By Wendy Schlotterbeck
1. Durham Young Friends held a very successful “Rise Up singing” sing-a-long concert on March 19th. It seemed that all who came had a wonderful time and the youth made $1001. My highlight of the year was watching the young friends in the front row thoroughly engaged and enjoying both the concert and one another.
2. The April Young Friends Meeting was held at Aunt Bee’s house and the youth, as always, had a fabulous time. Special thanks to Brenda Masse for helping with the group as Wendy was at the Playing in the Light workshop along with Jeanne Baker-Stinson and five others.
3. At our May 20th meeting, we had a sleepover at the Meetinghouse. We held a wonderful, lengthy Quaker discussion about whether we wanted to sponsor a Kakamega child. The sense of the meeting was that we would indeed sponsor a child and accept the responsibility of continuing the sponsorship year by year. The youth were excited about writing letters and hope that in a few years, some of us may participate in the Summer Trip to Kakamega to meet the children.
4. As the school year comes to a close, I am amazed and humbled by our youth who in a short time (the Philadelphia trip was just last year!) have really bonded into a lovely group. Some remarked how Durham Young Friends (DYF) feels like family, they love coming to Meeting, and really enjoy being friends and Friends. We at Durham are so very blessed to have such incredible young people in our midst.
5. Passages has been focusing more on Conscientious Objection this spring, our final gathering on May 22nd featured excerpts from the documentary “Soldiers of Conscience,” and a special guest who is a member of Veterans for Peace. We hold Kris Reed in the Light as he ventures forward in his journey after graduation from high school in June. Next fall, we plan to continue the high school “Passages” group and look forward to more study of faith communities especially Islam and Judaism.
6. Please attend “Children’s Day” on Sunday, June 12th when the youth will have the care of worship. There will also be a picnic after meeting with food, games, and activities.
7. On June 17 – 19 our annual campout will be held at Betsy Muench’s summer home. All of Durham Meeting is warmly invited. If you can’t stay overnight, come for a few hours during the day for kayaking, swimming, beach activities, singing and wonderful conversation. Contact Wendy Schlotterbeck for more details.