The Friends Counseling Service (FCS) serves members and attenders of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (PYM) who are in search for guidance, comfort, and assistance. This service offers accessible mental health care to Friends across PYM with counselors providing individual therapy, couples counseling, and family therapy sessions. We connected with Janaki Spickard Keeler, Friends Counseling Service Coordinator, who provided additional insight into the service by answering some key questions.
Faith & Practice
“Fox Forward” Recording of June 29 Roundtable
At the 400th Birthday Celebration for George Fox at Arch Street Meetinghouse on June 29, the “Fox Forward” roundtable discussion featured leaders in the Quaker community today speaking to how we can learn from the past as we vision the future of the faith and its witness in the world. The video recording of the panel shared below includes the voices of (left to right in photo) Dwight Dunston, host of The Seed podcast from Pendle Hill; Robin Mohr, Executive Director of FWCC Section of the Americas; Brian Blackmore, Director of Quaker Engagement for the American Friends Service Committee; and Hazele Goodridge, clerk of the Monthly Meeting of Friends of Philadelphia and trustee of the Friends Pantry & Community Fridge at Arch Street Meeting House.
Queries were shared with the speakers in preparation for the event:
- Which aspects of the Quaker tradition speak to you? How do they apply in the 21st century?
- Which aspects of the Quaker tradition are most important to pass on to the next generation and to newcomers?
- Are there aspects of the Quaker tradition that it’s time to release, for Quakerism to thrive?
- Early Friends’ actions were seen as radical and ‘cutting edge’ in their time. How can we respond to the challenges of the 21st century in a way that builds on Quaker insights?
The visionary sharing from each speaker led from their different areas of ministry; they both challenged listeners to think “forward” and grounded their vision in love for community. Watch the full conversation below!
Meeting for Learning with Attention to Quakerism
Serving as a member of the yearly meeting staff includes ongoing learning as individuals and as a staff community. Staff meetings during any calendar year include collaboration and planning across departments, always with the Strategic Directions held at the center of our service to the yearly meeting. “Meetings for Learning” have included professional development topics and inclusion and belonging work together, and four times a year they are focused on Quakerism. The group of staff who plan these times actively listen for and collect topics of interest from colleagues. In May, our focus was on the testimonies in relationship with our lives and work. [Read more…] about Meeting for Learning with Attention to Quakerism
Spring Continuing Sessions REWIND
Continuing Sessions Rewind
Last weekend, Friends from across the four states of our PYM footprint came together for Spring Continuing Sessions. We learned, listened and felt the joyous presence of Spirit in community while we explored the 2024 Sessions theme, “Called to Healing.” Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business was held on Saturday morning and Sunday afternoon, and minutes from business sessions will be on the website in coming days. Because the Annual Sessions schedule is shorter this summer (July 6-7), our times for business at Continuing Sessions weekends are being extended. [Read more…] about Spring Continuing Sessions REWIND
Fostering Equality in Everyday Home Life
Lois Volta, Germantown Meeting, wants you to clean your house. Not just for the aesthetic reasons, but for the spiritual and feminist reasons. As she writes, “There will always be something waiting for you to clean up. It’s better to make peace with this concept than to fight it. Let contentment and peace be just as never-ending as the laundry.” [Read more…] about Fostering Equality in Everyday Home Life
Friends Join Pilgrimage for Peace Walk
From the PYM statement in response to the crisis in Palestine in October:
These are not problems that can be addressed with one approach or with attention to one side or one truth or one thread of history. We are required by our faith to work for justice and peace. We must do this together with our neighbors. Resolution won’t be immediate, but participation in the resolution must start now. [Read more…] about Friends Join Pilgrimage for Peace Walk
Spiritual State of the Meeting Report Invitation
NOTE: The deadline to submit reports has been extended to April 29, 2024
Warm greetings from the Ministry and Care Committee of Quaker Life Council. We trust this communication finds you well, grounded in Spirit and in your community of faith. All meetings are invited to submit their Spiritual State of the Meeting Reports for 2023 no later than April 15, 2024. We look forward to learning about your meeting and having the opportunity to share that learning more widely. Reports will be carefully read by members of M&C to guide our work in the next year and inform the Spiritual State of the Meeting Report for Philadelphia Yearly Meeting. To learn more about how these reports are used and how they are typically composed, see these advices. If you have further questions, please contact us at ministryandcare@pym.org. [Read more…] about Spiritual State of the Meeting Report Invitation
Tuition Aid for Quaker Children in PYM Friends Schools
The Yearly Meeting’s Quaker Education Granting Group reminds meetings and families that local meeting members’ children who are applying to or attending Friends schools are eligible to apply for educational support for the 2024-25 school year. Funding for all grants comes from the National Friends Education Fund and Philadelphia Yearly Meeting endowment income from the Jonathan Rhoads Fund and other PYM education endowments. [Read more…] about Tuition Aid for Quaker Children in PYM Friends Schools
PYM Friends Learn to Lobby with FCNL
On October 30, PYM Friends gathered for a workshop about lobbying and its place within the world of political advocacy. The workshop was facilitated by the Senior Director for Quaker Leadership, Alicia McBride, from Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL). For twenty years, Alicia has worked in multiple roles with FCNL . She’s a member of Sandy Spring Meeting, part of the Baltimore Yearly Meeting footprint. She was joined by Deb Hejl, member and Friend of Gwynedd Meeting, who has been actively involved with FCNL for a quarter century and serves as a PYM representative to FCNL. [Read more…] about PYM Friends Learn to Lobby with FCNL
Seeking Ingrained Spirituality in the Face of Systemic Opposition
An Interview with a Senior LGBTQ Friend
Tom Woodward is a retired Westtown School English and Latin teacher. Chatting with Tom about the challenges of his personal life and highlights of his teaching career was both heartwarming and enlightening. It was at Westtown School in West Chester, PA, Tom truly began his spiritual journey and discovery of Quakerism. [Read more…] about Seeking Ingrained Spirituality in the Face of Systemic Opposition
