YOUNG FRIENDS GENERAL MEETING (YFGM) Friargate Friends Meeting House, York 20th – 22nd February 2004 Minutes Present:
Co-Clerks: Nessa Williams Treasurer: Jenny Moy
Nick Sturge Convenor of Officers: Vivian Barty-Taylor
Convenor of Nominations Committee: Ellie Colyer Co-Convenors of Overseers: Hannah Leavett
Officer of Outreach: Ruth Wood Guy Milner
Coordinator: Simon Best
Monthly Meeting Representatives:
Southwark, Lewisham & Bromley: John Bacon Bristol & Frenchay: Amanda Headley-White
Colchester & Coggeshall: Hannah Pennock Darlington: Tom Baker
Guisborough: Tom Lightowler Kingston & Wandsworth: Annabella Kroll
Lancaster: Helen Close Luton & Leighton: Claire Morris
North of Scotland: Emma Salt North Wales: Joe Anderson
Purley & Sutton: Luke Waterfield Ratcliff & Barking: Lindsay Caldwell
Reading: Naveed Moeed Shaftesbury & Sherbourne: Sophie Buxton
Warwickshire: Anna Dicker Westminster: Ellen Marshall
West Devon: Hannah Jones York: Emily Ross
Canadian Yearly Meeting: Sarah Dick Ireland Yearly Meeting: Chris McCartney
North Carolina Yearly Meeting (FUM): Betsy Blake Dawn-Marie Rafferty
Quaker Council for European Affairs: Ksharma Pandey Sarah Davies Adam Lee, Aidan McCartney, Anne Norton, Anne Decobert, Bettina White, Bluebell Eikonoklastes, Claire Milne, Ceri Owen, Darrel Spence, Dorian Hadley, Emily Kilburn, Emily Maddison, Eudora Pascall, Heather Rowlands, Helen Harper, Holly Williams, Hugh Williams, Huw Still, James Barnard, Jen Pacey, Jennifer Brett, Jennifer Batten, Jessie Bate, John Fitzgerald, Jonathan Riddell, Joe Coffin, Juliette Stoller, Justine Squire, Laura Proffitt, Leah Watt, Lorena Icasati, Katie Snaith, Mark Russ, Marion Penn, Nick Rendle, Paddy Uglow, Peter Sanderson, Pip Marshall, Rachel Barker, Robin Bloomfield, Robin Vanner, Rowan Burrough, Sally Nicholls, Sarah Castle, Sarah Donaldson, Simon Gray, Thomas Rowlands, Zephyr Wood TOTAL: 81
04/01 Opening Minute We welcome each other to a new year and a new venue: Friargate Friends Meeting House in York. We are greatly saddened by the death of our Friend Sarah Freeman who was a valued member of our meeting – she will be much in our thoughts this weekend. We look forward to spending time together when we may reach deep levels of understanding, sharing sorrowful and joyful times. Our meeting is enriched by our enquirers gathering, and we also particularly welcome those with us from oversees: Sarah Dick from Canadian Yearly Meeting, Betsy Blake from North Carolina Yearly Meeting (Friends United Meeting), Chris McCartney and Dawn-Marie Rafferty from Ireland Yearly Meeting and Sarah Davies and Ksharma Pandey from the Quaker Council for European Affairs.
04/02 2004 Budget Jenny Moy, our treasurer, has prepared us a budget for 2004, a copy of which is attached. We approve this budget and thank Jenny and Finance Committee for their work in preparing this on our behalf. 04/03 Officers, Overseers and Quintessential Weekend Report Guy Milner has given us a brief report on this weekend which was held in December in Leeds. This was a useful opportunity for reflection, particularly on the restructuring process YFGM is undergoing. We note that this will be the last of these weekends as in future the planning weekends will also be opportunities for these three groups to meet.
04/04 Mental Health Appeal
Our Appeal Group have led us through some valuable exercises looking at our knowledge of Mental Health issues, how our environment affects our mood, and how we respond to people who are mentally unwell. It was a lively session and we appreciated the opportunity to share, explore, and challenge ourselves personally in some of the issues which our appeal has been focusing on.
04/05 Quaker Action on Alcohol and Drugs
We thank Helena Chambers, project coordinator for Quaker Action on Alcohol and Drugs, for joining us to share with us how her research into Quaker attitudes around substance use and gambling has been going. She also thanked us for our help in May 2002 with her questionnaire. We look forward to seeing the booklet for Meetings about her studies that she is planning to produce.
