For the schedule of upcoming events, see the list below. For the monthly Queries, see June: Reaching Out. (The blue text on this page and within this web site contains embedded hypertext links. Click on a link to open the web page associated with that link.)
Announcements
We gather in our Meeting House for Silent Worship at 10 am on Sundays. Twice a month, on the first and the third Sundays, we will have Hybrid Silent Worship, which will be both on Zoom and in-person at the Meeting House. When the weather is poor we may hold worship over Zoom instead of gathering at the Meeting House; watch your email for an alert.
Our First Day School for children is open, with a varied schedule of classes on Zoom or in person in the First Day School. We are also holding online meetings, spiritual discussions, book discussions and yoga on Zoom. For details on using Zoom, see our Zoom guidelines.
June 2023 Reno Friends Meeting Schedule
Sun. June 4 – Hybrid Silent Worship (on Zoom and In-Person), 10 am (details)
Mon. June 5 – Expense reimbursement requests for PacYM due (details)
Sun. June 11 – In-Person Silent Worship, 10 am (details)
Sun. June 11 – Zoom First Day School, 10 am (details)
Sun. June 11 – Zoom Meeting for Business, 12:30 pm (NOTE START TIME) (details)
Tues. June 13 – RFM Book Club on Zoom, 4-5 pm (details)
Wed. June 14 – Embodying the Light on Zoom, 10-11 am (details)
Thurs. June 15 – In-Person Brown Bag Lunch, with hosts Melanie and Peg, 12 noon (details)
Fri. June 16 – First Day School Field Trip to the Stewart Indian School Museum, 11 a.m. (details)
Sun. June 18 – Hybrid Silent Worship (in-person and on Zoom), 10 am (details)
Sun. June 25 – In-Person Silent Worship, 10 am (details)
Sun. June 25 – In-Person First Day School, 10 am (details)
Sun. June 25 – Potluck, 11:30 am (details)
Tues. June 27 – Zoom Spiritual Discussion on “Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business,” with Wendy Swallow, 7-8 pm (details)
Other Important Dates
July 21st – 26th: PacYM Annual Session July 21st – 26th, at Mount Madonna Center (near Watsonville, CA.) Some activities will also be available online. (details)
Reno Friends Meeting Event Details & Other Notices
Join Us for Silent Worship in the Meeting House Every Sunday, or for Zoom Hybrid Worship, 1st and 3rd Sundays
Reno Friends Meeting holds Silent Worship in the Meeting House every Sunday at 10 am, with fellowship afterwards. On First and Third Sundays, we hold Hybrid Worship — and you may join us either in person or online via Zoom. You can read more about our setup here. For Hybrid Silent Worship on Zoom, we have developed a set of Zoom Worship guidelines. Here is the recurring Zoom link for Hybrid Silent Worship:
https://zoom.us/j/98305205938?pwd=cDZseGdLbWMyYWZsZDdiN00rMjRUZz09
If you would prefer to sit in Silent Worship quietly at home rather than joining us online with Zoom, we invite you to send after-thoughts, joys and concerns, and requests to hold people in the Light to Rhonda at classes(at)renofriends.org. Our worship clerk will read them at the next Silent Worship.
First Day School: Sun. June 11 on Zoom, 10-11 am; and Sun. June 25 In-Person, 10-11 am.
First Day School meets in Zoom classes on the second Sunday of the month, and in person on the fourth Sunday/Potluck Sunday. On in-person Sundays, the children sit in worship with their parents for the first ten to fifteen minutes of Silent Worship, before joining their class in the First Day School building. The current theme for First Day School is “Growing in the Light.” Please contact the Meeting if you are interested in bringing children to the First Day School for the first time or would like to have your children attend First Day School on a Sunday other than the second or fourth Sundays. You can email us at firstdayschool(at)renofriends.org.
The Reno Friends Book Club, Tues. June 13, from 4-5 pm
The RFM Book Club meets monthly on second Tuesdays, from 4-5 pm on Zoom. Our book for June is A Door into Ocean by Joan Slonczewsk; A pacifist all-women moon colony deals with armed invaders.
https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780312876524/adoorintoocean
Science fiction; 417 pages; Kindle version available; available inexpensively used.
