Young Friends Business Meetings are held on Sundays, 2-5 PM at Friends Center, 15th & Cherry Streets, Philadelphia, PA. You are invited to participate. Dates are posted on the Young Friends Home page. Ask for the Young Friends Working Group meeting at the front desk when you sign in.   Directions, Parking and a map to Friends Center

Leadership document with changes highlighted carried over from October to be considered at the YF Christmas Business Meeting  pdf document.

Halloween Gathering Evaluation October 29, 2006

Addition to the leadership doc minutes September 10, 2006

Joined Friends Working Group Minutes September 10, 2006

Joined Friends Working Group Pre-Meeting September 10, 2006

Onas Evaluation August 26, 2006

CAMP ONAS MEETING FOR BUSINESS August 23, 2006

Male Young Friends 8/23/06 , Men Are Nice People

Joined Friends Working Group minute August 23, 2006

Young Friends Minute on Possible Military Invasion of Iran, August 23, 2006

Official Description of Young Friends Leadership, 2006-2

Halloween Gathering Evaluation October 29, 2006

Things that went well
• Halloween Party/Dance
               DJ (Eli and Griffin)
               Music not too loud, and a good variety.
• Worship Sharing/Work Crew good attendance.
               It helped to have an announcement at each major interval of the day (meals, before and after program..ect)
• Food! We love Kert.
• Integrating between groups and new people, overall very inclusive.
• Workshops!
• Everything!!!!
• Meeting for Worship
               Balance of time
               After Workshop worked out well
• Guest Speaker
• “Man talk” (unscheduled)
• Theme

Things that could be better
• Time schedule was not commonly known.
               An easel with everything written out that is big and visible would be awesome.
• One worship group FAP didn’t come.
• Meeting for Business
               Kind of Frivolous, many wanted to get it out of the way so we could start the dance.
               Not focused
               Friends felt too excited, for the dance and late night to fully participate.
               The Item was challenging and could have been timed better.
               In Costume distraction
               Both Friends who were familiar and not so familiar with Quaker Process were not focused.
               Lack of Dedication to Meeting for Business
               Stress importance and seriousness when introducing it.
               Explain Meeting for Business at the Beginning of Gathering.
               Maybe another time of the day this gathering only.
• Afternoon program was awesome but a little cramped when everyone was in the basement.
• Late Night went well but the end was slightly chaotic
               Not enough settling, It might have been better if we were all by the door when we started the silence.
               Clean up wasn’t effective, nobody got up. (LOTS OF YELLOW STRING!)
               Floors left separately. It worked better when we went up single file
               Documentation would be helpful to guide everyone, and in the explanation.
               Overall more organization and explanation.
• Inappropriate Comments, and an underlying joking sexual tone. (Not everyone was effected or involved, but it did exist.)
               Express, and emphasize Sexual equality
               Add Inappropriate Innuendos to the guidelines.
• Dance Clean up
               Next time everyone who participated should help to clean up.
• Lots of left out dishes
               PUT AWAY YOUR OWN DISHES!!!
• After Meal dishes were left out after the clean up crew was almost done.
               Stress cleaning up your own food
               Go over the process of cleaning dishes at first meal.

addition to the leadership doc minutes 9 10 06

Program coordinator
  Program coordinators should guide and nurture the community in a way that cares for the safety, but reflects the well being and interests of the community.
  To lend common sense/wisdom, but the final say always rests with the community except for immediate legal or financial matters.

           If someone feels unsafe or disrespected they have the Spiritual right and responsibility to call together the community in search of collective truth for the purpose of the betterment of the community. If a friend is led to call a meeting the friend should come to the clerks to discuss how the meeting will be executed. This responsibility should not be taken lightly.

Clerks
  Recognize the need to be prepared to discuss the logistics with friends who are led to convey concerns to the whole community through unplanned Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business.
  Check in daily with program coordinators at gatherings.All Friends
  Uphold our guidelines
  This includes all Young Friends, Adult friends, and all visitors.
  Need to take a leadership role in helping to guide*** when other friends are doing things that could be unhealthy.

*** “To Guide is to nurture the community in a way that maintains the safety, but reflects the common good. To led common sense and hard-earned wisdom, but the final authority rests with the greater community of which we are each apart of.”

