Richmond Friends Meeting endorsed the statement on genocide in Gaza at Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business on November 16, 2025. The statement available at this link -- Quaker organizations discern genocide is occurring in Gaza and urge courageous action.
Summary of Recommended Actions for Richmond Friends Meeting 2025 and 2026
Richmond Friends Meeting approved the formation of the Ad Hoc Committee on Race and Racism during our twelfth month 2022 Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business. The committee’s charge called for engaging the Meeting in an inclusive and open discernment process to learn what our Meeting is led to do around race and racism—as individuals, within the Meeting community, and within the larger community. The committee was further tasked with developing an action/implementation plan reflecting the learning gained from the discernment process.
To guide our way forward, Richmond Friends Meeting adopted a Minute on Race and Racism early this year. Drawn from query responses received and listening circles held in 2023, the Minute acknowledges that “inequality and injustice based on race are deeply rooted in our society” and commits to “challenging and repairing racism and racial bias in ourselves as individuals, within our Meeting, and in our Meeting’s relationship with the wider world.”
Today, the ad hoc committee presents recommendations for action/implementation that aim to marry the goals of our Minute to concrete actions. We recognize that time, energy, and specific interests of individuals in our Meeting will vary greatly, and therefore the recommendations offer a range of opportunities for personal and collective action and growth. They are grounded in the belief that Meeting’s commitment is not the work of any individual, committee, or group – but of us all. Just as every suggestion received in the discernment process could not be included, the actions of Richmond Friends Meeting should not be limited to those suggested here.
Nor should it be understood that all must happen immediately. Meeting can move forward as way opens. Already, committees and position holders have begun to consider how they might be mindful of race and racial justice in conducting their business and serving both Richmond Friends Meeting and the wider community— they are changing how we choose new books for the library or identify potential contractors, for instance. This mindfulness and care will remain vital to our Meeting’s work concerning race and racial justice.
Central to the development of these recommendations for action/implementation have been the following:
An extensive effort to solicit the views of Richmond Friends Meeting members and attenders during summer and fall 2023—
Adoption of the Richmond Friends Meeting Minute on Race and Racism during our first month 2024 Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business (See Appendix E, below)
Three Meeting-wide programs designed to lay the groundwork for developing our action/implementation plan:
The recommendations we offer for Meeting’s consideration today have materialized across months of deep listening, study, and prayerful reflection. They are inspired by the boldness of our Quaker ancestors, nationally and locally — and chastened by our awareness of past shortcomings and injustices. They reflect the historic commitment of Richmond Friends and the larger Quaker world to prison reform and education as means of bridging racial and economic divides. As Meeting charts our path forward, may we be reminded of our Minute’s conclusion: “we will hold each other in the Light and accompany one another as we seek to learn, to understand, and to be of service.”
Ad Hoc Committee on Race and Racism, November 17, 2024
Allen Lee, co-clerk
Kathleen Morgan, co-clerk
Margaret Edds
recorder Lynda Perry
Michael Pierce
Monica Shaw
Rita Willett
Please click here to read the full recommendations and appendices.
We, the members of the Richmond (VA) Friends Meeting are heartbroken and stricken with horror and grief at the recent renewed eruption of violence in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank. We call for an immediate ceasefire by both Israel and Hamas, the prompt release by Hamas of all hostages, and the release of all uncharged prisoners by Israel. We call on the U.S. to urge Israel to expedite the flow of humanitarian aid to relieve the tremendous suffering that has been created in Gaza with the immediate provision of food, shelter, water, and medicine. We strongly urge the United States to no longer provide Israel with weapons or funding for weapons.
As Quakers, we believe that each life is sacred, and we know that the use of violence as a means of settling conflict is unacceptable and leads to further violence, which we see happening around the region.
We strongly condemn Hamas’ horrific deadly October attacks on Israeli civilians, the inhumane treatment of civilians, and the taking of hostages, many of whom are still being held and are in danger. We also condemn the ongoing unrestrained and violent response by Israel in its siege of Gaza, which has left tens of thousands of civilians, including elderly, women, and children, dead or wounded and caused a humanitarian crisis in Gaza. People are suffering, dying, and being displaced in Gaza as a preventable humanitarian crisis worsens. Also, Palestinians in the occupied West Bank are increasingly endangered by escalated violence by settlers and the military.