Our next book selections are:
July 2023: The Last Runaway, by Tracy Chevalier; https://www.tchevalier.com/8-thelastrunaway/101-the-last-runaway-2 A Quaker woman works on the Underground Railway. Fiction, 320 pages, Kindle available.
August 2023: The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World, by Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, Douglas Carlton Abrams
September, 2023: Sand in a Whirlwind: The Paiute Indian War of 1860 by Ferol Egan https://unpress.nevada.edu/9780874170979/. Using a combination of historical fact and fictional dialog, Ferol Egan has captured the dramatic events of the Paiute Indian War of 1860. History, 280 pages plus references for a total of 360 pages, in print and widely available used; any edition will do. Kindle available but is a little expensive.
October, 2023: The Quakers: A Very Short Introduction by Ben Pink Dandelion; https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-quakers-a-very-short-introduction-9780199206797
Nonfiction; 142; Kindle version available; available used.
Discussion questions or queries for the group can be sent to the the book club moderator at bookclub(at)renofriends.org. The Zoom link for the gathering will be sent out in the RFM Weekly Update email.
Embodying the Light: Wed. June 14 on Zoom, 10-11 am NOTE: There is no class Wed. June 28.
Rhonda Ashurst leads our “Embodying the Light” class of gentle yoga and Tai Chi/Qigong as a service to Reno Friends and the community. The class is usually held on Zoom from 10-11 am, on second and fourth Wednesday mornings. This month, there is only one Zoom session: Wed. June 14. Rhonda will be unavailable later in the month, so there will be no class on Wed. June 28. The Zoom link will be sent in the Weekly Update. See our webpage for more details or to try the video (at the bottom of the page) of the class for your practice at home.
Brown Bag Lunch, Thurs. June 15, at 12 noon
Join hosts Peg McCall and Melanie Scott for an in-person Brown Bag Lunch at the Meeting House on Thurs. June 15 at 12 noon. Anyone who wants to share lunch and fellowship with other Reno Friends is welcome.
Zoom Spiritual Discussion: Tues. June 27, “Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business,” 7-8 pm
RFM’s spiritual discussions are currently exploring Quakerism 101, a program to learn more about Quaker faith and practice. On June 27, we will be discussing “Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business,” with Wendy Swallow. For our Quakerism 101 series, we are using a curriculum developed by the Chapel Hill Friends of North Carolina: https://www.chapelhillfriends.org/Q101.html.
For the spiritual discussions, we meet for an hour on 4th Tuesdays from 7-8 pm on Zoom and cover what we can during that time, continuing on in the next month’s session. Each month we have a different topic and some brief readings, with a volunteer facilitator to summarize the readings and pose queries for discussion. If you can, please read the assigned readings (they are all online — see link, above) and come prepared to discuss the material. It is not necessary to attend every session in this ongoing series; please drop in as you can.
Upcoming Spiritual Discussions are:
July 25: Clearness Committees (Edie)
Aug. 22: Quaker Faith in Action (Rhonda and Doug)
If you have questions, please email them to classes(at)renofriends.org. The Zoom links, session topics, and background info for each topic will be sent out in the RFM Weekly Updates. The Spiritual Discussion Committee includes: Rhonda Ashurst, Earl Piercy, Catie Polley and Cliff Smith. The committee welcomes your ideas/topics, and encourages you to join us to facilitate a topic of interest to you.
First Day School Field Trip: The Stewart Indian School Museum, Fri. June 17. Meet there at 11 am.
An intergenerational activity has been planned by the First Day School: A visit to the Stewart Indian School Museum in Carson City on Friday June 16, at 11 am. All Reno Friends are welcome and encouraged to join the children for the field trip.
The museum opened in 2020 to tell the dark and complicated story of this military-type government school that forcibly took Indian children away from their families in order to assimilate and educate them into white ways and the English language. The school was open from 1890 to 1980. To read more, go to this article in the Reno Gazette Journal about the Stewart Indian School Museum.
Friends interested in joining the field trip can meet up at the Museum (in the old school building) at 11 am. The school address is 1 Jacobsen Way, Carson City, NV 89701. Carpooling is up to individuals to coordinate. The Stewart Indian School Museum is holding a special Fathers’ Day Pow Wow the weekend of June 16-17. The Grand Entry for the Pow Wow is scheduled for 6:30 pm on Friday.
