October began for Philadelphia Yearly Meeting with the announcement that Chris Mohr will serve as the next General Secretary. Friends have come to know his work through the years, and the announcement invites tenderness across community of Friends as PYM continues through a time of transition. Christie Duncan-Tessmer’s final weeks in the role brought thoughtful messages and shared gratitude for her service; the month closed with thanks that her leadership has shaped how Friends move together in faith.
General Secretary
Celebrating Christie Duncan-Tessmer
After more than two decades of service to Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, including ten years as General Secretary, Christie Duncan-Tessmer has stepped down from her role. Please join us and other Friends across our community in pausing to reflect with deep gratitude for her leadership, creativity, and commitment to the health and vitality of our yearly meeting.
October 2025 | Joint Council Update
On Saturday, October 11, the three councils that support Philadelphia Yearly Meeting—Quaker Life Council, Administrative Council, and Nominating Council—held their meeting in the joint format. In this structure, all three councils meet together as one Joint Council to worship, discern, and conduct business collaboratively. Their practice is to share the minutes in a news story with the PYM community in the week following the meeting.
Questions and Comments About Administrative, Quaker Life, and Nominating Councils Working as a Joint Council
Friends who attended Annual Sessions in person or via zoom know that the council Tri-clerks asked for questions about how council functions. We received many more than we were able to answer in the brief period available, so we are sharing the full list of questions here and will be writing responses to share in the next several weeks.
If you have further questions you would like the tri-clerks to respond to, please send them to us to add to the list below.
What questions or comments do you have about the experiment currently underway with Administrative, Quaker Life and Nominating councils working as a joint council?
Please email any question or comment to CFilauro@pym.org. [Read more…] about Questions and Comments About Administrative, Quaker Life, and Nominating Councils Working as a Joint Council
July 2025 | Joint Council Update
On Saturday, July 12, the three councils that support Philadelphia Yearly Meeting—the Quaker Life Council, Administrative Council, and Nominating Council—held their meeting in the joint format. In this structure, all three councils meet together as one Joint Council to worship, discern, and conduct business collaboratively. This allows the Joint Council to share the minutes in a news story with the PYM community following the meeting.
Minutes from the Joint Council meeting this past Saturday are forthcoming. However the council wanted to share the following key updates prior to sessions.
As Philadelphia Yearly Meeting prepares to gather for Annual Sessions, the yearly meeting councils want to particularly highlight two items of their work that will be advancing to the Sessions agenda: the Future of Sessions survey results and an update on evaluating the yearly meeting’s carbon footprint.
June 2025 | Joint Council Update
On Saturday, June 14, the three councils that support Philadelphia Yearly Meeting—Quaker Life Council, Administrative Council, and Nominating Council—held their meeting in the joint format. In this structure, all three councils meet together as one Joint Council to worship, discern, and conduct business collaboratively. This allows the Joint Council to share the minutes in a news story with the PYM community in the week following the meeting.
May 2025 | Joint Council Update
On Saturday, May 10, the three councils that support Philadelphia Yearly Meeting—Quaker Life Council, Administrative Council, and Nominating Council—held their meeting in the joint format. In this structure, all three councils meet together as one Joint Council to worship, discern, and conduct business collaboratively. This allows the Joint Council to share the minutes in a news story with the PYM community in the week following the meeting.
April 2025 | Joint Council Update
On Saturday, April 12, the three councils that support Philadelphia Yearly Meeting—Quaker Life Council, Administrative Council, and Nominating Council—held their meeting in the joint format. In this structure, all three councils meet together as one Joint Council to worship, discern, and conduct business collaboratively. This allows the Joint Council to share the minutes in a news story with the PYM community in the week following the meeting.
One Philadelphia: A Community Meeting about Immigrant Rights & Concerns
The event took place in the worship room at Friends Center, bringing together worship leaders, city officials, healthcare workers, legal professionals, and community advocates. They joined together to address the impact of immigration enforcement on Philadelphia’s neighborhoods and communities. The event allowed attenders to learn what is happening and ways to take action. [Read more…] about One Philadelphia: A Community Meeting about Immigrant Rights & Concerns
Honoring Cheyney University Legacy and Deepening Quaker Connection
The 188th Founders’ Day celebration at Cheyney University brought together alumni, students, and guests to honor the school’s long history as the first HBCU in the country. Among those attending were Philadelphia Yearly Meeting’s presiding clerk Nikki Mosgrove and general secretary Christie Duncan-Tessmer, who were guests at the event. The celebration included speeches, music, and reflections on Cheyney’s past and future. Throughout the event, speakers mentioned Cheyney’s Quaker roots, recognizing the role Quakers played in helping to establish the school and its focus on education and opportunity.
[Read more…] about Honoring Cheyney University Legacy and Deepening Quaker Connection