We hold in our hearts and in the Light all those in Israel, Gaza, the West Bank and beyond, who grieve and mourn the deaths of their family and friends. We hold in the Light those who await the return of their loved ones who are being held by Hamas or who are held in Israeli prison without charges or trial. This ongoing violence continues to rip the hearts of those who grieve and leads to fear and hatred of the “other.” We condemn Antisemitism and Islamophobia and their accompanying rhetoric which dehumanizes the “other.”
We further call for Israelis and Palestinians from Gaza and the occupied West Bank to undertake a meaningful dialogue, with the support of international powers including the US. All must use every available resource to support a diplomatic rather than military resolution to the conflict - a resolution that prioritizes safety for all Israelis and Palestinians and which accords equal human rights to the Palestinians and respect for all.
We ask that Friends hold in the Light this urgent concern for peace and, if you are so led, to join us in calling for what we have set forth in this Minute.*
*Thank you to Virginia Beach Monthly Meeting for the template used for this Minute.
Approved at Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business, May 19, 2024
Richmond Friends Meeting recognizes that inequality and injustice on race are deeply rooted in our society. Our faith community continues to deliberatively examine this cruel history and to face the on-going realities of systemic racism. We are committed to work with other groups who promote racial healing and seek to dismantle some aspect of structural racism.
We stand with others in calling upon Virginia Union University, an HBCU (Historically Black College and University), to abandon plans to demolish Richmond Community Hospital and instead explore plans to restore and repurpose this building.
Richmond Community Hospital stands as a witness to the harsh reality of segregation that necessitated its construction when Jim Crow laws prevented black citizens from being treated in white hospitals. This brick building also stands as a monument to the struggles and triumphs of the people who came together to care for each other. Historic restoration of this 1932 Art Deco structure is the best way to honor this legacy of determination.
Virginia Union University plans to raze the building for parking and apartments. An unspecified offer to “memorialize” the structure has been offered. The Historic Richmond Foundation has twice offered to convene a group of engineers and architectural historic preservation specialists to independently assess the state of the structure, but Virginia Union has not replied to their offer.
While we appreciate the financial challenges now facing VUU, we are called to add our voice to the chorus calling for preservation of the Richmond Community Hospital building.
Approved at Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business, May 19, 2024
By Margaret Edds
Bette Diebold Gilchrist, a plain-spoken Midwesterner by birth, an intellectually curious biologist by profession, and a lifelong seeker after truth, died on May 5, 2022, in Richmond, Virginia. A member of the Richmond Friends Meeting since January 20, 1992, she was admired for her kind disposition, her love of nature, and her stalwart determination in facing life’s challenges. At her memorial service, one longtime friend summed up Bette’s life with an original poem entitled, “She Persisted.”
Bette was born on June 15, 1939, in Yankton, South Dakota, the daughter of Charles Alois Diebold and Gladys Olson. She grew up in Gayville, South Dakota, pop. 278 at the 1940 census. She embraced the strong work ethic of her Norwegian ancestors and often spoke of both the challenges and joys of life in an isolated, rural community. The latter included a memory, shared in Meeting for Worship, of walking through crunching snow on a starlit night to a Christmas Eve service at her family’s local Lutheran church.
After graduating from Gayville High School, Bette attended Augustana College in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, where she earned a B.S. degree. Later, she received an M.S. degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder and an M.R.C. degree from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. She taught biology for many years at Chickahominy Middle School, Stonewall Jackson Middle School (now Roberto Clemente Middle School) and Patrick Henry High School, all in Hanover County, and at John Tyler Community College in Chester (now Brightpoint Community College). On a nature hike after a summer shower, Bette delighted a friend with a lecture on the reproductive characteristics of the earthworms dotting the trail.
