MCGM meets Sat. Feb 6, 2010 at the Oak Park Conservatory
615 Garfield Street, Oak Park

The Conservatory was established in 1914 and has over 3000 plants. It is the third largest conservatory in the Chicago area. Self Guided Audio tours are available all day and there will be several docent tours during the day as well. The Fern Room, Tropical Room and The Desert room will be pleasant respites from winter. We will meet in a modern conference room on the premises.
Note: This is not the Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago!

Schedule
9:00 AM Meet and Greet with refreshments

9:30 Worship followed by Worship with attention to business

Noon A simple lunch of pizza will be served. A donation will be requested to pay for lunch. Also, anyone wishing to contribute a salad, desert or covered dish will be appreciated.

1 PM Reconciliation Ecology with a Chicago Area Focus presented by Adrian Fisher
As Friends reflect about our role in and care of creation, we might reflect on our own practices in our gardens and backyards. This workshop will encourage participants to consider gardening and landscaping from a Quaker-centered spiritual and ecological point of view, focused on the Chicago region. Practicing reconciliation ecology in our backyards reduces use of non-renewable resources, increases bio-diversity, and helps lower the gardener’s carbon footprint, while helping heal our bio-region. There will be activities, practical advice and discussion

3 PM adjourn

All Day Child Care, Children and Youth Activities inside and out! Led by Marti Matthews and Patricia McMillen, details below.

Other opportunities at the end of the formal meeting include: (details will be available on site)

*further viewing of the plants until 4 PM, photography encouraged
*visit Ernest Hemingway Birthplace
*visit Frank Lloyd Wright studio and home
*visit Ten Thousand Villages store for special Valentine gifts—and help struggling artisans at the same time

Driving Directions
By Car: Take the Eisenhower Expressway (I-290) to Austin Avenue, exit south (turn left) and then immediately turn right (west) onto Garfield. Proceed west on Garfield past East Avenue (the third stop sign.) The Conservatory is on the south side of Garfield, just after East Avenue. Free Parking is available on the street directly in front of the Conservatory, and to the side of along East Avenue
By public transportation: Take the CTA Congress “L” Blue Line to the Oak Park Avenue station, then exit either the East Avenue or Oak Park Avenue entrances. The Conservatory is on the southwest corner of East and Garfield, which is a three minute walk from Oak Park Avenue.

Child Care.
Children who are potty-trained and have no-contagious diseases will be welcome at the MCGM February Meeting at Oak Park Conservatory. Parents are requested to bring warm clothes and snow-proof footwear for children’s use in outdoor activities, which will take place in the early afternoon (after lunch, during Adrian’s presentation), weather permitting. Morning (indoor) activities will key off the Conservatory’s youth programs, which include themed, self-guided tours of the Conservatory (February is Chocolate Month, by the way), child-friendly introductions to resident plant and animal life (which include lovebirds, Cockatiels, turtles, fish…), and simple craft projects. Patricia McMillen and Marti Matthews will supervise MCGM youth during these activities, and are putting plans in place for Quaker-specific indoor and outdoor games in a separate Conservatory room reserved for the purpose, possibly including “teaching moments” regarding Fair Trade and organic chocolate production. We’ll also provide a snack. Names, ages and allergy/activity/food preference information in advance {(708) 386 2907 for Patricia McMillen} would be much appreciated, but bring your children even if you haven’t called ahead!

Please join Chicago Friends for: A LIVELY AND INFORMATIVE EVENING ON U.S.POLICY

CHICAGO FRIENDS MEETING WILL HOST A COMMUNITY FORUM ON SATURDAY, DECEMBER 12, AT 6:30 p.m. AT the QUAKER MEETINGHOUSE, 10749 S. ARTESIAN AVE. LIGHT REFRESHMENTS SERVED AT AT 6: 30, PROGRAM TO FOLLOW.

JIM CASON OF THE WASHINGTON OFFICE OF THE FRIENDS COMMITTEE ON NATIONAL LEGISLATION (FCNL) WILL BE
PRESENT TO LEAD A DISCUSSION ON CURRENT ISSUES IN CONGRESS AND FACING THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION. DISCUSSION WILL PARTICULARLY FOCUS ON ISSUES OF THE WAR IN AFGHANISTAN, THE NUCLEAR NON-PROLIFERATION TREATY, HEALTH CARE REFORM AND THE WAYS IN WHICH FCNL AND ITS MANY SUPPORTERS SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER IN THE HALLS OF CONGRESS.

