Putney Friends Meeting

Words and Music

Two local artists are joining forces with words and music for a poetry reading with violin interludes on June 18th, Saturday at 1 pm.

Gudrun Weeks, violinist and Lynn Martin, poet, will be reading in Marlboro at 355 Upper Dover Road in the barn of Edie Mas (second place on the left after leaving Higley Hill). Visitors are asked to bring a folding chair if they can or a cushion to sit on the floor.

Gudrun says, “We two met in the West Brattleboro Quaker Worship Group. We had fun together reading Lynn’s poetry and seeing what idea that set off in me for my choice of music and Lynn’s reaction to that. There is no close connection between the two, just enjoying the partnership. We asked a third Quaker, Edie Mas, to host the happening in her barn up in Marlboro. It feels like a supportive, complimentary relationship.”

Gudrun was formerly a Marlboro resident, having built a house on Lucier Road with Larry Gay, teacher at the college and their two children. She taught solfege there under Blanche Moyse and was part of the founding of the Brattleboro Music School. In the seventies she also played in the Vermont Symphony and its quartet, giving school concerts. In the sixties she helped to form the Eugene Symphony and was its concert mistress. Earlier she taught at Putney School and played in the Kansas City Philharmonic after a year in the National Training Orchestra in NYC. While at Sarah Lawrence College she studied under Dorothy DeLay and Robert Koff from Juilliard. Previously she spent a year in Munich at the Conservatory.

Lynn has lived in Brattleboro for many years. You can view her work on poetlynn.com <http://poetlynn.com>. She has three books of poetry: Visible Signs of Defiance, Talking to the Day and Birds of a Feather.

“Lynn comes to poetry from a working class background. Her verse contains a raw truthfulness uncontaminated by privilege. Lynn’s style compliments that of the state of Vermont: sharp lines, a tough backbone, and an aesthetic the quality of moss.” Meg Mott. Marlboro College

06/04/2016

Member Activities

Gudrun Weeks, Lynn Martin, poet, violinist, West Brattleboro Quaker Worship Group
“Exploring the Quaker Way”

Our own Steve Chase visited and worshiped with us at Putney Friends Meeting this weekend. He informed us of this new online learning opportunity offered by him at Pendle Hill.

“The goals of this course are to help seekers, attenders, and interested members of Friends meetings: 1) deepen their understanding of the Quaker movement; 2) better understand the spiritual journey common among early and current Quakers; 3) reflect on their own spiritual journeys within this spiritual tradition; and 4) become more familiar with several key elements of building vibrant and caring Quaker meetings.”

“Exploring the Quaker Way”

A Pendle Hill Quaker Studies Online Summer Course

June 5 through August 28, 2016

“Exploring the Quaker Way” is an extended online course for people who want to learn more about the simple, radical, and contemporary spiritual path of Quakers.

Click here for more info and sign up!

05/17/2016

Steve Chase

online learning, Pendle Hill

Embracing Change – Growing and Strengthening Quaker Communities

I’m inspired by Friends’ excitement. I’ve only been FGC’s Spiritual Deepening Coordinator for two months, and already I’ve heard from so many Friends about how excited they are to bring the Spiritual Deepening program to their meeting.

I know that many of you are eager to get started on outreach and building a deeper spiritual community in your meeting. I’m excited to share a few resources that you can use today:

Working on outreach? The Grow Our Meetings Toolkit includes resources and activities to help Friends at your meeting get to know each other and newcomers on a deeper level
Looking for an outside perspective?Check out FGC’s list of Friends willing to travel to help with outreach, conflict, mentoring a new meeting, and inclusion
Searching for Religious Education ideas? Start with activity pages for children, or explore the selection at QuakerBooks

These resources are made possible thanks to your generous financial support. Please consider donating today!

In the Spirit,

Rachel Ernst Stahlhut
Spiritual Deepening CoordinatorPS – You can also s ign up for updates on the Spiritual Deepening Program, which will launch in the fall.

05/10/2016

FGC

embracing change, FGC

Quiet Please

Can a Quaker Meeting be quiet enough? Putney Friends Meeting has been working towards sound remediation in the Worship space over the past few years. With so many wood surfaces, the sound of voices was very reverberant and it was difficult at times to hear vocal testimony.

This week Brent, Ken, Chris and Roger installed acoustic panels to control the amount of echo. Many thanks to all who contributed to this project.

05/03/2016

Member Activities

Putney Friends Meeting, Quiet Please
WE ARE FREE OF THE PIPELINE!

Woolman Hill Quaker Retreat Center

“Energy giant Kinder Morgan Inc. has suspended additional work and spending on its Northeast Energy Direct project, a controversial natural gas pipeline proposed through Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

Kinder Morgan said on Wednesday that the company didn’t receive the extra commitments from big customers that it needed to proceed with the $3.3 billion project. As a result, Kinder Morgan said in a statement, ‘there are currently neither sufficient volumes, nor a reasonable expectation of securing them, to proceed with the project as it is currently configured.’”

http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2016/04/20/kinder-morgan-shelves-billion-new-england-pipeline-project/iEafnAP2P41o0B9tmM0lEI/story.html

SO MANY THANKS TO ALL WHO WORKED TO OPPOSE THE PIPELINE.

Margaret

Margaret Cooley

Executive Director

Woolman Hill Quaker Retreat Center

04/21/2016

Wider Quaker World

New England Pipeline, Woolman Hill
Race: the Power of an Illusion – The differences between us

Justice and Peace Committee of Putney Friends Meeting presents a Film and Discussion series on Racism

All are welcome to this opportunity to watch the films together, consider the history of racism, particularly in the USA, consider what white privilege is for those of us who are white, and pursue conversations on race and racism with one another.