Joined Friends Working Group Minutes 9/10/06

It was approved that Matt Sanderson would stand in the place of Sarah Jochum as recording clerk while she worked with Tori Baggot on a minute discussed at the previous meeting. Was hoped to be read and discussed by Young Friends immediately following this meeting before discussed with the wider community.

The agenda was approved.

Carl Sigmund reported that due to Septa’s evil timetable he would have to leave early and would hold the community in the light.

Review of Meet for Worship with a Concern for Business (MWCB): the minutes from Onas MWCB were read aloud to the group for their approval. The clerk also read aloud the text from the two minutes passed at this meeting. After a few grammatical errors were corrected, we approved the minutes about Young Friends MWCB at Onas.

A friend wrote an addendum to the Joined Friends Working Group (JFWG) minute to be approved at the working group. The addendum stated that the JFWG would still report to the Education Standing Committee (ESC) and the ESC would still have the power to over rule decisions made by the JFWG.
The addendum was discussed and many Young Friends expressed their thoughts. A member of the ESC spoke about their role and stated that members of the standing committee could not be on working groups under their committees care.
Friends engage in a long debate about this addendum. Many friends shared passionate feelings.

It was approved that we remove the addendum.

Joined Friends Working Group Pre-Meeting 2006-9-10

Agenda was approved.

Inspiring words were read from former Youth Co-Clerk Megan Keitzman-Nicklin.

A Friend reviewed some of the concerns of Onas,
-Several issues brought up about the Coordinators roles, and the gray line of Quaker authority and Young Friends.

Friend mentioned that a FAP was assigned to him, when they felt it was unnecessary.

One Friend felt that a majority of the concerns were a result of inexperience, of Clerks and Coordinator.
-It was suggested that the Clerks in-leaving should give some form of written suggestions to the new Clerks (Start Discernment on Tuesday).

Friends felt that re-defining Guide could help Future and Present Coordinators do their Job even more Awesomely. If approved would be put into the Introduction of the Young Friends Leadership Document.

-“To Guide is to nurture the community in a way that maintains the safety, but reflects the common good. To led common sense and hard-earned wisdom, but the final authority rests with the greater community of which we are each apart of.”

This lead to the discussion of how the final authority would rest with the community, which is through Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business. Friends approved a minute with an understanding that it should come to Young Friends Meeting for Business that gives the individual the responsibilities to call a Meeting for Business when needed.

The committee fell into conversation of Community roles, and how each of us is essential to its fragile group. It was approved adding clarifications of the roles of Young Friends and all Friends; It was recognized that another bullet should be added to the roles of the Clerk (if the created minute is approved), and Coordinator. Tori and Sarah were asked to put in to words and refine all of the approved, as Matt Sanderson step in as recording Clerk for Sarah at Joined Friends Working Group.

Onas Evaluation August 26, 2006

Things that went well.
       Food
               Vegan friendly
       Worship sharing questions
       Drumming Circle
       Sweat lodge
       Boundaries workshop
       Thomas Swain
       LAUREN coordinating
       Sense of community
       Bead Table
       Nurturing Work Shop
       Meeting for Business
       Work shops
       Clerks
       Young Friend workshops
               Kate’s
               Zac’s
       Wink!
       Singing
       Star gazing
       Secret friends

Things that could have been better
       Something unrealistically scheduled after Meeting for worship with the concern for business
       Outsiders coming and not respecting
               Example: a FAP slept in a Young Friend’s bed without permission
       Not enough worship sharing
       Needed scheduled time for discernment, or more spread out time
       Dance
               Short
               Better organization
               Needed a variety of music
       Crunched planning for Friday
       Poor Communication
               FAP/YF
               Small groups/larger groups
       RESPECT!
       FAP assumptions about what’s important for the community
       Feeling of being rushed
       Short meeting for worships
       Divine proportion workshop
       Workshop in the dinning room during/after sweat lodge on Thursday.
               Thursday organization
       Adventure course not done
               Should be optional
       Program went over time often
       Trust walk/swim was not done
       Not many activities for late night
       Young Friends should be able to have the final say and that should be respected by the FAPs
       Nurturing committee separated for a long time
       Better communication between clerks and coordinators
               Once a day check in.

