Learning to Listen Our 20Th Annual Friendly Neighbors Peace Camp Is One of the Most Important Forms of Outreach at First Friends
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The Living Light “...and Christ shall give thee light.” Ephesians 5:14 Volume 54, Number 7 First Friends Church of Whittier Seventh Month, 2015 Learning to Listen Our 20th annual Friendly Neighbors Peace Camp is one of the most important forms of outreach at First Friends. All children from surronding neighborhoods are invited to participate in five days of arts and crafts, games and songs, and education in various forms of peacemaking. Peace Camp will take place Monday, July 27 through Friday, July 31, from 9 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. in Fellowship Hall. An organizing committee headed by Justine Whitehead has selected the theme “Hearing Each Other.” Committee members will contribute their many special skills to the actual operation. They include Carrin Bouchard, Marilyn Fant, Russ Litchfield and Darrell Young Friends Honored On Warren. As always, a cadre of veteran Peace Campers from the Meeting’s Youth Fellowship will serve as Promotion Sunday counselors. There will be outings to local places of interest pertinent to learning listening skills. As always, Kat Ryder and Bella Sturr sang a spiritual duet “See parents of Peace Campers are invited to participate in You Again” to open Meeting for Worship on June 14. demonstrations and wrap -up activities on the final Friday. Lynda Ladwig continued that theme in her introduction to Operating funds for this year’s Peace Camp were Promotion Sunday, saying “Christian Education is not raised at three Peace Café benefit events over the last something that stops.” She paid tribute to Darrell Warren year. Many members of our Meeting, including several of for his years of devoted work with the Adult Sunday our youth, worked hard in contributing their skills and School. The great contribution of Darrell and the other talents to these popular cabaret -night fundraisers. Sunday School workers — Tish Purkiss, Mel Sturr and Registration for Peace Camp began the last week of Becky Overmyer -Velazquez — was evident in the poise June. The fee is $50 per child and $40 for each additional and idealism in the faces of the five young Friends on the child in the same family. Some scholarship funds are facing bench awaiting their recognition. available. Tish and Mel presented continuation certificates to Let’s help get the word out about Peace Camp! Call Sunday Schoolers, starting with nursery class members the church office for registration information. Avalon and Landon Caringella. They also went to Ashley — Bob Newton Ryder and Lara Wemmerus, who both go on to 6th grade this fall, and to Samantha Cramer and Wes Van Dorn, who both graduated from high school this spring. Nathan Jones was awarded a Chronological Study Bible in Summer Meeting for Worship recognition of his recent graduation with a Bachelor’s Degree in sociology from the University of California at July 5 through September 6 Irvine. Sundays at 10:00 a.m. in Fellowship Hall Continued on Page 3 2 Becky Overmyer -Velazquez and daughters, Amara Friendly Fare by Lea Wright and Zoe, spent a week mid -June in Vancouver, B.C. Dear Friends, As we go to press with our first summer visiting grandparents and doing fun things with friends issue of The Living Light we are looking forward to like biking around Stanley Park and swimming (lots of having a bit of a break from our normally hectic lives. Do swimming!) Tina Buell & her husband Jerry Post may we really think the pace will slow down? With 5 or 6 have forgotten to take The Living Light with them to weekly concerts and picnics in the park, things are just Texas (so no picture), but they had a great time visiting beginning to pick up. Jerry’s kids and his grand kids. One of his four New Friends: Rob & Sue Settlage welcomed Trinity grandchildren just graduated from high school. His Juliet Solís , their 4th grandchild & 2nd granddaughter grandchildren range in age from 24 to 14. Tina said, “The who arrived in May. Proud parents are Amanda Settlage dry southern California will be a welcome relief from the & Juan Carlos Solis . Trinity, who lives in Belmont Texas humidity.” They traveled from Copperas Cove, Shore, Long Beach, will spend workdays with near Fort Hood to Corpus Christi. Ted & Mary grandparents Sue & Rob in Whittier when her mother Marshburn travelled north of Sacramento and Amanda returns to work at the Rancho Los Amigos attended a family reunion of about 100 cousins of the Foundation in September. Milhous family on a cattle ranch near Auburn CA in early Friends Celebrate: Hubert Perry celebrated his 102nd June. On Sunday birthday on June 11, unfortunately in the hospital. He they visited the returned to his home after a short hospital stay. Grass Valley Friends Travel: On her trip east last