Friday evenings from 7 to 8:30 at the Meeting house

Friday, April 22^nd – Race: the Power of an Illusion – The differences between us. Facilitated by Nancy Shepherd

Friday, May 6^th– Race: the Power of an Illusion – the story we tell. Facilitated by Gail Haines

Friday, May 20^th – Race: the Power of an Illusion – The house we live in. Facilitated by Sandy Lynn

Friday, June 3^rd – Last Chance for Eden, part 1 – Conversations around race and racism. Facilitated by Mike Mrowicki

Please join us. For questions contact the Justice and Peace Committee.

04/10/2016

Member Activities

Putney Friends Meeting, Race: the Power of an Illusion, Social Justice Film Series
DayTreat
If you serve your Meeting or Quarter

on Ministry & Counsel, Ministry & Worship, Worship & Oversight

or Pastoral Care Committee
or you work on outreach
or adult religious education or spiritual formation
or clearness, support, or oversight/accountability committeesThat’s part of the multi-faceted work that is Ministry & Counsel!

So, you’re invited to a

DayTreat

provided by your Yearly Meeting Ministry & Counsel Committee

at Smithfield Friends Meeting, Smithfield, Rhode Island

Saturday, May 7 from 9:30 to 3:00

What’s a DayTreat?
- This may seem obvious, but it’s one day away from your worldly life when we, from YM M&C, take care of you. We’ll bring the food and drink. We’ll provide childcare. We’ll do the cleanup. Be our guests!
- It’s a chance to get together because we do the work of caring for our meetings’ spiritual lives. We’ll share our hopes and joys as well as our challenges and problems.
- It’ll be a time for learning from and supporting one another – finding community in our work and recharging our spiritual batteries.
So –

No need to rsvp. If you have questions, or there’s some topic you’d like to have us try to include, contact Sarah Spencer, 617-965-7042, spencertaber@verizon.net

And –

We’ll provide childcare. No need to call ahead, but if you can let us know how many children of what ages to expect that’s a real help. Contact Allison Randall, 603-654-2179 allisonjoyful1@netzero.com

Unless you need a special diet (other than vegan or vegetarian) there’s no need to pack a lunch. We’re bringing soup, munchies and drinks.
04/01/2016

Uncategorized

Restorative Justice Opportunities

Following you will find two upcoming restorative justice opportunities;

Pendle Hill

Beyond Crime and Punishment: Fostering Transformative Justice in Community

We envision a world where people who offend are not caged, exiled, and stigmatized for life, where public school children aren’t fodder for the school-to-prison pipeline, and where historic intergenerational wounds are acknowledged and healed.

Such a world is already in the making and looking for our support.

“Restorative justice is a process to involve, to the extent possible, those who have a stake in a specific offence and to collectively identify and address harms, needs and obligations, in order to heal and put things as right as possible.” —Howard Zehr, The Little Book of Restorative Justice

A Conference for Inspiration, Education, Networking, and Action
Mar 10-13, 2016

Special guests: Kay Pranis, Joy DeGruy, Rev. Nelson and Joyce Johnson, Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz, and many others!

Click to register online.

Introduction to Restorative Practices in Schools

Click to visit.

02/22/2016

Social Justice

Pendle Hill, restorative justice, vermont learning collaborative
Kay Frazer Memorial

MEMORIAL INFORMATION: There will be a memorial gathering at the Putney Friends Meeting House on Saturday, Feb. 20, at 1 p.m. Donations to the Putney Friends Meeting, in care of Treasurer, Putney, VT 05346.

• Katherine (Kay) R. Frazer, 92, of Saxtons River. Died Jan. 28. Wife of the late Grant Frazer. Mother of Dr. James E. Frazer and his wife, Sharon, of Mishawaka, Ind., and Susan R. Frazer-Stebbins of Saxtons River. Sister of the late Allen Webster. Also survived by five grandchildren and seven great- grand-children. Born in Hazlet, N.J., daughter of the late Angelo M. and Madeline R. (Young) Webster, after her local education, she actively pursued her higher education in medicine and divinity. She graduated from Temple University and Methodist Teaching Hospital in Philadelphia. It was while she was in Philadelphia that she met the love of her life and equal, Grant, and they were married there in 1954. His teaching career brought the family to Saxtons River in 1960, where they would make their permanent home. She would always say how lucky she was to live in the beauty of Vermont. In 1965, seeing a need in the community for seniors and shut-ins to have a social outlet, Kay formed “Club 39.” The Christmas parties she would host for the club were the talk of the town and highly anticipated. Also during the 1960s she worked at the local hospital and for a local physician. She would hear complaints that patients could not be released for the simple reason of monitoring vitals or changing dressings. She proposed to a doctor that “there was no reason a nurse couldn’t go into a home and do these things.” Hence was born the Visiting Nurse Association out of a tiny office in Charlestown, N.H. In retirement, she was instrumental in the founding of Our Place Drop In Center, and volunteered at Parks Place Community Resource. She was a very devoted and active member of Putney Friends Meeting, including herself on committees concerning her Quaker Community as well as the community at large. One of her richest late life friendships was with Hattie Reeves Forsythe. The two of them were inseparable as they traveled the globe in their 70s and 80s. Her most important love was that of her family, that they remain close and looked after each other, and that traditions were continued.

02/15/2016

Member Activities

Kay Frazer Memorial