July 2015: Expectations for Young Adult Friends Events
Our vision for YAF events: The YAF community of PYM holds events to build loving community, deepen our spirituality, support one another, and live out our faith in the world. We come together with a wide range of identities and experiences, and seek to be respectful and welcoming to all. Our event guidelines support our intention to provide a fruitful, safe, and loving space for all of our members.
Our guidelines: We expect that all participants will accept collective responsibility for the community’s wellbeing. We recognize that people have a wide range of boundaries. In caring for the community, it is important to get enthusiastic consent when engaging in physical contact or conversations. We know that someone is giving enthusiastic consent when they agree to the interaction both verbally and with their body language. We are prepared for problems that may come up at this event, such as conflict, injury, and spiritual or mental distress. The YAF Working Group, as a part of PYM, has procedures in place for how to handle problems and conflicts that may arise. As a last resort, these procedures may include asking individuals to leave the event. If you have any questions about how to handle a particular situation, please speak with the YAF Coordinator or the YAF clerking team.
Affirmed July 31, 2015 by the YAF Community at PYM Annual Sessions
May 2014: Policy on alcohol use at YAF social events
The Young Adults Friends Working Group of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting accepts that alcohol consumption may occur at select social events (such as a happy hour or quiz night.) Any such social event will be open and welcoming to all YAFs throughout our age range (18-35ish), regardless of whether or not YAFs are able or choose to consume alcohol. All attendees are expected to follow the law; those under 21 will not consume alcohol at YAF events. The YAF community will work together to hold each other accountable and maintain a safe, responsible, and respectful social environment. As we continue to deepen our fellowship with one another, we can use this policy to grow a Young Adult Friends community that is inclusive, safe, and intentional.
Background on the discernment of the Alcohol Policy
Approved May 17, 2014 at the PYM Young Adult Friends Spring Retreat
May 2011: Young Adult Friends retreat expectations
The YAF working group of PYM is committed to upholding the needs of all the members of our community to the best of our ability, and it is our intention to provide a fruitful, safe and loving space for all of our members to grow spiritually together and as individuals. Accordingly, the basic guideline for our retreats is that all participants accept collective responsibility for the upholding of this loving space. In extreme cases, so far as the presence of any individual impedes upon the physical or emotional safety of any other member of our community, we will ask the individual(s) to either cooperatively participate in a conflict mediation process, meeting separately or together with involved individuals and member(s) of the pastoral care committee, or request that person or persons to leave the retreat facility as promptly as possible.
Approved in May of 2011 by the PYM YAF Working Group