04/06 Interchurch/Interfaith Report
Nick Rendle has spoken to us movingly of his spiritual journey as he carried out the position of Interchurch/Interfaith Secretary. It was a story that told of joyful times, of feeling daunted and of being profoundly inspired. As we move outside of the comfortable security of our Meetings and the Society of Friends, we are challenged as we meet others on different spiritual paths. Nick talked about embracing the process of dialogue, meeting others in openness and truth, and being able to find commonality whilst acknowledging those times where agreement just cannot be reached. Nick felt that Quakers bring a unique angle on the discussion of unity in interchurch dialogue, as we share our belief that Theology grows out of working together for social justice, revealing that of God in ourselves and others. Quakers do not have a creed to subscribe to, so for dialogue to take place, we are first challenged to answer the question “What can I say I believe?” As Nick journeyed along his spiritual path, at times struggling to answer that question, he was a true ambassador of YFGM, living a faith that cannot be pinned down in words but is something to engage in and wrestle with. We acknowledge the value of his dialogue, which challenges us to step outside our comfortable routines and encounter the divine in other paths and other places.
04/07 Volunteers We thank the following people for volunteering to help in the following ways at the next YFGM in Liverpool 30th April – 3rd May 2004: Naveed Moeed Sally Nicholls
Caterers
Emily Maddison
Adam Lee Pan transport
To be confirmed Off-floor Accommodation
04/08 Nominations We appoint the following people to serve in the following posts for the periods mentioned. We release from service those mentioned, warmly thanking them for their work on our behalf.
Position Period Released from service Person Appointed
Meeting for Sufferings 3 years John Fitzgerald
Representative
Fundraiser 3 years David Sunderland
Overseer 2 years Emma Salt Sarah Castle
2 years Hugh Williams Nick Rendle
2 years Sarah Freeeman Tom Rowlands
Co-Convenor of Overseers 1 year Guy Milner Guy Milner reappointed
Quintessential 3 years Hugo Finley Vivian Barty-Taylor
Mental Health Until May David Sunderland
Appeal Group 2004
Pardshaw Committee 3 years Harry Kingham Anne Norton
Living Witness Project Until May 2005 Hannah Jones Joe Anderson
Representative Until May 2005 Rowan Burrough Justine Squire
Outreach Committee 3 years Claire Morris Adam Lee
Interchurch/Interfaith 3 years Mark Russ
Secretary
YQ editor 3 years Hannah Jones Amanda Headley-White
Management Officer 3 years Heather Rowlands
Catering Co-ordinator 3 years Marion Penn
Special Interest 1 year Juliette Stoller
Co-ordinator
Planning Weekend Until May YFGM Darrel Spence
‘Newcomer’ Until May YFGM Jenny Pacey
Until May YFGM Huw Still
Convenor of Officers Vivian Barty-Taylor
Events Treasurer Marion Penn
Crèche Co-ordinator Sowena Nelson
YQ Financial Overseer Until February 2005 Jess Thatcher
Pardshaw Financial Until February 2006 Marion Penn
Overseer
Outreach Financial Until October 2005 Hannah Pennock
Overseer
Convenor of Outreach Until October 2005 Hannah Pennock
Officer of Outreach Ruth Wood
04/09 Minute of Record - Deposit Account We authorise the YFGM Treasurer and Employment Treasurer to combine the deposit accounts of both funds into one account. This may be one of the existing accounts or a new account according to what they decide is most appropriate. The signatories for the deposit account will be: Jenny Moy, Nessa Williams, Nick Sturge.
04/10 Minute of Record
New Trustees Further to Minute 04/08 we have appointed Heather Rowlands and Guy Milner as Officers and Trustees of YFGM for a period of 3 years and 1 year respectively.
04/11 Closing Minute
As we have gathered here in York in friendship and worship our time has been tempered by sadness as many of us grieved for Sarah. We held a special Meeting for Worship on Saturday morning, and supported each other as we remembered her positive outlook on life and her special gift for listening and understanding. During the weekend, we spent more time thinking about how mental health affects us and those around us, we heard from Helena Chambers about the research she did within YFGM on use of substances, and we were moved by the personal report from Nick about Interfaith dialogue. An Enquirers’ Gathering was held alongside our business sessions, and we welcomed the addition of these new faces to our community. This is our last YFGM before we set our ‘radical restructuring’ in place, and we look forward to a new way of carrying out our meetings in future. The post of Convenor of Officers is coming to an end as the restructuring happens, and we thank Vivian Barty-Taylor for the time and energy he has put into making our officers meetings run smoothly and for the time he has spent at YFGM organising volunteers and Special Interest Groups. This will also be Ruth Wood’s last YFGM as Officer of Outreach and we are very grateful for the enormous amount of dedication she has shown on Outreach, both as a committee member and officer over the last five years. As we continue in our daily lives until the next YFGM, we shall bear Sarah in our thoughts and remember how precious and fragile life is, drawing strength from the fellowship and love we find in this community, to live our lives with passion. Signed in and on behalf of Young Friends General Meeting Nick Sturge & Nessa Williams Co-Clerks