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 have Hybrid Silent Worship, which is 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.
For the schedule of upcoming events, see the list below. For the monthly Queries, see October: Peace. (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.)
October 2023 Reno Friends Meeting Schedule
Sun. Oct. 1 – Hybrid Silent Worship (In-Person and on Zoom), 10 am (details)
Sun. Oct. 8 – In-Person Silent Worship, 10 am (details)
Sun. Oct. 8 – In-Person First Day School, 10 am (details)
Sun. Oct. 8 – Zoom Meeting for Business, 12:30 pm (details)
Wed. Oct. 11 – Embodying the Light on Zoom, 10-11 am (details)
Sun. Oct. 15 – Hybrid Silent Worship (In-Person and on Zoom), 10 am (details)
Mon. Oct. 16 – RFM Book Club on Zoom, 5:30-6:30 pm (details)
Thurs. Oct. 19 – In-Person Brown Bag Lunch, 12 noon (details)
Sun. Oct. 22 – In-Person Silent Worship, 10 am (details)
Sun. Oct. 22 – In-Person First Day School, 10 am (details)
Sun. Oct. 22 – Potluck, 11:30 am (details)
Tues. Oct. 24 – Zoom Spiritual Discussion “Seeking Right Relationships with Native Americans,” 7-8 pm (details)
Wed. Oct. 25 – Embodying the Light on Zoom, 10-11 am (details)
Sun. Oct. 29 – In-Person Silent Worship, 10 am (details)
Other Important Dates
Fri. Oct. 13 – Sun. Oct. 15: College Park Fall Quarterly Meeting, Sierra Friends Center, Nevada City, CA.
Announcements
We hold online meetings, spiritual discussions, book discussions and yoga on Zoom throughout the year. For details on using Zoom, see our Zoom guidelines.
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 cannot attend, 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: In-Person Sun. Oct. 8 & 22, 10-11 am.
Our First Day School is back in business this fall, with in-person classes twice a month, on second and fourth Sundays. Children attend their class in the First Day School building and then join their parents for the last ten to fifteen minutes of Silent Worship. 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.
COVID Updates
Wastewater treatment data for Washoe County for the last few months has shown an increase in COVID virus presence. This increase may signal the beginning of a COVID surge, and researchers warn this latest variant may be more contagious that former variants. If you are not feeling well – even if you think it’s just a cold or allergies – we ask that you stay home, even if you are vaccinated. If you test positive for COVID and have attended Silent Worship or another indoor Reno Friends event within the previous two days, please contact clerk (at) renofriends.org.
We do ask that attenders get COVID boosters. Updated influenza and COVID vaccines are now available. A new RSV vaccine is also available. Speak to a medical professional such as a pharmacist or your doctor about which shots are right for you and when you should get them. The insurance coverage rules for COVID vaccines have recently changed; if you have insurance, you will now need to get your shot at a site that is in-network for your insurance. People who are uninsured or underinsured should be able to get COVID shots through the federal Bridge Program at CVS/Walgreens. Northern Nevada Public Health (formerly the Washoe County Health District) is also providing COVID vaccinations for the uninsured and underinsured; call 775-328-2402 for an appointment.
Masks are optional but welcome for our events. We do run air purifiers when we gather in the Meeting House. If you are very concerned about exposure to respiratory viruses, consider attending our hybrid worship via Zoom or one of our other events on Zoom. If you need more COVID tests: beginning September 25, every U.S. household can again place an order to receive four more free COVID-19 tests. Just go to covid.gov/tests.
The Reno Friends Book Club, Mon. Oct. 16, from 5:30-6:30 pm
The book for discussion on Oct. 16 is 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 pages; a Kindle version available; also available used.
Our upcoming book selections are:
November, 2023: Delivering the Truth: Quaker Midwife Mystery #1 by Edith Maxwell; A nineteeth-century Quaker midwife solves murders. You can listen to a charming interview with the author on Thee Quaker Podcast: https://quakerpodcast.com/a-quaker-murder-mystery-writer-gets-cozy-with-crime/. The book is 253 pages long, is fiction/mystery; there is a Kindle edition available, and the book is available new and used.
