Issue 78, March – April 2022
Friends Center Tenant Newsletter
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S NOTE
As you may know, Friends Center is working on plans to convert the Lower Level of the 1501 Cherry Street building into a new facility for the Friends Child Care Center. FCCC, Friends Center, and our design team have been hard at work to plan this exciting project. Friends Child Care Center has been an important part of the Friends Center community for over 40 years, and this facility will serve them for decades to come. We look forward to providing a more detailed update soon!
—Chris Mohr, Executive Director
AROUND FRIENDS CENTER
In recognition of EARTH DAY on April 22:
E-Waste and Shredding Collection
After taking time off for the pandemic, Friends Center will once again collect your e-waste for recycling and paper files for shredding and recycling from Monday, April 18, to Friday, April 22. Items from home are acceptable, provided we have enough room to store everything. We will provide bins to drop off materials in the main lobby.
EQUITY PARTNER NEWS
PHILADELPHIA YEARLY MEETING (PYM)
Quaker College Fair – through April 10
AMERICAN FRIENDS SERVICE COMMITTEE (AFSC)
The City of Philadelphia’s Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy (OACCE) presents Harriet Tubman: 200 Years of Hope, Strength and Inspiration. Cultural leaders, program partners, and descendants of Harriet Tubman’s family were invited to share messages celebrating Harriet Tubman’s 200th birthday and their thoughts on what Tubman’s message would be to sustain her legacy for the next 200 years.
AFSC General Secretary Joyce Ajlouny contributed to the “Video Wall” for the City of Philadelphia’s Celebration of Harriet Tubman.
Celebration page: https://www.creativephl.org/programs/harriet-tubman/
CENTRAL PHILADELPHIA MONTHLY MEETING (CPMM)
CPMM announcement on environmental justice grant funding:
The Grandom Institution places a priority on clean, affordable energy solutions for low income households. The Institution has funds available to increase energy self-sufficiency of low income households and permanently reduce their energy burden.
Examples of the types of projects that meet this priority include:
- Solar installations
- Decarbonization projects for low income households
- Self-help weatherization workshops including the distribution of simple and inexpensive material that low income people can install in their own homes
- Energy efficiency improvements
- Fuel switching from fossil fuel to electric heat pumps
Eligible applicants must be local, nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organizations.
Deadline for Applications: July 1, 2022 no later than 5 pm. Applications must be submitted by email.
For more information: https://friendsfiduciary.org/grants-scholarships/grandom-institution/
TENANT NEWS
CAIR Philadelphia:
Iftar-Seder
4/10/2022 @ 7:30-9:30pm
Co-Sponsored by The Shalom Center, Sisterhood of Salaam-Shalom, Masjidullah, CAIR-Philadelphia, Interfaith Peace Walk
Live on Zoom & Facebook. Register at bit.ly/iftar-seder2022
What is an Iftar? From sunrise till sunset each day during the month of Ramadan, Muslims fast from food and water and contemplate the wisdom of Quran and reflect on how to live more fully by the Word and Will of God. Each evening they eat Iftar – the meal-of-consciously-breaking-the-fast that begins with the eating of a date.
What is a Seder? The Seder is a Jewish sacred meal in which the foods themselves embody the story of liberation from oppression. A bitter herb embodies the bitterness of racism, oppression, and war. Matzah, the bread whose baking was so urgent that its bakers could not take time to let it rise, embodies what Reverend Martin Luther King called “the fierce urgency of Now.” Charoset, a sweet mix of chopped fruit, nuts, and spices, embodies the joyful world we work to create.
And why an “Iftar-Seder”? Because this year the Muslim lunar month of Ramadan and the Jewish lunar month of Nisan, with its eight-day festival of Passover, coincide. Joining the two meals is a spiritually moving way of bringing the American Muslim and American Jewish communities together in a historical moment when come in each community have defined the other as an Other. On Iftar-Seder evening, not only for the night but for our lives.
Inshallah! Keyn yehi ratzon!
May it be God’s will that our sharing continues!
IN THE WIDER QUAKER WORLD
Ben Lomond Quaker Center (near Santa Cruz, Calif.) seeks a full-time, on-site Director and Associate Director or Co-Directors to provide spiritual and practical leadership to West Coast Friends.
These individuals need to be familiar and supportive of Friends’ beliefs, values, and practices. They must be experienced in program development and be well able to manage staff, finances, and fundraising efforts for the Center. Strong computer proficiency is essential. Management and/or experience in developing and supporting a non-profit organization are highly desirable.
The ideal candidates will have a Friendly and hospitable personality to welcome Friends and the public and have a passion for program development using themes consistent with Quaker values. They will be able to interact effectively and collaboratively with the Board.
Compensation includes salary, housing in the beautiful Santa Cruz redwoods, utilities, and other benefits. We are accepting applications from individuals and couples. Persons of color and LGBTQ are encouraged.
The Quaker Center website will soon include job descriptions and application requirements. Direct inquiries & questions to: quakercentersearch@gmail.com
IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD
GIRLS INC. (former tenant)
Reimagining Workplace Equality