Introduced to Quakerism by her friend and teaching colleague Laura Cribbs, Bette began regularly attending First Day services at Richmond Friends Meeting in the fall of 1990. Applying for membership, she recalled that “spirituality has been an important part of my life since I was a child.” Both prayer and Bible reading, as well as participation in church activities were important to her in adolescence, she wrote.
In the mid-1970s, Bette was introduced to the practice of meditation, which she continued throughout her life. She was drawn to eastern religions and their disciplines, including yoga, and attended an ashram in New York State. Such training, she wrote, increased her connection with the inner self or inner Light. “Naturally, I love the silent worship and the simplicity of the Friends Meeting.” Through her years of membership, Bette served on Richmond Friends Meeting’s nominating committee (including as its clerk in 1995 and 2004), the Care and Counsel Committee, the Ministry and Worship Committee, and the Adult Spiritual Education Committee. Her quiet voice and sound, practical wisdom were valued.
Bette was married on December 27, 1964 at the Lutheran Church in Gayville to Rohit Nanavati, whom she later divorced. The couple had two sons: Mark Charles Nanavati, born January 19, 1970, and Jay Rohit Nanavati, born July 13, 1974. Bette married Bruce Gilchrist, a mathematician and computer expert, on May 28, 2008. They enjoyed several trips to England, Bruce’s birthplace. After his unexpected death in May 2015, his obituary noted that he “loved, respected, and cherished Bette” and that “together they traveled, laughed, and went to the zoo.”
Bette spent her final years at the Westminster Canterbury Retirement Community in Richmond, Virginia. Despite physical challenges, she continued to display determination and persistence until her death.
(Final version, revised 28 January 2024)
As Friends, our belief that there is “that of God” in everyone grounds our practice of upholding the worth of each human being. Each person is guided by an Inward Teacher toward truth; each has the capacity to experience and be transformed by Spirit. The fullness of our lives – as individuals and as a community – unfolds as we live into these spiritual truths. Just as we value each person, these core beliefs lead us to value the diversity of culture, race, and ethnicity that enrich the human family. Richmond Friends Meeting commits to being a faith community of deep hospitality for and inclusion of all people.
We recognize that inequality and injustice based on race are deeply rooted in our society. Richmond Friends Meeting commits to challenging and repairing racism and racial bias in ourselves as individuals, within our Meeting, and in our Meeting’s relationships with the wider world.
We embrace these commitments as guides for our personal lives, our life as a community, and our Meeting’s engagement in the wider world. Living more fully into our commitments will require listening, humility, and a willingness to be transformed. It will require holding the creative tension between discernment and the urgency to right action. We hold this minute as a guide as the Meeting seeks to live into our commitments in these ways:
Richmond Friends Meeting Solidarity Minute in Response to the Murder of George Floyd
Approved June 21, 2020
Richmond Friends Meeting (Virginia) mourns the death of George Floyd who was killed by a police officer in Minneapolis as he begged for his life. In keeping with our peace tradition, we oppose all violence and support ardent and peaceful protest in response to his death.
The killings of Marcus-David Peters, George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and Rayshard Brooks are among many atrocities that have occurred in our country. Over 400 people have been killed by police across the U.S. this year, continuing the trend of about 1,000 police-involved deaths annually since 2015. These deaths fit into a broader pattern of state-sanctioned violence that disproportionally impacts African-Americans, Native Americans, and other people of color.
The insidious nature of racism in America impacts every aspect of our society, including health care, education, employment, wealth, and environmental protection. A current tragic example is disproportionate infection and death by COVID-19 in African-American and Native American communities. The reality of systemic racism calls for legal, structural, social, and cultural change.
As Quakers we are committed to challenging white supremacy in ourselves, our Religious Society of Friends and in society around us. With this as a foundation, we join in the march towards racial justice. We stand in solidarity with victims of racism. We will continue to work actively with others in our community to further racial equality and justice. We call for an end to oppression, whether perpetrated by private citizens or public bodies.
As a community, we endorse the following statement from Baltimore Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends:
“We Friends are of many skin colors, ethnicities, socio-economic backgrounds, gender identities, sexual orientations, abilities, stages of life, and socially constructed racial identities. We are all seeking the Spirit’s presence in our lives and in our life together. We recognize that some of us have experienced oppression and marginalization in ways that others have not. We aspire to live as members of the blessed community, which is one of liberation, equity, and great diversity across all differences.”
