by WebPost | Apr 16, 2025 | Committees, Spring Retreat
Welcome, new families! Please complete a registration for each child if you have not already done so. This allows us to keep your child safe here at Meeting and send monthly updates about what’s happening in our Religious Education program. Forms can be found on the table under the main bulletin board or you may connect with Elizabeth Price (402-990-0010 [email protected]).
Playground Policy: Now that the weather is warming, we want to remind families of our playground policy and rise of Meeting procedures. At the rise of Meeting, all children (ages PreK-17) are returned by teachers to parents in the meeting room. The parents may then dismiss their own children at their discretion to play on the playground with the understanding that there will be no supervision provided by RE volunteers.
Workshop Postponed: Due to circumstances beyond the control of the RE committee and the speaker, the workshop “Growing in Anti-Racism with Children in Meeting, Family & Our Lives” on April 26 has been postponed until further notice. We apologize for any inconvenience this might have caused those wishing to attend. Our intention is to spend the coming months improving the offering and making it accessible to everyone later this year.
Faith & Play Doorperson Workshop: “Are you ready?”
April 30th, 7:00 pm on Zoom
The doorperson is not an “assistant teacher,” but rather holds care “for the whole room” in a role more like an elder. This workshop will prepare Friends to support their children’s program in the doorperson role, from greeting to response time.
More information can be found at this link: https://quakerfaithandplay.org/workshop-series-winter-spring-2025/
Register at the following link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcof-yhqD0oHtPfz3S8jZBq-yM538CwIt4H#/registration
Spring Retreat
RE is planning programming for Saturday and Sunday mornings at The Clearing during Spring retreat, May 23-25. We encourage families to attend! You may attend Saturday only, Saturday/Sunday without an overnight stay, or camp overnight and attend both days!
Summer Committee-Led Lessons begin June 15th and continue until August 31st. For those unfamiliar with our summer routine, each Sunday, a committee presents children with an experience related to the work of that committee. It’s a fantastic way for children to learn about the role of committees in our Meeting life.
by WebPost | Apr 14, 2025 | Activity, Baltimore Yearly Meeting, BYM Camps, Children and Religious Education
The Spark newsletter to the BYM Camp families contains the following: A Letter to Campers
The directors of our camps have a letter written directly to your children. Here’s what they want to make all campers hear from them before camp starts:
To all our fabulous campers new and returning (and to all of those wonderful staff and volunteers too!)
Our friends, I’m sure you’ve noticed that we are in a hard time in our country, a time where lots of people are being judged and excluded and treated badly. That weighs heavily on our hearts and it makes us more excited than ever to create a community with you this summer where each of us can be fully welcomed and belong. So we wanted to get a jump start on reminding you now that in just a few short months, we can’t wait to welcome you!
We can’t wait to welcome you and your family if you have been in this country since your grandparents, grandparents, grandparents, or if you’ve just arrived, or if your ancestors were the first humans who ever lived here. We can’t wait to welcome all the things you want to share about that family: the languages you speak, your favorite comfort food, the funny inside jokes you have, the pet name your aunty calls you.
We can’t wait to welcome all our boys and girls (no matter who someone said they were when they were first born) and all our campers who aren’t boys or girls! We are excited for you to show up just as you are with all of the fun quirks and special sauce that make you you. We trust you when you say who you are. And we love creating lots of space for you to still be figuring that out too.
At camp we know that every group of people is equally full of goodness or “Light” even though we are not all the same. By respecting each other's differences (and being open to the places we might be more similar than we thought!) we can learn from each other and have fun in new ways. We are excited for you to bring all the things you’ve learned from whoever your people are.
At camp we want to celebrate the awesomeness that comes in bodies of all different shapes and sizes, and in minds of all different types and styles. We all challenge ourselves to do new things, knowing that what is hard for one person might be easy for another and vice versa. But all of us bring gifts to the community that only we can bring and the community wouldn’t be the same without each one of us.
Because of all that, we are excited to welcome you, each one of you, and all parts of you. We can’t wait for the community you will help us create together!
With so much love,
The BYM Camp Directors:
Dyresha (CQC), Brick (OQC), Hope (SQC), Rosie, and Jesse (TA)
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How to help
See: bymcamps.org
- Encourage kids aged 9-14 to sign up for camp. There is a sliding-scale for registration fees and RFM has additional scholarships available. Encourage your non-Quaker friends to sign up their kids too!
- If your child is already signed up, you can earn $200 by referring other kids who sign up for camp.
- Sign up for Spring Work Days. The one at Shiloh Quaker Camp is the first Saturday in May.
- Donate to BYM Camps scholarships or to RFM scholarships.
- Ask how else you can help: Anna Best and Al Best are the RFM contacts.
by WebPost | Apr 12, 2025 | Building and Grounds, Meeting House
Join f/Friends to spruce up the meetinghouse on Saturday, May 3, 9-12. There's a task for every age and ability! Contact Ada Hammer with any questions.
by WebPost | Apr 12, 2025 | Activity, Building and Grounds, Clearing
The Clearing Building & Grounds Committee invites Richmond Meeting members and attenders to join us at The Clearing to prepare for the 2023 season and for our annual RFM Spring Retreat (which will be at The Clearing). This is a great opportunity to spend some time getting to know folks in Meeting and getting to know The Clearing. Please mark your calendars and join us if you're able! All levels of ability are welcome; families and children encouraged to participate! The next date is:
Saturday May 10
Each workday will start at 9:00 am and go to about 3:00 pm (give or take an hour), depending on what jobs we have to get done that day.
Some of the things we will be working on include Clearing campsites and trails, replacing some signage around the property, sweeping out the Pavilion (floors, cabinets, cobwebs on the ceiling, etc.), and spreading gravel on the path between the large cabin and the Lodge.
Stuff you might consider bringing:
· Your lunch! And maybe some snacks and/or any beverage you want beyond the water that is available at The Clearing
· Clothes that you don't mind getting dirty; wear layers that you can put on or take off depending on the temperature.
· Sturdy shoes or boots
· A hat
· Work gloves
· Bug repellant
· Sunscreen
· Tools, if you have them
Although Clearing Buildings & Grounds Committee members will bring our extra tools to share. The following might be useful: rakes, clippers, loppers or shears for trimming vegetation, a hammer, and tools for digging up roots (very useful for preventing vegetation from growing back in campsites and trails as quickly).
Anyone with questions is welcome to call Al Best or Ted Heck with questions. Also, please call or email either of us to RSVP so we can plan our work.
by WebPost | Mar 18, 2025 | Activity, Baltimore Yearly Meeting
Quaker Camps
We encourage all those interested in attending camp to register as soon as possible since camps fill up. Children who do not attend Quaker meetings are welcome to attend camps as well, so children may invite their friends and cousins! C&C has $500 for every child who attends. Please contact Anna Best or Al Best if you have any questions about Quaker camps.
Celebrating Neurodiversity
April 13th, 2:00-3:00pm EDT on Zoom
“How do we as Quakers welcome and support families and children living with neurodiversity?”
Mary Mendez-Bonnell
Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/630795763
Passcode: Friends
To call in by phone: 929-205-6099; Meeting ID: 630-795-763