. mountainfriendscamp.org/parents
  • July 5-11: Friends General Conference: “Seeking Wholeness” (Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina) fgcquaker.org/connect/gathering
  • July 10-13: PYM Young Adult Friends Retreat 2015: Pre-Annual Session weekend of service, spirit, and fellowship with young adults and older adults of PYM. Held near Annual Session site. Contact Kylin Navarro, YAF co-clerk.
JYM! Annual Session 2014
Fun at Annual Session 2014
  • July 13-18: PYM Annual Session 2015 (Walker Creek Ranch, Petaluma, CA). Financial and transportation assistance available – just ask! pacificyearlymeeting.org
Soul Collage Workshop, Fellowship Friday, Annual Session 2014
Soul Collage Workshop, Fellowship Friday, Annual Session 2014

 

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Want to learn more about your PYM youth programs and current events?
See past epistles, reports and more on our page on the PYM website:
pacificyearlymeeting.org/category/pym-docs/ypc
and on our Facebook page: “Pacific Yearly Meeting Youth Programs”