EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S NOTE

COMING SOON: ALL-GENDER, ACCESSIBLE RESTROOM FOR 1501 CHERRY ST. BUILDING

        At the request of one of our equity partners, the American Friends Service Committee, we will be converting the first floor shower room in the 1501 Cherry Street building into a fully accessible, all-gender restroom.

        The Friends Center board of directors enthusiastically endorsed the idea, as it will increase both our restroom capacity and provide more equitable access for all people.

        Construction starts in mid-October, and will take a few weeks. The contractor plans to cordon off the work area so people can still pass by to use the existing women’s room and access the first floor office suite. Inevitably, there will be noise and disruption. We hope you can live with it for a short while, knowing that a larger benefit is on the way.

        By the way, the existing shower room on the second floor of 1501 will remain. It’s part of our green building practice, for those who walk or bike to work.

        Thank you in advance for your patience with the construction phase of this project. Please let me know if you have any questions.

– Chris Mohr, Executive Director

AROUND FRIENDS CENTER

World Quaker Day is Sunday, October 6!

Please see the last piece in this newsletter for more information.

Mighty Writers hosts Anti-Violence Town Hall here

On Friday, 9/27, in the Rufus Jones Room, Mighty Writers held an Anti-Violence Town Hall for Philadelphia youth impacted by violence, as part of their MightFest. Click here for coverage by NBC10 and WHYY

EQUITY PARTNER NEWS

AMERICAN FRIENDS SERVICE COMMITTEE (AFSC)

Bystander Intervention Do’s and Don’ts

If you witness public instances of racist, anti-Black, anti-Muslim, anti-Trans, or any other form of oppressive interpersonal violence and harassment, use these tips on how to intervene while considering the safety of everyone involved.  

PHILADELPHIA YEARLY MEETING (PYM)

PYM Families Autumn Community Playdate

We’re excited to invite PYM Families to our next Community Playdate for Apple and pumpkin picking, autumnal FUN at Solebury Orchards in Bucks County.

The Community Playdate is an opportunity for fellowship and learning with our PYM Family community.

                We’ll meet on Saturday, October 12 at 9:00am at Solebury Orchards in New Hope, PA. Kimani Keaton, Children and Families Program Facilitator, will be there to greet and gather our group, and then lead families on wagon rides to pick apples and find the perfect pumpkin in the patch.

In case of inclement weather and cancellation, we’ll email those who have registered (see below) and post on the PYM Families Facebook page. No parking, entry or wagon ride fees; apples are $1.50/lb.

Questions? Contact the Youth Engagement Coordinator mwennerbradley@pym.org or ChildrenAndFamilies@pym.org

CENTRAL PHILADELPHIA MONTHLY MEETING (CPMM)

You Are Welcome Here

Join us for worship at 11 AM every Sunday at Friends Center

Central Philadelphia Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends is a large, urban Quaker meeting, diverse in many ways. We welcome visitors throughout the year.

• We worship by gathering and silently waiting for the Spirit to guide us.
• We celebrate diversity and welcome people from all walks of life. We are a welcoming and affirming congregation for LGBTQ people.
• We are also involved in various activities to further peace and social justice.

TENANT NEWS

Singing City Fall Concert–The Road Less Traveled Singing City and Lyric Fest together in concert.

Saturday, October 5, 2019, 4 pm: Haddonfield United Methodist Church, 29 Warwick Rd., Haddonfield, NJ 08033

Sunday, October 6, 3 pm: Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral, 23 S. 38th St., Phila., PA 19104

Songs of journey and diaspora, welcome and belonging, leaving home and finding home. A timely program exploring world-wide migration and America’s roots as an immigrant  nation.

Bartol Foundation (@BartolFdn) Workshop: Introduction to Trauma-Informed Practice for Teaching

Tuesday, October 15, 10:00 AM – 12:30 PM at Friends Center

More information can be found here on the Bartol Foundation website.  

Recap of Living Building Challenge
with Community Ventures

Green Building United recently completed a “Living Building Challenge” for infill affordable housing with our tenant, Community Ventures. Read about it here.

https://greenbuildingunited.org/newsroom/recap-lbc-demonstration-project

EVENTS OUTSIDE FRIENDS CENTER

This year’s theme is Sustainability: Planting Seeds of Renewal for the World We Love.

Friends World Committee for Consultation, Section of the Americas (FWCC), invites you to join Quakers around the world for the 6th annual World Quaker Day.

Across our churches, meetings, countries and sections, we feel the power of God connecting us in to a faithful family. We celebrate all expressions of Quaker worship!

Learn more and see photos at www.worldquakerday.org.