month, Elinore Friends Meeting Petoletti visited a working at Nevada City windmill in Holland, MI. Here CA. This picture she is with The Living Light was taken at the continuing our tradition: “ The Post Office in Living Light Auburn which Travels .” (Remember, your opened July 21, submissions are welcome and 1853. When they needed.) Carol Urner flew to arrived home, Europe in April on her 86th granddaughter birthday to attend the Centennial Bethany arrived for the summer, returning from a Congress of the Women’s short study program in Colombia. International League for Peace Friends Remember: This month we said good -bye to and Freedom (WILPF) held in The Hague where the Judith Austin who passed away. All six of Judith’s organization was founded. Before returning to Whittier sons, who grew up in Rochester NY, (and four of whom she spent several days as an observer at the U.N. in N.Y., still live in the East) were in Whittier for their mother’s then stopped in Washington DC to do more lobbying for memorial service at First Friends on June 12. Sympathy to the abolition of nuclear weapons. She left Whittier for her the Sturr family on the death of Sharon ’s sister, Sandy, usual summer in Portland OR on June 1st. George & after an eleven year fight with cancer. Sharon and Jasmine Carrin Bouchard drove up north where they visited were able to go visit to see her just before she died. Adam & Stacy Day and Harry & Ann Eggleton . School and Work News: Recent high school graduates Somewhere along the way they ran into Tammy Van Dorn include Samantha Cramer , Emma McIntosh, Weston & her boyfriend, Nolan Luther . Sounds like a fun trip. Van Dorn and Alli Wright. Nathan Jones graduated Cum Laude with a major in Sociology from UC, Irvine. Coming from Indianapolis to attend Nathan’s graduation, Rex & Paula Jones visited First Friends on Promotion Sunday. Both Nathan and Melissa are now living in Whittier. Loletta Barrett gave a presentation on Namibia at the United Church of Christ‘s annual gathering held in San Diego the first weekend of June. She is pleased that her niece who just graduated from college has been accepted by the veterinary school of her choice and will be starting in August. Friends Sharing News: Help to keep the Friendly Fare going. Email me a quick note and tell me your news. Send to Lea at [email protected], or deliver to me at church on Sunday. See you next month! 3 Art and Peace Come Together Promotion Sunday continued from Page 1 Marilyn Fant explained the Larry, Lucy and George Many First Friends members are gifted with artistic Davidson Award, which is given to young Friends talent, and they used it to good purpose at Peace Café on deemed exemplary in their devoted participation in the May 27. Donations by patrons of the cabaret event go to Meeting, particularly if they have shared their musical and support the Peace Camp being held at the end of this other talents at such activities as Meeting for Worship or month. Peace Camp. Amara Overmyer and Anathea Woirhaye, Amara Overmyer, Kat Ryder and Anathea Woirhaye this year’s awardees, are well known for these are all veteran Peace Campers and Peace Camp contributions. Marilyn gave a short tribute to each, citing counselors. Kat and her Whittier High school friend their specific Meeting activities. Samantha Montoya sang a modern -idiom spiritual. Amara Next came the Mildred Votaw Jessup Scholarship. and Kat each sang, accompanying themselves on the This is a monetary award to recognize and encourage piano. Amara, Kat and Anathea collaborated in a trio. college -bound or in -college students. Marilyn called Anathea, who has been accepted at Orange County School Samantha Cramer to come up from the congregation. of the Arts, offered the clever introspective monologue Samantha had a straight A average in her four years at she used for her audition. The audience responded with California High School, and many awards, including a prolonged clapping and cheers. medal for her outstanding art work. She plans to start college at Rio Hondo Community College in the fall. Weston Van Dorn graduated from Patriot High School in Riverside with an impressive list of accomplishments, including being elected to the California All -State Honors Choir with the highest score among his auditioning group. He plans to start preparing for a medical career at San Antonio Community College. Jacy Purkiss, attending summer school and going into her junior year at UC Santa Barbara, was the third Davidson awardee. She wants eventually to take up psychiatry. Carrin Bouchard introduced a new achievement award, the Coffin Peace Memorial, sponsored by siblings Carrin, Jerry, Audine and Janice in memory of their parents, Joe and Audine Coffin. Carrin spoke a few words As always, our singer -composers Jo Nita Beede and about the legendary efforts in peacemaking of her parents, Holly Overin were mainstays of the event.