South Central Yearly Meeting

9/22/2023
Marian Hedleston Carter died Aug 22, 2023. She was a vital part of Friends Meeting of San Antonio for 60 years. She served on many committees and provided an institutional memory. She and her husband, Rusty, were instrumental in forming the meeting. Marian let her mind be known. When she decided that a Meeting for Business had gone on long enough, she would gather her papers and head for the door.
A Memorial Meeting for Marian Carter is planned for Saturday, October 28, 2023. Friends will gather at 10 am to celebrate the life of Marian Carter and her contributions to the life of our Meeting. We are invited to make refreshments for the reception following worship. The memorial will be in person and via Zoom. See SanAntonioQuakers.org for the link.

8/6/23
The Memorial Meeting for Sue Garzon was held on Saturday, August 5th at 1:30pm followed by light refreshments at the Girl Scouts' Lodge in Stillwater, OK. We celebrated with stories about Sue, reading from Sue's book and joyous singing.  

7/13/23
Will King writes about the flooding in Vermont and New York State:
Would you please post for Friends to know that I’m doing ok in regards to the flooding in Vermont. Several Friends have reached out, which makes me feel so loved, cared for, and held with such grace The town I live in just got some heavy, prolonged rain, but no major damage or flooding to my town (White River Junction/Hartford, Vermont). One town over, Woodstock, VT, is hanging on by a thread with a very swollen and rapid river running through the town. More rain is forecasted for today and tomorrow, so that river might have yet to crest. The pictures from places like Ludlow (30 miles away) and the state capital Montpelier (40 miles away) are heartbreaking. Please hold all New Yorkers and Vermonters affected by the rain and flooding in the Light. I did hear from Anne Collins this morning, and she was away from her new home of Round Lake while the storms came through, but her town and property were unaffected.

5/29/23
Jan Michael writes:
Susan Garzon passed away peacefully at home Sunday night from breast cancer.  It is still early so plans have hardly been discussed, but I think a memorial in Stillwater for friends and colleagues would be appropriate, and another sometime in Iowa where we both have family. SCYM Friends can check here for news about the memorial meeting which will be posted here when a decision has been made. 

5/18/23
Please hold Sue Garzon and Jan Michael in the Light for the best possible outcome as Sue spends her last days, weeks, months, in hospice care with Jan a steady presence at her side.

Dear SCYM'ers:

The first draft of our SCYM Faith and Practice is now ready for your review. There will be a workshop at 2023 SCYM Annual Sessions in which Friends can ask questions of the committee and bring suggestions for editing. We will not be asking for a decision to adopt this as our Faith and Practice at this time. 

Friends should know that this document has been a long time coming with the work of many Friends. Let us express gratitude to the committee that has worked hard to bring it to us and the many others who participated in this process along the way.

Now it is all of our responsibility to review it and discern if it reflects the faith and practice of the meetings in South Central Yearly Meeting. See the SCYM Faith and Practice draft here. 

John Coffin, Committee clerk
Little Rock Friends Meeting

Oklahoma/Arkansas Quarterly Meeting celebrated Tina Coffin's long years publishing The Carillon at their Quarterly Meeting this fall. Two members of the Quarter, LaDeana Mullinix and Sue Garzon, wrote new lyrics to a familiar tune to celebrate. 

Tina's Song

Former Houston native and Quaker activist, J.E. McNeil prides herself on her ability to bridge the regional, cultural, and political divides in the United States—the ability, as she puts it, to speak both NASCAR and NPR. So she created a program that teaches others how to communicate with people of different ideological persuasions. As she says, "You can't start persuading people until you're actually communicating." 

Watch the video here.

If you don't already know about Quaker Speak Videos, this is great time to view this one and others. You can find the whole archive of videos here. 

Friends Peace Teams Announcements and Upcoming Events: 

Upcoming Events

• Roots of Injustice (TRR) Online: Jan 22 or Feb 11, Sun 2-4pm Mountain
• Meet the Javanese Team: Fri, Feb 24, 6:30p Eastern for Power of Goodness and 8:30pm Eastern for Visitation.
• Indian Boarding Schools… Online, Mar 14, Tue 9:15pm Eastern 
• FPT Annual Gathering, May 4-7, Westtown Friends School, Register Now! (yes all are welcome)
• Paula Palmer interview

Friends Peace Teams In Ukraine:

FPT has been working with Ukrainians since 2014 supporting internally displaced

To Friends Throughout the United States:  

Greetings in the Spirit of Love.  

We write to share with you an “Urgent Call to the Religious Society of Friends” concerning the current extensive threats to our U.S. democracy. We are led to speak out against the lies, extremist movements, and anti-democratic actions that are the opposite of our Quaker understandings of integrity and Truth.   This Call was prepared by a group of nineteen Friends.

We encourage your prayerful discernment of this “Urgent Call” and ask you as individuals, monthly meetings, yearly meetings, and Friends organizations to consider how you might be called to act with integrity in response to these concerns. 

Read the Urgent Call
Join the Conversation at quakercall.net 

Join Friends in Moscow for Daily Worship for Ukraine

9:00AM Pacific / 10AM Mountain / 11AM Central