MORE THAN 65 YEARS AGO FCNL WAS ESTABLISHED TO BRING TO OUR CONGRESSIONAL LAWMAKERS THE HUMAN CONCERNS WHICH MEMBERS OF THE RELIGIOUS SOCIETY OF FRIENDS SEEKS TO ADVANCE.

WITH AN OFFICE STAFF OF SOME 30 MEMBERS, FCNL IS THE LARGEST FAITH-BASED LOBBY ON CAPITOL HILL.

ALL ARE WELCOME AND ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND THIS DISCUSSION OF THE WORK AND CHANGES BEING ACHIEVED AT THIS MOMENTOUS TIME IN OUR NATION’S HISTORY. lEARN HOW YOU CAN BE AN EFFECTIVE VOICE FOR POSITIVE CHANGE. FCNL MATERIALS WILL BE AVAILABLE TO TAKE AWAY.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PHONE 773-779-7494.

” War is not the answer” yard signs and bumper stickers will b available to take away.

Peace,
E. GARNET FAY
Chicago Monthly Meeting of Friends

MCGM will gather November 7, 2009 at Chicago Friends Meeting–10749 S Artesian (773) 445-8949

Chicago MM Friends will provide:

8:45 am: Morning snack and coffee for early gatherers. Meetinghouse will be open at 8:45 for Friends to begin gathering.

9:00 am: We will seek to settle into Worship at 9am.
Business Meeting to rise from Worship.

Noon: For Lunch CMM Friends will provide:
Pasta (vegetarian), Meatballs in sauce (for omnivores)
Fruit Salad
Tea, Coffee ,Water

DESSERT ALERT!: Our hosts are asking Friends to bring desserts if Led and anything else that will work with stated menu.

Please help with cleanup following lunch so we all may experience our guest Jackie Speicher.

1:00 pm (or whenever cleanup is finished): We will begin our afternoon program led by Jackie Speicher on Right Sharing on Meeting Resources

Please inform Chicago MM Friends BEFORE November 4th) if you need childcare and what the ages of the children are.

The Fourth Annual Old-Fashioned Corn Roast and Pot Luck Picnic

Metropolitan Chicago General Meeting
–hosted by Upper Fox Valley Quaker Meeting

When: Saturday, September 5, 2009 – 3:00 p.m. till dark

Where: Alice and Bill Howenstine’s
Pioneer Tree Farm
4614 Pioneer Road (3 miles north of McHenry, half mile off Rt. 31)
McHenry, IL 60051 Tel: 815-385-8512
A MAP can be printed from the farm’s website: http://www.pioneertreefarm.com

What’s happening:

3:00–5:00 – volleyball, hiking, hayrides, horseshoes, croquet, feeding the chickens, frisbee, or your own favorite game…and good conversation!

5:00 - pot luck supper – roast corn, lemonade, ice tea, and decaf will be provided by Upper Fox Valley

Evening - campfire, singing, stories

Camping overnight is okay. Breakfast can be a co-op affair – and you are welcome to join Upper Fox Valley Meeting for Worship Sunday, 10 a.m., ( held at Crystal Lake Montessori School), followed by snacks

What to bring:
– some food to share (and cooler, if needed); soft drinks (if desired); your own non-disposable plate, cup, utensils; folding
chairs or blankets to sit on (though there are four picnic tables and benches); mosquito repellent; sun-tan lotion; musical instrument; camping equipment, of course, it you want to camp overnight –

DRESS FOR THE WEATHER WITH OUTDOOR CLOTHING!

RSVP:
It would help in ordering corn to have an idea of how many might becoming!
815-385-8512 or email to abhow@oawl.net

MCGM will be hosted by Evanston meeting on Saturday, May 2nd, 2009.

Schedule:

9:30 am gathering
10 am Meeting for Worship, Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business
12 noon lunch hosted by Evanston Monthly Meeting
1 pm Listening Circle Workshop facilitated by Tim Baer and Joanna Wiebe
3 pm Closing

Childcare is available during the event.

