North Branch Friends Quaker News

A Coffee Fundraiser
in Weston, UK

Quakers in Weston are next week launching a regular coffee morning event, designed to raise money for charities.

The Friends Meeting House on the corner of Oxford Street and High Street will host the events, which will take place on the last Saturday of alternate months.

A spokesman said: "It seems a good idea to share the space, and some company, while raising awareness and perhaps some funds.

"Other charities are invited to have stalls of their own. It is early days yet, but we hope this will become established as a regular feature of the town."

The first event will take place at 10am on June 28.

Source: The Weston & Somerset Mercury, June 18, 2008.

Wooster Friends
Host Discussion Series

The Wooster Friends Meeting will continue discussions on Quaker beliefs and practices Sunday at 12:15 p.m., with an exploration of George Fox's admonition to "walk cheerfully over the world, answering that of God in everyone."

This admonition represents a central value for Quakers and leads to the many times that Quakers have supported individuals and groups who have been generally regarded as unworthy. Early American Quakers saw "that of God" in American Indians and enslaved blacks. Quakers continue to see "that of God" in people suffering in the economy and in the "enemy" in every war.

The discussion is open to the public, and people unfamiliar with Quakers are invited to attend and participate. The discussion will be held in the form of "worship sharing" and will follow the regularly held silent worship, which begins at 10:45 a.m.

The Wooster Friends Meeting is an unprogrammed meeting of the Religious Society of Friends. Silent worship, also known as unprogrammed worship, is held each Sunday at 10:45 a.m. in the lower level of the Westminster Presbyterian Church House, 353 E. Pine St., Wooster. More information about the meeting may be found at http://wooster.quaker.org .

Source: http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1578027/religion_briefs/

Warwick Friends have invited the public to join them for a "Meet the Quakers" night in the Meeting House at the Quaker Community Centre in Warwick, UK, on Tuesday, Oct. 8. The meeting has also made a special effort to welcome guests on Oct. 5 and 12, the two Sundays that frame this year's National Quaker Week in the UK.

More information: Kenilworth Weekly News

Westerly Friends
Work to Alleviate Poverty

Westerly Friends Meeting was among those groups which founded the Westerly Area Meals Shelter in Westerly, Rhode Island, 20 years ago, said clerk Tracie Sweeney. "Our involvement continues in many ways. Many of Westerly friends' outreach efforts are done through the WARM Shelter."

They prepare and serve meals, hold fundraisers, offer food and holiday baskets, and conduct a yearly bowl-a-thon. The Westerly group has about 70 members.

"All of our members participate in some way in efforts to alleviate poverty and assist low-income populations, but we have two committees whose work focuses especially on such efforts."

The society is at 57 Elm St., Westerly (401) 348-7078.

Source: The Providence Journal

NEWBERG, Ore. - George Fox University says four students have been punished for hanging a likeness of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama from a tree on campus.

The university said in a statement today the penalties are "immediate long-term suspension and public service." The school says the four confessed to their involvement.

It says federal privacy rules prevent it from disclosing the length of the suspensions or the names of the students.

The life-size cardboard cutout, a commercial product, was hung last week with fishing line around the neck.

An official of the Christian school of about 1,800 students called the image of a black man hanged from a tree one of the most hurtful symbols of racism in American history.

Source: Seattle Times
Image from ABC News

A rich vein of inspiring stories runs through the Cotswold Art and Antique Dealers' Association (CADA) autumn exhibition trail. Witney Antiques have called their show Friends: A Common Thread but the contents are far from 'common'. Their exhibition tells the story of the Society of Friends otherwise known as The Quakers. The Quakers influence on social reform and new ideas in education and business is remarkable, especially considering their small population in global terms. Quakers have been, and still are, modest but socially active people, and their story is revealed in a typically unostentatious manner. Their history is embroidered, quite literally. This is Witney Antiques16th annual needlework exhibition, and anyone who has been before knows to expect work of quality.

More information: Oxford Times (UK)

Storytelling Events for
UK's National Quaker Week

Building bridges with storytelling is the focus for an information week beginning on Saturday, when Quakers in Britain will profile their life, faith and practice as a distinct and viable commitment in a divided world.

Marking National Quaker Week, which runs from 4 12 October 2008, three prizewinning authors are keen to talk about their connection with Quakers and how that influences the challenging topics they write about.

More information: Ekklesia