Dear Friend,
As we come to the end of summer, and turn towards the school year and cooler weather, we invite you to join us in welcoming a new program, a new bookstore manager, and new opportunities for all of us through Friends General Conference. As we enter the season of change, let us all think together on the growth and transition in our religious community, and how we can support one another's efforts and spirit. With news from South Eastern Yearly Meeting, and a helpful resource for building inter-generational community in our meetings, worship groups, and churches, we hope you enjoy this fall edition of Vital Friends.
In the Spirit,
FGC Staff
This issue contains:
- FGC Friends: Southeastern Yearly Meeting
- Program Spotlight: Spiritual Deepening
- Welcoming New QuakerBooks Bookstore Manager
- Resource for Building Inter-generational Community
- Among Friends: Book Event Pendle Hill
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photo by Davida Johns
 Southeastern Yearly Meeting is a community of 23 Meetings and Worship Groups in Florida, southeastern Georgia, coastal South Carolina, and Managua, Nicaragua. In 2014, we celebrated our 50th anniversary.
Friendly Facts
- Our big news is the anticipated hiring of a Field Secretary for Earthcare to visit our Meetings and Worship Groups and help them discern way forward in addressing Climate Change and other environmental concerns.
- Our Yearly Meeting Gathering, held the Wednesday through Sunday of Easter week, is five days of blessed community in worship, workshops, plenary sessions, intergenerational dance and games, a Youth program. For our 2017 Gathering, we are excited about Peterson Toscano leading the Walton Retreat & Lecture. Join us!
 There are other SEYM annual events. The Michener Lecture & Seminars is held the Sunday before the Martin Luther King Holiday, at the Orlando meetinghouse. Half-Yearly Meeting, held over Thanksgiving weekend, is a time for getting out in nature at Wekiwa Springs State Park, Florida. It is 4 days of serendipity--- a time to enjoy canoeing, nature hikes, games, workshops and just being among Friends. Our Fall Interim Business Meeting is held in October, and our Winter Interim Business Meeting is held the Saturday before the Michener Lecture in Orlando.- ProNica, a Quaker organization in solidarity with the people of Nicaragua, was founded by SEYM in 1987, then grew to be its own non-profit organization. ProNica partners with grassroots projects in Nicaragua to address urgent needs and social injustice, empower the disadvantaged, and foster social, economic, and environmental sustainability. They also offer Friends Witness Tours for groups---Quakers, college classes, churches, and others---to experience Nicaragua’s culture and natural beauty, and to visit their partner organizations. Quaker House, in Managua, serves as a base for their directors in Nicaragua, Managua Worship Group, and the Witness Tours. ProNica maintains its Quaker identity and close ties with SEYM; most of its Board are SEYM representatives, and the stateside office is housed at St. Petersburg Meeting.
Photo by Eduardo Diaz
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Photo by Christine Ashley
 When we’re doing it faithfully, what are the qualities of Quaker social action? Spirit-filled, hopeful, compassionate, clear, loving, patient, connected. During a visit to the Alaskan Friends Conference annual sessions in July, FGC Spiritual Deepening Program Coordinator Rachel Ernst Stahlhut drew from the Spiritual Deepening program materials to explore with Alaskan Friends how their spiritual community energizes, vitalizes, and sustains their collective witness against climate disruption. Read more about the many ways in which the new Spiritual Deepening program can work for your meeting.
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 FGC is pleased to welcome Samantha Wilson as Manager of QuakerBooks of FGC. Samantha will begin her new position in early September. Learn more about Samantha here.
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 The Build It! Toolkit, provides activities and guidance for your meeting or worship group in building Inter-generational community. The activities and workshops in the Build It! Toolkit are designed to strengthen and nurture ties among generations in our meetings, worship groups, and churches and contribute to meetings’ efforts to identify and cultivate emerging leaders. Learn more here.
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 On September 29th, Pendle Hill and QuakerBooks of FGC invite you to hear T. Vail Palmer read from his new book, Face to Face: Early Quaker Encounters with the Bible, and talk about his process in preparing for and writing this book. Vail will also sign copies of his book following his talk. Refreshments will be served. Find out more about this event here.
And for a limited time only, get Face to Face for 10% off on QuakerBooks.org by using code QB10% at check out.
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