How to get there: Evanston’s meeting house is at 1010 Greenleaf St. in Evanston, IL; there is plenty of street parking. The meeting house is one-half mile from the Main Street stop of the Metra and CTA.

Please let Evanston Friends know how many to plan for! RSVP to newsletterfriend@evanstonquakers.com with the names of those attending. It will be helpful if you will let us know names and ages of children planning to attend.

Quakers of all sorts from meetings and worship groups in Chicagoland and beyond will gather May 2 at Evanston Monthly Meeting, for worship, spiritual nurture, food and fellowship, and service. This includes Friends from 57th Street, Chicago Monthly Meeting, Downers Grove, Duneland, Evanston, Friends Gathering in Jesus Christ, Lake Forest, Northside Friends, Oak Park, Oshkosh, Rock Valley, South Bend, and Upper Fox Valley. We gather to remember and to celebrate who we are.

Listening Circle Workshop
“The branches of your intelligence grow new leaves in the wind of this listening.” - Rumi
From 1 to 3 pm, Joanna Wiebe and Tim Baer will facilitate a Listening Circle Workshop, modeled on the Shalom Mountain Retreat Center process. Participants in this experiential workshop will learn the Listening Circle meeting format, which gives everyone in the group an opportunity to listen and to be heard. This two hour workshop will train you to run your own Listening Circles, which are a safe atmosphere for:
• sharing ideas, stories and feelings
• building understanding relationships
• giving and receiving support and encouragement
• practicing the art of deep listening
You will take home a concise handout which clearly outlines the steps of the Listening Circle process. You can use the Listening Circle meeting format with any size of group, with any age, in any setting.

MCGM will meet on Saturday, February 7th, at Lake Forest meeting’s meetinghouse, 101 West Old Elm Road (near West Old Elm and Ridge roads), beginning at 9:30 AM.

Along with our usual activities (meeting for worship, business, fellowship, and eating), we will learn about and discuss Quaker Quest, an outreach program developed by Britain Yearly Meeting that has jumped the Atlantic.

This will not be a QQ training workshop, but an exploratory session.

Based on our exploration/sharing/discussion/listening worship:

• • MCGM MIGHT decide to sponsor a training workshop for members of individual MMs that decide to offer QQ;
• • or, we MIGHT decide to offer QQ as MCGM, or as regional subgroups of MCGM, and sponsor a training workshop for that;
• • or, we MIGHT be moved to some combination of these;
• • or, we MIGHT just be moved to consider how we do outreach and evangelism: how DO we share what we have as Quakers that is good?

(There’s just NO TELLING what the Spirit MIGHT prompt us to do, until we come together worshipfully with each other and this material.)

When the midwest snow gets just so deep, Friends in these parts gather for Winter Retreats!

Western Yearly Meeting’s Winter Retreat will be on February 14th in Plainfield, Indiana (just west of Indianapolis). This is a day retreat, from 9am to 4pm (registration begins 8:30). The topic is “Understanding Friends Discernment"; the morning session will focus on discerning God’s call in your life; the afternoon, myths about Quaker decision-making and discerning God’s will for the church. The retreat will be led by Bruce Bishop, Northwest Yearly Meeting’s Communication Director and co-author of the book, Practicing Discernment Together, Finding God’s Way Forward in Decision Making. The cost is $10, which includes lunch. Children are free and there is a children’s program. They’d like to hear from you by February 1st. For more information, see: http://www.westernym.net/pdf/2009WYMWinterRetreat.pdf

Illinois Yearly Meeting’s Winter Retreat will be on the following weekend, February 21-22, at Menno Haven, near Tiskilwa, Illinois (near I-80 in the middle of Illinois). This retreat begins Saturday 10am and ends Sunday afternoon. The topic is “Nonviolent Communication.” It will be a training (no lectures) led by Myra Walden, a Nonviolent Communication (NVC) facilitator trained by Marshall Rosenberg. The cost for the retreat, 4 meals, and Saturday lodging is $120. You can choose options including lodging for Friday night also, no lodging at all, or a lodging upgrade, all for adjusted prices. If cost is a problem, you are asked to assess yourself what you can afford to pay. Children are free and there is a children’s program. They’d like your registration by February 2nd. For more information, see: http://www.ilym.org/tiki-read_article.php?articleId=42