February 17, 2008, 8:30 AM
Westtown Meeting House

- Reading of the Minutes from January 20, 2008.
- Silent Worship

Friends to Hold in the Light

• Katherine and Don Byerly
• Ted Harrison
• Mitch Beaver's mother.

Announcements:

• Thanks to Elson Oshman Blunt for taking Minutes.
• Today’s Meeting Potluck Lunch and Welcome to new members.
• Mosque Trip for First Day School 2/24/08. Gather at 10:30 and return by 2:15. All are welcome to join the group – contact Ginny Sutton for details.
• Marcia Praeger comes April 13 to teach us about Jewish prayer traditions.
• Philadelphia Yearly March Sessions: Peace.
• Sun March 16 1-3pm at Birmingham: listening session for Arch Street Meeting.
• April 19-20: Concord Quarterly overnight Youth Gathering at West Chester Meeting.
• See black notebook for other announcements.

Correspondence:

• Devin Turner has sent a letter indicating his wish to join the Meeting, along with an essay reflecting on Meeting for Worship. Kevin Gallagher, Tom Haviland, Denis Asselin, and Anne Wood will serve on his Clearness Committee.
• Letter to Phil Guenther and Noreen Greimann about lights, outlets, and the possibility of renovating the storage room with exposed steam pipe to avoid locking it up. Architect’s letter available with details.
• Letter to Christine Yeh. She will remain a member here until she finds a Meeting in CA.
• Emails with Elisabeth Baird and QLP regarding use of Meetinghouse for overnight accommodations for Friends School Day of the Earth conference attendees April 25-26.
• Letter from John McKinstry proposing to raise money for a scholarship for Amar, a potential Westtown student from Iraq. We approved a response of general approval for the initiative and request to know the amount of money needed.
• Hello from Earl Fowler. earllf@gmail.com.

Old Business:

• Joyce Colket’s Clearness Committee met and had a wonderful conversation. We noted that this (and many of the other new requests for membership) have come about in response to letters Kevin sent to attenders. We noted Joyce’s longstanding participation in the life of the Meeting. The committee recommends that Joyce be welcomed as a member, and the Meeting approved this recommendation.
• Linda & Melissa McCourt’s Clearness Committee met and had a deep and meaningful conversation. Denis expressed interest in finding additional ways to generate the kind of deep conversations inspired by Clearness Committees. The Meeting approved the committee’s recommendation enthusiastically.
• Pastoral Care & Concerns Committee Report. Appreciation to Ginny for organizing the trip to the mosque and discussion of details. Solicitation of Meeting members not on the committee to participate in the Buddy System. Kevin will send out an email, or contact Marc Dear if you are interested. Discussion of electronic games in and after First Day School. Recommendation that Marc speak with the individuals involved one-on-one. Discussion of making sure logistical details of trips and activities are fully organized; Kevin to write an email reminders of this. Denis reported that the Three Cups of Tea Potluck was a success with good attendance.
• Report on Concord Quarterly Meeting 1/27/08: Laurie reported on the Concord quarterly meeting QUIT initiative to end torture. It would be nice to see other members going to the quarterly meetings. Next quarterly meeting is at Birmingham at 8:15 with Godly Play as the subject. Contact Laurie if you’re interested in joining her and Peter.
• Report on discussion about PYM’s “Recommendations for Quarterly Meeting Project Suggestions” Peter gave a report from the PYM support and outreach steering committee. One request they are making of individual Meetings: they would like to know earlier in the year what money they will receive from individual Meetings. Another change: now they will solicit reports from monthly meetings every other year instead of every year.
• Treasurer’s Report. There is extra money in the budget due to a lack of requests for scholarships.
• Iraqi family is no longer in need of furniture.

New Business:

• Students arriving late to Sunday Meeting. Kevin will have a conversation with the Religious Life Committee about how to address this concern.
• Do we want to have another plant sale? Think about it and we will return to this conversation.

After a period of worship we adjourned. Next meeting on the third Sunday of March, 3/16/2008.

Respectfully Submitted,

Elson Oshman Blunt
Substitute Recording Clerk