Concord Friends Meeting

A Monthly Meeting in Dover Quarter of New England Yearly Meeting, Religious Society of Friends

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Let us be enraged about injustice but let us not be destroyed by it.

Bayard Rustin, Activist (1912-1987)

The Meeting Calendar

Please socially distance for all indoor events and mask when not eating or drinking.  Please refer to the following link for more information. (COVID guidance for In-Person Worship).

Major Decision Needed at Meeting this Sunday:

The Childcare Planning Committee plans to present a major issue for discernment to the Meeting this Sunday and we hope you will be able to attend. We have been working hard to gather information to present the best way forward to meet fire code and allow enrollment in the program to begin. At our last meeting for business we approved a budget of $18,000 for this effort. Subsequently, the committee has learned that separating the mechanical room from the rest of the building with a one hour rated fire wall is much more costly than envisioned; so costly that we began looking at alternatives.

Even as information continues to come in, the most likely solution appears to be removing the combustion based heating system (our pellet boiler and storage bin) from the mechanical room and replacing it with a heat pump system. This Saturday there will be a combined meeting of the Childcare Planning, Finance, and Property Committees. Together we will be going into the details of the available information and will work to come to the Meeting the next day with a unified recommendation. Everyone is welcome even if you are not on those committees. We will be using the worship link via Zoom at 12:30 p.m.

We are researching various options within each of three different types of heat pump systems. The most common type takes outside air and converts it to inside warm air (Air-to-Air). The next type takes outside air and warms water inside and uses our floor radiant heat system (Air-to-Water or Hydronic). The third type takes ground water at 55 degrees and warms it inside, also using the floor radiant system (Water-to-Water or Geothermal). Due diligence requires that we obtain quotes from three different companies in each of these three types of heat pump solutions. We are working as quickly as possible to bring complete, accurate information to the meetings on Saturday and Sunday.

A new wrinkle in our planning is a request to use our replacement reserves as part of the funding mechanism as we also request a larger budget. If the Meeting for Business is able to find unity this Sunday, the committee believes we will not miss the window of opportunity to launch a viable program for the coming school year.

– The Childcare Planning Committee

Signups for Summer Child Care Needed

Those of you who have had background checks should have received an email this week asking you to sign up for summer childcare. If you didn't get it or if you'd like to become part of the 'helpers', contact Ruth at ruthmheath [at] comcast [dot] net (subject: CMM%20YRE%20Child%20Care) . We need two people each week to supervise indoor or outdoor free play. There is no First Day teaching until September.

Thanks on behalf of our children!

- Youth Religious Education Committee

After-fellowship Cleaning on July 16^th

Update: Lots of rain is predicted for Sunday so our cleaning day will focus on cleaning soot and dust out of the mechanical room, getting junk down from and out of the attic, and window cleaning.  We hope you can join in this work to prepare for a more crowded meetinghouse as we host the new childcare program!

If the weather improves, Friends should plan to do mostly outdoor work.  If you know you can't be there for that time, we will have a list of residual tasks to send out afterward so that Friends can plan to do them over the next few weeks.  If you won't be available much for the following several weeks and are anxious to do some work around the Meetinghouse and grounds before 7/16, send a note to PropertyCommittee [at] ConcordFriendsMeeting [dot] org and we will let you know what would be helpful.  The next scheduled group cleaning activity will be the third Sunday of September.

Canterbury Fair - July 29^th: Spread the Word about Quakers AND Have Fun

The YRE Committee is organizing outreach at the Canterbury Fair, July 29, hoping to reach potential families and others who might be in search of a spiritual home. We need your help!

Friday, July 28, in the late afternoon/early evening we'll need 2 people to bring tables, chairs, tents, and plastic boxes of supplies to the Center (and maybe set up the tents if no wind is predicted).

The Fair begins Saturday at 9 a.m. and ends at 4 p.m.  For each 1½- to 2-hour shift we'll need:

• one person (at least) with the Puppets for Peace kids activity, and
• another person under the adult tent, to hand out ice water and outreach material (if requested) and answer questions.

When you're not helping out, there is so much to do and eat and buy: the legendary Book Sale, the scrump-deli-luscious Chicken BBQ, the antiques, the live music, the kids games, the frappes(!), the sundaes, the baked goods, the tacos, the "Grill", the What Not Sale, the Morris Dancers.  Plan to make it a day and spread the word about Quakers and what we offer to a world in need of peace and hope and love.

"Please email Ruth if you can help - ruthmheath [at] comcast [dot] net (subject: Canterbury%20Fair) . Thanks!"