December, 2023: We will take a break for the month of December and will resume in January.
January, 2024: Book TBA
February, 2024: Sacred Nature: Restoring our Ancient Bond with the Natural World, by Karen Armstrong. From one of the most original thinkers on the role of religion in the modern world, a profound exploration of the spiritual power of nature—and an urgent call to reclaim that power in everyday life (Amazon). The book is Nonfiction; 224 pages; a Kindle version is available. The book is a new release.
March, 2024: The Peaceable Kingdom: The Children of the Light, 1652-1653 by Jan de Hartog; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Peaceable_Kingdom:_An_American_Saga; Children of the Light is the first book in de Hartog’s three-book novelization of the development .of the Quaker movement. This first book describes the meeting of George Fox and Margaret Fell. Published in 1972, it’s out of print but was a bestseller; 409 pages. The US edition has the first two volumes in one book and goes by the title The Peaceable Kingdom. You will need to order this book used, so plan ahead. Due to the age of the book, a hardback is likely a better choice than a paperback, as the binding should be in better shape. If you don’t have a favorite used book seller, try Abe Books
The RFM Book Club meets monthly on third Mondays from 5:30-6:30 pm on Zoom. The Zoom link for the book gathering will be sent out in the RFM Weekly Update email.
We have volunteers facilitate our book discussions. Is there a Quaker-ish book that you would like to share with our book club? Sit in on one of our Zoom sessions to see how our discussions go. Take a look at a list of our past and upcoming reads. For the book discussion, you can provide Quaker-style queries, or a few easy discussion questions, or a few quotes or passages from the book we’re discussing. If you have questions, email bookclub (at) renofriends.org .
Embodying the Light: Wednesdays on Zoom: Oct. 11, Oct. 25, 10-11 am
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. Zoom sessions this month will be Wednesdays Oct. 11 and Oct. 25. The Zoom link will be sent in the Weekly Update. See our website for more details.
Brown Bag Lunch, Thursday, Oct. 19, at 12 noon
Join hosts Peg McCall and Melanie Scott for an in-person Brown Bag Lunch at the Meeting House on Oct. 19 at 12 noon. Anyone who wants to share lunch and fellowship with other Reno Friends is welcome.
Zoom Spiritual Discussion: Tues. Oct. 24 “Seeking Right Relationships with Native Americans,” with Catie Polley, 7-8 pm
As a follow up to our June field trip to the Stewart Indian School and the RFM book club’s reading of Sand in a Whirlwind, the Spiritual Discussion group will be discussing Paula Palmer’s 2016 video on Quakers and Indian boarding schools: The Quaker Indian Boarding Schools: Facing our History and Ourselves. (one hour and seven minutes long.) To learn more about Paula Palmer’s work, see her page at PeaceTeams.
For our Spiritual Discussions, we meet for an hour on 4th Tuesdays from 7-8 pm on Zoom. Each month we have a different topic and some brief readings or online videos, with a volunteer facilitator to summarize the material and pose queries for discussion. If you can, please read the assigned readings or watch the videos and come prepared to discuss the material.
Our Upcoming Spiritual Discussion is:
Nov. 28: “Cultivating Joy,” with Rhonda Ashurst.
There will be no Spiritual Discussion in December.
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 for future discussions and encourages you to join us to facilitate a topic of interest to you.
Fall Meeting House & Garden Cleanup, Sat. Nov. 4, 9-12 am
Please join us for the Fall clean-up of the garden and Meeting House on Sat. Nov. 4 from 9-12 am. Bring your own rakes and gloves; other garden tools will be available. Many hands make light work, so please consider pitching in!