Suggestions
       Young Friends take responsibility of E-mailing
               Have an E-mail list for FAPs and Young Friends. (Carl S. will be facilitating it)
       Working Group on September 10th
       Have a CLEAR Job description for FAPs
               Minute at working group
       Check out BYM structure
       More get to know you games
               Find a new person
               Touch someone who is new
       Start Nurturing discernment on Tuesday

CAMP ONAS MEETING FOR BUSINESS August 23, 2006

Joined Friends Working Group

Zac Dutton and Matt Sanderson presented the minute, and answered many questions about the logistics.

--current friends who deal with finances continues that practice

--E-mail the minutes to all young Friends, and persons who are invited

--Joined Friends committee changed to Joined Friends Working Group

--A Friend on the Education Standing Committee presented a concern about the nomination process for all "stake holders" or parties of interest.

--It was noted that PYM normally nominates a committee that has the final say, which is usually weighty Friends. The issue was expressed that it would be difficult to have an open committee that would still be given the final say from the interim.

--The sense of the meeting is that Young Friends supports the nature of the proposed minute, with enthusiasm.

Copies of the leadership document approved at the May working group meeting were handed out and read by Zac Dutton. It was proposed and affirmed that the Advisory Committee is the official leadership structure for Young Friends, and will be sent to the Education Standing Committee.

Youth Co-Clerk and Assistant Co-Clerk were approved to represent Young Friends to the Education Standing Committee, in addition to the Adult Co-Clerk, Program Coordinator, and Director of Education.

We approved a minuet opposing the possibility of war on Iran, which like all wars go against the Quaker testimonies. We came to conscience about sending the minute to Friends Journal, The PYM news letter, the Young Friends/PYM website, local meetings, and have it read at Yearly meeting session in March.

It was confirmed that Young Friends will write a declaration of peace, opposing all war, which will be proposed for approval at the next Meeting for Business.

A friend expressed a concern about feeling unsafe in our community, and another Friend shared that concern. There was discussion about whether this issue was appropriate for the whole community, but a friend felt that there was a need to bring it to the whole. A break was taken for the permanent nurturers and individuals sharing the sense of danger, and need for healing. The remaining Young Friends re-gathered, sung, and held the smaller group in the light.
When the permanent nurturers and individuals sharing the sense of danger returned, it was recommended that those who identify as male and those who identify as female separated and was approved. Each gender embarked through an in-depth experience, which resulted in a stronger spiritual community. Each of our hearts glowed with fulfillment, and faces painted with smiles. Those who identify themselves as male wrote an endearing letter that touched many. When we gathered we fell into a powerful meeting for worship, when we shared our amazing experiences with each other. Many expressed great gratitude, and deep inspiration. A feeling of awe settled in to all us, as we healed, grew, and loved.

Male Young Friends 8/23/06
Men Are Nice People

Dear YF's who identify themselves as female,
As Guys, we would like to apologize in the most sincere manner for anything we have ever done to compromise the integrity and trust of the community. We use the word community because we recognize that our actions have affected all of us. We want to move forward with a new understanding of a love stronger than our sexual tendencies. We recognize that as individuals and as a group our actions have jeopardized the community. The actions some of us took part in to gain a small amount of gratification were in no way worth compromising the love that connects us. We want to commit to attempting to create relationships around communication, respect, and consent and to further nurture the bonds between us. We love you.

Sincerely,
Young Friends who identify themselves as male

Joined Friends Working Group minute approved at the Camp Onas Business Meeting.

Young Friends gathered at Camp Onas in August 2006 with love for each other, and the intent to grow spiritually. Our sharing of experiences has brought forth a conviction in a concern. It is something we are lead to convey lovingly.
Young Friends want there to be a final decision making body that equally includes Young Friends and all other interested parties (i.e. parents, PYM staffers, Education Standing Committee members, ...etc) This we hold with the utmost spiritual conviction. We believe that the wisdom and experience of Young Friends and adults combine can make our community stronger enhance relationships between Young Friends and the wider PYM community.
We are led to propose the creation of the Joined Friends Working Group (JFWG), which would meet monthly, and would be responsible for the following:

       The planning of Young Friends gatherings.
       A connection between the Young Friends community and its interested parties.
       Any necessary extension of the Young Friends meeting for worship with a concern for business.
       The insurance that all interested parties are incorporated in the discernment process. This means that the minutes passed at our previous Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business will be reviewed. If there are any concerns we will search for collective truth as a group, and come to a spirit led sense regarding the concerned decision implicated in the minute being reviewed.
       All those gathered will have equal weight.
       Any disputes regarding Young Friends policy must be brought to this working group.
       This Joined Working Group will replace Young Friend’s Working Group meetings.
       This is an open working group, which welcomes friends of all ages.