Editor’s Note: The following report was accepted at business meeting on 16 November, 2014.
Following 2013 Baltimore Yearly Meeting (BYM) annual session, Richmond Friends Meeting (RFM) learned that the BYM Faith & Practice draft was not approved and the committee was laid down until a new committee could be formed. RFM felt a responsibility to look at the 2013 Faith & Practice draft and provide feedback to BYM. The Clerk of Meeting, Barbara Hulburt, created an ad hoc committee in First Month 2014, to look deeply at F&P and report back to business meeting. The committee met five times over the year.
The committee felt the reading and reflection on F&P was spiritually deep and rewarding. We read each section of Faith and Practice with the following queries as our guides: How does this speak to me? How do I think this speaks to my meeting?
Overall, we feel a deep respect and gratitude to the Friends who worked for 10 years to bring this draft to us all. We appreciate the breadth and depth of the undertaking. There is much that resonates with us as a group, we felt the Vision Statement’s use of the many metaphors for Quaker Spirituality inclusive and welcoming. We also liked several sections: Simplicity, Aging, Integrity and Listening. We liked the inclusive wording and appreciated the diversity in the Voices sections. The queries that are deeper and open-ended engaged our hearts and minds (versus the yes-no queries).
It reads as if different sections have different authors with different perspectives. Careful editing might smooth out these differences while not eliminating the varying thoughts and experiences. We also found some sections, like Education, were too wordy and too theistic.
We were particularly sensitive to the discussions and the advices and queries that speak of “God’s will” and “worshipping God together,” and “Quaker beliefs.” As these wordings embrace a spiritual perspective that implies an exterior God directing things and a Christo-centric creed, non-theists experience discomfort and may be led to feel like second-class Quakers. For guidance in re-writing and editorial work, we would refer to page 149 which states: “Baltimore Yearly Meeting is without binding creed. Its beliefs are based on its Judeo-Christian heritage and adherence to the Spirit of Christ, the inward Light, the Divine Seed, and That of God in everyone.
At this point of our exploration we recommend the continued editing of the F&P. We do not want the essence of Quakerism diluted, but ask for language that is authentic and meaningful to the diverse spectrum of Quakers today. We feel there are many expressions that are satisfying to theists and nontheists alike, such as Inner Light, Inner Teacher, that of God in everyone, Spirit-led, and others. We feel that inclusive language does not require the removal of God, Christo-centric voices and Biblical passages from F&P, but we do feel that it should not contain language that makes some Friends feel excluded. When these terms are used, the context should be that of the inward teacher, the inner light, etc. When used that way, they become interpretable to all of us.
We provide the following examples to show our thought process. A section that troubled the RFM ad-hoc committee was the marriage section and BYM’s definition of marriage, “Marriage, as understood by Friends, is a relationship involving two individuals, God, and the religious community that witnesses, recognizes and supports it.” We offer this in its stead, “Marriage, as understood by Friends, is a Spirit-led relationship involving two individuals and the Friends’ community that witnesses, recognizes, and supports it.”
We understand that Faith and Practice becomes a snap-shot of a time & place of our corporate spiritual journey, and that it will never be perfect or finished. We ask that as the new committee convenes, they hold the following query, found in the Diversity section on page, 71, as its guide: “Are we willing to be in communion with each other, open to our differences yet secure in the one Spirit that calls us all to be Friends?” We are confident that the Friends of BYM can create a document of greater integrity and right relationship.