The Meeting hosted the screening of a video about the Stewart Indian School called “Home of the Braves” on Sunday May 28, after potluck. If you missed our showing of the video, you can watch it on YouTube via the above link.
As a related activity, the RFM Book Club will read Sand in a Whirlwind: The Paiute Indian War of 1860 by Ferol Egan for the book club’s Tues. Sept. 12 discussion from 4-5 pm. And the RFM Spiritual Discussion team will host a tie-in conversation, “Seeking Right Relationship with Native Americans,” on Tues. Oct. 24, from 7 to 8 pm. We plan to show the Paula Palmer video The Quaker Indian Boarding Schools: Facing our History and Ourselves on a Sunday at the Meeting House prior to the spiritual discussion. (You may also watch the video on YouTube via the link above.) Stay tuned for updates and for readings and queries on this important topic.
Donating to Reno Friends in 2023
If you would like to support Reno Friends Meeting, donations can be sent to our Meeting Treasurer Charlie Shepard at his home at 4395 Mountaingate Dr., Reno, NV, 89519. Or you can send money to the Meeting via your bank using the zelle payment application, which most banks offer for free. To make a Zelle transfer, you’ll need Reno Friends’ bank account number, which you can get by emailing treasurer(at)renofriends.org. Zelle eliminates the need to write a check and, for our Treasurers, the need to deposit your check at the bank. Thank you from Reno Friends!
Quaker Earthcare Witness
Those who support Quaker Earthcare Witness, a Quaker-led environmental group, say they believe it is important for Quakers to have a place to share concerns about the planet within the context of Quaker values, while also being cared for. One member said: “It is inspiring to be a small part of a community of Earthcare activists.” If you’ve enjoyed and benefited from reading BeFriending Creation this year, please consider making a donation to support our efforts. In peace, Hayley Hathaway, Editor, BeFriending Creation
For suggestions of books recommended by Quaker Earthcare Witness, click here: https://www.quakerearthcare.org/article/qews-favorite-books
Carson City Worship Group
The Carson City worship group meets every Sunday of the month for unprogrammed worship from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm in the living room of the Rectory of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Carson City. Attenders are asked to wear a mask. St. Peter’s, located at 314 North Division Street, occupies a small city block in the heart of Carson City’s Historic District. The Rectory, an historic two-story brick house, sits just south of the church building. If anyone would like to be connected to the Carson group, just email clerk(at)renofriends.org.
Quaker Mission Stamp Project
Your canceled stamps are needed! Read about it here! https://rswr.org/sites/default/files/Newsletters/2022-Q1-Newsletter.pdf Reno Friends Meeting has been supporting Right Sharing of World Resources for decades. Learn how this Quaker organization helps women in Sierra Leon, Kenya, India and before too long, Guatemala, support themselves, which in turn helps their families and villages.
Outside Non-Profits That Meet at the Quaker Meeting House
NOTE: These groups are negotiating their return to our Meeting House. Please contact the groups directly for updates.
Adult Children of Alcoholics and Dysfunctional Families meets every Thursday from 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm, and every Saturday from 5 pm to 6 pm. ACA is a world service 12-step program for those struggling with the legacy of growing up in an alcoholic or dysfunctional home. These groups are open to all.
Citizens Climate Lobby of Northern Nevada works with local and national legislators to pass a carbon tax and dividend to help stop global warming. CCL meets the 4th Tuesday of the month, 6:30 to 8 pm (except for Dec.). For more info, email Betsy Fadali at bfadali(at)sbcglobal.net. Feel free to bring friends and neighbors, if they are interested. For more on CCL, go to www.citizensclimatelobby.org.
Other Quaker Activities & Announcements
Pacific Yearly Meeting Annual Session 2023, July 21-26, Mount Madonna Center, near Watsonville, CA
Pacific Yearly Meeting’s Annual Session 2023 will be a hybrid event (in-person gathering with opportunities for remote or online participation) held at Mount Madonna Center near Watsonville, CA, July 21-26, 2023. The theme for Annual Session 2023 will be: “Beloved Community Part II: Centering the Voices of the Next Generation.” Read the clerk’s call here. PacYM has decided to make Annual Session FREE for kids this year, and many Monthly Meetings are encouraging Young Friends to participate.