We request that the Education Standing committee will approve this minute, and assign a delegation of adult friends to attend the Joined Friends Working Group consistently.

Approved at Onas Meeting for Worship with a concern for Business
Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Young Friends Minute on Possible Military Invasion of Iran, August 23, 2006

The Young Friends Of PYM have come together to honor and uphold our Quaker and moral values. We believe that violence and oppression run contrary to the peace testimony. We don't see funding or aiding military occupation in other countries as a tool for a productive society. We will not support a military occupation or international police action because it contradicts with the Quaker testimonies.

A war in Iran would be symptomatic of a society where economic and military interest is more important than human life. We believe that we should work towards a society that does not tolerate war as an answer to conflict. Our hearts go out to the victims of past, present, and future wars. We have seen the costs of past and present wars and we will not tolerate them to be perpetuated. We call upon friends world wide to join us in voicing our concerns for the possibility of a war with Iran.

Approved at Onas Meeting for Worship with a concern for Business
Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Official Description of Young Friends’ Leadership, February 2006
Approved at the May Working Group, 2006
Presiding Clerk, Megan Keitzman-Nicklin

How things were:
PYM Professional Leadership
Program Coordinator
Assistant Program Coordinator

Young Friends Discerned Leadership
Adult Co-Clerk
Youth Co-Clerk
Assistant Co-Clerk

Nurturing Committee
Permanent Nurturers
Assistant Program Coordinator
Assistant Co-Clerk
Gathering Nurturers

FAPs
Program Coordinator
Assistant Program Coordinator
Adult Co-Clerk
Gathering FAPs

What our organizational structure is now with approval of this document:
Advisory Group
Program Coordinator
Assistant Program Coordinator
Adult Co-Clerk
Youth Co-Clerk
Recording clerk
Nurturing Clerk
General Secretary
Director of Education

Nurturing Committee
Nurturing Clerk
Recording Clerk
Youth Co-Clerk (de facto)
Assistant Program Coordinator
Permanent Nurturers (2-3)
Gathering Nurturers

FAPs
Program Coordinator
Assistant Program Coordinator
Adult Co-Clerk
Gathering FAPs

Description of the above:
1. The Advisory Group is a connection between all the leadership positions in YF. Each position acts in its individual capacity, but the advisory group ensures that the leaders are communicating and working together. It provides for structural continuity in the process of leadership for PYM Young Friends.
2. The position of Assistant Co-Clerk has been removed, and replaced by a Recording Clerk to ensure that the job of Recording minutes gets done and to clarify the duties of the different youth leaders.
3. A Clerk of Nurturing Committee has been created in order to designate the official responsibility of the committee to a specifically discerned individual, who can be officially connected to the other Clerks of Young Friends.
4. The job descriptions for each position are identified below in the spirit of more efficiently actualizing a community fitting the ideal that we strive to achieve.

Introduction
Minute Passed at Onas 2005
Presiding Clerk, Megan Kietzman-Nicklin
We, PYM Young Friends see our community as a safe accepting home where we love and appreciate one another for what each of us brings to the community; however, as a community we are vulnerable and imperfect. We have labored greatly with spiritual struggles in the past to keep our community healthy and whole. Through this we have discovered that the best way to uphold the integrity of our community is to remind one another what exactly this community is to us. We ask that we remember and share openly our understanding of the community, especially at the beginning of gatherings, with new comers, and with those who need reminding.

Minute Passed at the May Working Group, 2006
Presiding Clerk, Megan Keitzman-Nicklin
As members of the community, we are all leaders, and therefore individually responsible for upholding a practice of right relation to one another, right procedure in all actions we take, and the values upon which we base the structure of our community. We follow Quaker practice in organizing our community. In this spirit, we have established positions to be filled by experienced and gifted members in order to aide us in maintaining our mission in practice. Those positions make up the Advisory Group, the Nurturing Committee, and our Friendly Adult Presences.