RFM Fall Clothing and Food Collection, Nov. 5-Dec. 10
Please consider donating either new or gently used winter clothing and/or non-perishable food for the needy this fall. Our collection will run from Sun. Nov. 5 through to Sun. Dec. 10. Donations may be brought to the Meeting House or to Peg McCall’s home at 75 Hastings Dr., Reno, 89503. There will be a collection box on the bench near her front door.
Planned recipients for our collection are: the Good Shepherd Clothes Closet, Greenbrae Dr., in Sparks; The Assistance League for more “dressy” clothes; and the Sparks Food Pantry at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church at 12th and Oddie Blvd.
Peace and Social Concerns News Update
FCNL: If you are concerned about recent events in Israel and Gaza, you may want to add your voice to The Friends Committee on National Legislation’s (email) letter-writing campaign to our legislators. You may customize the email before it is sent if you wish.
Quaker United Nations Office: This international Quaker group also posted moving statements about Israel and Palestinians. If interested, check out this link: https://quno.org/timeline/2023/10/voices-peace-israel-and-palestine
FCNL is also encouraging Friends “Take Action” to send letters to Nevada Congressional representatives to support the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies. You might also include a note encouraging opposition to HR 4374, Energy Opportunities for All Act, which threatens protections to ancestral-Puebloans historic areas around Chaco Culture National Historical Park in New Mexico. FCNL’s “Act Now” requests are facilitated by their online email-writing process, in which they develop a suggested email and send it to your representatives; all you do is authorize for emailing with your signature and any modifications you want to make or add to the email.
FCNL brought hundreds of young advocates to Washington, D.C. for the March 2023 Spring Lobby Weekend, lobbying Congress to invest in violence-interrupter programs – community-based programs that use peacebuilding approaches to stop violence on the ground before it happens. A new group of young adults will come to D.C. in August for the Advocacy Corps Training. You can also support this effort to Protect and Invest in Peacebuilding at fcnl.org/act. As Congress enters the negotiation phase of the annual appropriations process, your advocacy can help protect and preserve critical peacebuilding efforts.
Along with Reno Friends Meeting’s statement on Women and Abortion approved at April Business Meeting, FCNL received 300 responses for consideration on reproductive health care. FCNL’s request for feedback has opened up a venue for discussions within Meetings across the country that has long needed to take place. This issue is likely to come up for consideration at FCNL’s annual meeting November 15-19, 2023 in Washington, D.C., in-person and online.
Several Quaker organizations, including the Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO), American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), Quaker Earthcare Witness (QEW), and Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC) are part of the Global Coalition of Civil Society, Indigenous People, Social Movements, and Local Communities for the Universal Recognition of the Human Right to a Clean, Healthy, and Sustainable Environment. This coalition was recognized as one of the recipients of the prestigious 2023 United Nations Human Rights Prize, awarded for its essential role in advocating for the recognition of the right to a healthy environment by the U.N. General Assembly in July 2022.
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 the 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!
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. Masks are optional at this time. 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
College Park Fall Quarterly, Oct. 13-15, Sierra Friends Center, Nevada City, CA
College Park Quarterly invites you to attend in person or via zoom the Fall College Park Quarterly Meeting, a gathering of Friends in northern California, Friday, October 13 starting at dinner and ending with lunch on Sunday, Oct 15th. There will be an optional training in the early afternoon by the American Friends Service Committee. We will meet at Woolman at Sierra Friends Center in Nevada City, CA.
Registration will be available via email and at the collegeparkquarterlymeeting.org website soon. A shuttle will be available on campus to help Friends get around.
Pacific Yearly Meeting Epistle from the 2023 Annual Meeting (last July)
Pacific Yearly Meeting recently distributed its “Epistle” from the 2023 Annual Session, which was held this past July. The Epistle is a summary of the session, and it is available at:
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.
Woolman at Sierra Friends Center
Please note that the majority of Woolman programs are on hold at this time. See the woolman.org webpage for updates. The Woolman at Sierra Friends Center has hosted programs for children, adults, and intergenerational groups. Information can be found at woolman.org by selecting the “View Upcoming Events” link on the home page at the bottom right. 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.”