Reno Friends Meeting’s official representatives to CPQM & PacYM are eligible for reimbursement for some travel expenses, as are families with children and young adults. To be reimbursed, you must make a written proposal to RFM Business Meeting before your intended travel. For those interested in attending PacYM’s Annual Session (July 21 to 26), and being reimbursed under RFM’s policy, you will need to submit your proposal to the clerk and the treasurer by Mon. June 5, so that it can be considered at the June 11 Meeting for Business. (RFM does not hold Business Meeting in July.) See your email for details on RFM’s reimbursement policy.
Pacific Yearly Meeting is a community of “unprogrammed” Friends (Quaker) Meetings in parts of Mexico and the western USA. After decades of independence, PYM recently became affiliated with Friends General Conference. In FGC there is another PYM, Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, so Pacific Yearly Meeting is now known as PacYM instead. Reno Monthly Meeting is a member of PacYM, and uses the PacYM book Faith and Practice which sets out the beliefs of Friends, PacYM’s structures and processes, and the spiritual foundation of these processes and of our way of worship. Western Friend is the official publication of Quakers in Pacific, North Pacific, and Intermountain Yearly Meetings. PacYM is a year-round community, and holds a four-day summer gathering called “PacYM Annual Session.”
Ben Lomond Quaker Center, Ben Lomond, CA
Ben Lomond Quaker Center has posted its 2023 calendar of programs and retreats. Programs include daily online Silent Worship (7:30-8 am) and Wednesday morning online Worship Sharing (10-11:30 am), go to http://www.quakercenter.org.
Camp Woolman at Sierra Friends Center
The Woolman at Sierra Friends Center has released its Winter 2022/Spring 2023 Programs for children, adults, and intergenerational. Information can be found at woolman.org by selecting the “View Upcoming Events” link on the home page at the bottom right. Programs include art workshops, archery and disc golf workshops, one and two-week residential camp sessions, writers retreat, activist workshops, book discussion group [no cost], community potlucks [no cost], and first responder certification course. In addition, the Center is offering Friends a 20% discount on accommodations for a personal or a group retreat. For questions or to book a stay, contact Shannon Boling at shannonb (at) woolman.org.
Write for What Canst Thou Say?
Tell us your stories! What Canst Thou Say? (WCTS) is an independent publication co-operatively produced by Friends with an interest in mystical experience and contemplative practice. WCTS is a worship-sharing group in print. We hope to help Friends be tender and open to the Spirit. Articles that best communicate to our readers are those that focus on specific events and are written in the first person. We welcome submissions of articles less than 1500 words and artwork suitable for black and white reproduction. It is published in February, May, August, and November. The editorial and production team is Muriel Dimock, Lissa Field, Mariellen Gilpin, Judy Lumb, Grayce Mesner, Mike Resman, Earl Smith, Eleanor Warnock, and Rhonda Ashurst.
Reno Friends are welcome to email submissions to Rhonda Ashurst at classes (at) renofriends.org. Please send your text submissions in Word or generic text format, and artwork in high-resolution jpeg files. Photocopied art and typed submissions are also accepted. All authors and artists retain copyright to their articles and artwork published in WCTS. WCTS retains the right to publish initially and to reprint in WCTS anthologies.
Reno Friends Newsletter: How To Contribute
Submissions: Please submit your items for the newsletter by the 25th of the month for inclusion in the following month’s newsletter. Send Friends events and information to Reno Friends newsletter editor Wendy Swallow, wswallow54 (at) gmail.com.
Getting the newsletter in the mail: If you need to receive your newsletter by postal mail, please notify RFM newsletter editor Wendy Swallow by emailing wswallow54 (at) gmail.com or calling 775-473-5559.
Subscribing and Unsubscribing: We use the same email list for all our communications, including the monthly newsletter and the weekly email update.
- To subscribe to our email list, attend Silent Worship with us either virtually or in person and be sure that we get your email address. Add the address “update (at) renofriends.org” to your email address book to help keep our email from going in to your spam folder. If email from us still goes into your spam folder, go into your spam folder, find the email from us, and mark it as “not SPAM.”
- To unsubscribe to the mailing list, email clerk (at) renofriends.org with the subject line “unsubscribe.”
Reno Friends Monthly Meeting (Quakers)
497 Highland Avenue
Reno, NV 89512