Job Descriptions:
Approved at January Working Group, 2006
Presiding Clerk, Megan Keitzman-Nicklin
Everyone in the following positions is an exemplary guideline supporter and is responsible for reminding the rest of the community to also support the guidelines when slippage occurs. Every leader may also share his or her job with another person or designate a job to another person as the need arises.

Program Coordinator (PC)
• Hired by PYM, with equal input from the Young Friends of PYM and the education standing committee
• Serves as treasurer for Young Friends of PYM
• Helps Young Friends to plan, organize, and run gatherings, including but not limited to:
           Development of themes and workshops,
           Scheduling workshop/program leaders
           Handling registration
           Hosting Working Group meetings
           Creating gathering schedules
           Forming the small groups and work schedules
           Upkeep of the young friends’ website
           Managing and recruiting FAPs
           Making announcements
           Any other gathering logistics
• Responds, with the help of the rest of the Advisory Group, to any situations that occur within a gathering
• Acts, as necessary, as the legally responsible adult for the underage youth at Young Friends gatherings
• Represents the Young Friends Community, along with the Assistant PC and the Co-Clerks to the Standing Committee for Education, to the Director of Education, and to the wider PYM community
• Keeps a record of all minutes and worship sharing questions
• Runs FAP meetings during gatherings
• Ex oficio member of the Advisory Group

Assistant Program Coordinator
• Hired by PYM, through direction from the Program Coordinator
• Help the Program Coordinator with his/her job
• Ex oficio member of the Advisory Group
• Ex oficio member of the Nurturing committee
• Support the Nurturing Clerk

Adult Friend Co-clerk
• Discerned by the Young Friends Working Group
• Support the Youth Friend Co-Clerk and Recording Clerk in their jobs
• Assist the Program Coordinator in his/her work, especially in recruiting FAPs and representing the Young Friends Community to other groups
• Attend as many gatherings and Working Group Meetings as possible
• Attend nurturing committee meetings
• Ex oficio member of the Advisory Group

Youth Friend Co-clerk
• Discerned by the Young Friends Working Group
• Clerk business meetings and Working Group meetings in addition to any other committee meetings that she/he decides to call (Clerking via a sense of the meeting seeking approach to decision. It is the community that possesses the ultimate weight in decisions, and it is the Clerk who gathers all the community’s varied expressions into one unified voice)
• Draft the agenda for business meetings at gatherings and for Working Group meetings (with suggestions from the wider community).
• Facilitate gathering evaluation at the end of each gathering
• Oversee the actualization of plans and decisions made by the community, through e-mails, phone calls, further meetings, and any other necessary means
• Attend the Nurturing Committee meetings as a de facto Permanent Nurturer
• Represent the Young Friends community to the larger PYM community and other external groups (along with the Program Coordinator and Adult Co-Clerk).
• Ex oficio member of the Advisory Group

Young Friends Nurturing Clerk
• Discerned by the Young Friends Working Group
• Name new Permanent Nurturers (through the Nurturing Committee)
• Clerk Nurturing Committee Meetings and any other meetings he/she calls
• Lead the work of the Nurturing Committee, including initiation of e-mails preparing for gathering, such as e-mails to form worship sharing queries
• Ex oficio member of Advisory Group.

Young Friend Recording Clerk
• Discerned by the Young Friends Working Group
• Record necessary minutes for all meetings called by any of the four Clerks (usually the Meeting for Business, Working Group, Nurturing Committee, etc)
• Step into the role of Youth Friend Co-Clerk or Nurturing Clerk if either is not present
• Acting permanent nurturer
• Assist the Nurturing Clerk and Youth Friend Co-Clerk in their roles
• Ex oficio member of the Advisory Group
Nurturing Committee
• Meet everyday of a gathering at lunchtime (or any extra called times) to discuss the well being of the community and any strains in the community that arise to the awareness of the Nurturers
• Made up of a representative from each small group, all Clerks, Permanent Nurturers, and the Assistant Program Coordinator
• Care for individuals within the community and for the community as a whole, including the healthy integration (or re-integration) of new people into the community, care for worship sharing, the program, and the psychological welfare of each participant in the community
• Oversee Young Friends gatherings with the help of FAPs and program coordinators
Permanent Nurturer (2-3, not including any Clerks or the Assistant Program Coordinator, who all serve in permanent nurturing capacities)
• Discerned by the Nurturing Committee (usually at Onas)
• Prepare worship sharing queries for gatherings
• Present the definition and guidelines of worship sharing to the general community at each gathering
• Provide leadership and continuity for the Nurturing Committee
• Be aware and care for all community members, as everyone on the nurturing committee should
• Are community elders, acting as exemplary guideline supporters, and speaking to community members when guideline slippage occurs, assisted in their work by FAPs