An Invitation to Annual Sessions of New England Yearly Meeting:

Friends around New England and beyond—you are invited to the 363^rd Annual Sessions of New England Yearly Meeting, August 4–9, 2023!

Last year we pioneered hybrid sessions, with some of you attending at Castleton University, and others participating by Zoom. Continuing that successful experiment, our focus this year is building connections, strengthening local meetings, and practicing our faith together. Our schedule has been built with attention to creating time for sitting with old F/friends and making new ones.

Click here for more information

News From Matt S.

(Galway Ireland from Google Images)

Hello all,

These last two to three weeks have been interesting (and at times challenging).  After going through the trouble of setting up an Irish bank account, I was able to see quite a few museums and take in the city.  After some sightseeing, I was also able to attend a conference organized by scholars of eighteenth-century Ireland.  The conference revolved around presentations of recent research conducted by these historians. Topics ranged from entertainment in the early eighteenth century to the legacy of prominent Anglo-Irish politicians.  Between presentations – I was able to meet many people ranging from recently graduated PhDs to retired scholars of other eras just dropping in as ‘academic tourists

By the second and last day, however, I was quite exhausted – and eager to move on to my next adventure - a trip across Ireland to Galway on the western coast.  During my time here, I was able to stay in a hostel located right in the middle of the most historic part of the city.  Perhaps the most memorable aspect of Galway city for me was the historic port which offered stunningly beautiful views of Galway Bay.

I also took a ferry to Inishmore, the largest of the Aran islands.  Being part of the Gaeltacht, Inishmore remains one of the last places in Ireland where people still speak the Irish language at home.  My particular reason for going here was to see Dun Aengus – a very interesting fort that actually pre-dates the Celts and offers fantastic vistas of the island and the ocean.

My other adventure in Galway took me to an important and very old monastic settlement that was founded by St. Ciaran – one of the early Celtic Christian saints. The settlement – called Clonmacnoise – has some of the most beautiful and intact Celtic crosses in Ireland.  During my time there – I did my best to sit with the ancient ‘energies’ of the site and ‘take in’ the Shannon River.

I should also mention I visited the Friends meeting in Galway which is extremely small – it only meets twice a month!  These Galway Quakers were warm and welcoming and educated me on some of the intricacies of modern Irish politics and history.  My next planned adventure is to visit Glendalough – another important monastic site in the Wicklow mountains to the south of Dublin.  After this I will go down to county Wexford where I hope to explore the region and learn more about the significant 1798 rebellion which has a particular legacy in this county.  I wish you all the best and hope all is well in New Hampshire.

Matt S.

Ben Lomand Quaker Center

Offers a daily online meeting for worship from 7:30-8:00 a.m. Pacific Time (10:30–11:00 a.m. Eastern Time).  You can join them from anyplace in the world! online meeting for worship

Questions, comments, suggestions?  Email us at: ConcordFriendsNewsletter [at] gmail [dot] com (subject: Newsletter%20Submission)

From Past Issues:

• Draft minutes for the June 2023 Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business
• Circle of Music
• Quaker Podcasts
• New Hampshire Pow Wows
• COVID Information from other Meetings

Draft Minutes:

Circle of Music:

Sample of Quaker Podcasts:

• https://quakerstoday.podbean.com/
• https://quakersofnewengland.buzzsprout.com/
• https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-friendly-podcast/id1647960618

Pow Wows in New Hampshire:

Here is a list of Pow Wows in New Hampshire.  They are fun, interesting, and you can learn more about Indigenous culture. A great way to show support! https://calendar.powwows.com/events/categories/pow-wows/pow-wows-in-new-hampshire/

COVID Information From Other Meetings:

Click here for an interesting read on the practices of 14 Meetings around our Quarter and the Yearly Meeting.

Submission for this Newsletter

Dear Friends,

If you have information to share via this Newsletter please have your information submitted to ConcordFriendsNewsletter [at] gmail [dot] com (subject: Newsletter%20Submission) by 5:00 PM on Thursdays. 

• Items should begin with a headline followed by text that can be copied and pasted without editing.
• Please remove any formatting if you are able.
• Please keep postings directly related to the Meeting or activities and groups supported by the Meeting, or personal news to share. 
• Typically the announcements will go out by Friday.  It is our intention to acknowledge receipt of all submissions.  If you don't receive an acknowledgment we probably have not seen your message, and it would be helpful if you followed up with us.
• The Newsletter Gmail account is owned by Wendy, but it is also used by Juliet.  Look for the signature to be clear who the actual sender is.
• And finally, it's best to keep your Zoom links in a handy place in case the announcements are not sent in a given week.

Juliet Curran / Wendy Lapham Newsletter Editors

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