FAPs
• Volunteer and are approved by the Program Coordinator
• Provide a guiding presence at gatherings.
• Keep a watchful eye over all those present to insure that they are following general common sense and the guidelines that the community has set for itself.
• A legal necessity for the YF community. We need Friendly Adult Presences to be sufficiently in attendance in order for the gatherings to exist.
What is the Advisory Group and what does it do?
• The Youth Friend Co-Clerk, Recording Clerk, Adult Friend Co-Clerk, the Clerk of Nurturing Committee, Program Coordinator, Assistant Program Coordinator, General Secretary, and the Director of Education make up this group.
• Provides an official connection between the adult leadership and youth leadership, including a connection between the FAPs and the Nurturing Committee.
• Is a supportive association between the leaders of Young Friends of PYM. All members are ex oficio as such, maintaining their own roles and job descriptions in and outside gatherings in addition to being a part of Advisory Group.
• There is no official clerk of Advisory Group. When it meets in full, someone may be designated to clerk the meeting, if a clerk is needed.
• The Advisory Group, with the assistance of the Nurturing Committee, ensures the efficient and healthy management of the Young Friends organization of PYM
• It must meet at least once at the beginning of every gathering to discuss any pre-existing issues.
• Also should meet as necessary to react to any situations that arise during or outside of gatherings, including the use of group e-mails for discussions and decision-making. The Program coordinator must always consult the Advisory Group before taking disciplinary action in any situation; however, the Program Coordinator makes the final decision and is responsible for the action taken.
• Ensure that all necessary leadership functions are being fulfilled.
• When one of the members cannot fulfill his/her duties (do to long-term absence or other reasons) the Advisory Group will meet to decide what should be the next step to take, and based on the gravity of that step, the advisory committee must discern whether the larger community should pre-approve it.

Major Note: Only when the community has allowed for autonomy to be given to a specific entity, does that entity have the permission to make decisions without the community’s direct approval, yet that entity still must report back to the community at any time that the community decides is appropriate. It is the job of the Advisory Group to ensure that those entrusted with specified jobs (ad hoc committees, FAPs, the advisory committee members themselves, etc.) do not overstep the limits of autonomy set for them by the Young Friends community or by the Standing Committee on Education, as approved here in this outlined minute for job descriptions. The community should consider it a grave act for an entity to over assert its influence.

What is the relationship between the Discerned and the Professional Young Friends leadership?
The Program Coordinator and the Assistant Program Coordinator are the “ legal guardians” for the Young Friends gatherings. Due to legal reasons, and as is invested in them by the larger PYM community, they must approve all significant activity at any Young Friends gathering. In addition, they agree to respect and to support the system of management that the Young Friends organization has created for itself overtime. And the Young Friends Community agrees to recognize the necessity for ultimate approval by the Program Coordinator of things having potential legal or professional ramifications. The Program Coordinators agree to give the Young Friends community reports of their major activity and to let most major decisions be made by the Young Friends, as is established by traditional practice and that which is outlined in this minute. In the Working Group and Meeting for Business the Program Coordinator and Assistant Program Coordinator are expected to participate in the meetings as any other community members would.

What do the Nurturing Committee and FAPs work together?
Nurturing Committee and the FAPs assist the Advisory Group with the efficient and healthy management of the Young Friends of PYM during gatherings. Nurturing Committee is responsible for the spiritual wellness of all community members, including adults. FAPs and Nurturers should have a heightened awareness of the community and any situations that could potentially arise. FAPs and Nurturers should be open to listening to friends in need emotionally. The FAPs and the Nurturing Committee work together in the role of providing a guiding presence for community participants.

The full body of this document was affirmed at
Camp Onas Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business 2006.