Richmond Friends Meeting
BYM Faith & Practice ad hoc Committee
Bob Alexander
Diane Bowden
Tracey Cain
Bronwyn Hughes
Don Miller
Elizabeth Smith
Child Safety Policy—Approved Final Policies
Ad hoc committee members:
Trustees: Ada Hammer, Gordon Davies, Sanford Hostetter
Nursery: Janet Thoroman
RE: Catherine Roseberry, Diane Bowden, Barb Adams
Advising: Steve Bricker
Background
The RE committee and Nursery coordinators have had general guidelines for what we do, but in the last few years our insurance company has sought more explicit protocols from their insured churches, including BYM and Quaker Meetings, aimed to prevent the opportunity for, or allegations of, child abuse. This culminated in a recent mandate from them to administer criminal background checks on people that work regularly with children. After receiving this mandate, Denna Joy, clerk at the time, suggested we review what we have in place, and in September 2013 the ad hoc committee was created and given this charge:
As clerk of Richmond Friends meeting, I recommend the creation of an ad hoc committee to review and refine guidelines, policies and processes that address child safety in our Meeting. The impetus for this review is new mandates by meeting’s insurance company, which includes criminal background checks on those who work directly with children. This committee will work to develop policies to ensure alignment with these mandates. At the conclusion of their review, the committee will prepare a report for Meeting, and work with the Clerk to determine what aspects would need to come to Meeting for Worship for Business for approval.
So we have been meeting and rigorously discussing since then. This past spring, with Barbara Hulburt’s guidance, it was decided that we would separate the presentation and approval of the policy regarding criminal background checks from the rest of the policies. The Trustees, who the ad hoc committee had decided would be responsible for administering the background checks, presented that policy to Meeting and it was approved in June 2014. Today we present the rest of the policies for the approval process.
Thoughts on Child Safety Policy
Richmond Friends Meeting dearly loves and cares for our children and protecting them is without a doubt a priority. We would say our Meeting is a safe and welcoming place for children. So to take a magnified look at child safety – preventing child abuse – is challenging at the very least. Most of us have personal, professional, political and spiritual experiences and perspectives that inform us in this discussion. And they are often accompanied by strong emotions – worry, dissonance, distrust and fear – while at the same time offering opportunities for insight and growth. Ours was a thoughtful and deliberate process and we grappled with a number of difficult issues, weighing what is reasonable and speaks Truth to us with what might be expected.
Someone mentioned during an earlier discussion in June that while social constructs, like background checks, provide some level of safety, they cannot replace empowering children, parents and the adults responsible for them. While Meeting has accepted the necessity and benefits of incorporating some of these constructs, we need to continue to explore other factors of a truly safe environment. It’s hoped that once we’ve concluded our charge and incorporated the heightened awareness prompted by these policies, we will move beyond them and focus on the positive face of this process – a more involved, loving and caring community.
The Policies
The ad hoc committee has worked to craft policies and guidelines that address a number of aspects of the safety of children that are realistic and doable given the size and structure of our Meeting. We have the policy document – the What – which is what we are bringing for approval, and we also have guideline documents – the How – from each committee and position that is involved in supporting them: Nursery, RE, Care and Counsel, and Building and Grounds and the Trustees guidelines which were shared in the spring.
Submitted by Barbara Adams
Editor’s Note: The following policies were approved at business meeting on 16 November, 2014.
Richmond Friends Meeting Child Safety Policies
Richmond Friends Meeting believes that all people deserve to be treated with dignity, kindness and respect. We are committed to creating a safe, nurturing environment, especially for our children. To ensure the greatest protection for children and the adults that work closely with them, we have adopted the following policies, appropriate for our meeting size and structure, which acknowledge the Light within us all.
Note: The procedures to support these policies are specified in guideline documents for the committees or Meeting positions involved, including the Trustees, Religious Education, Nursery Coordinators, Care and Counsel, and Building and Grounds.
Child Safety Policy: Criminal Background Checks
Adopted by Richmond Friends Meeting on June 15, 2015
The purpose of this policy is to ensure child safety. BYM encouraged such a policy and the insurance company required it.
One aspect of a child safety policy is Criminal Background Checks for persons who work with children in religious education, nursery care, or other Meeting activities. The Trustees have developed a procedure to meet this requirement.
In the tradition of Friends, the Trustees have worked with the ad hoc committee to establish a procedure that is compassionate and forgiving, respects personal privacy, and allows individuals to make decisions that affect their lives. The very notion of criminal background checks does not fit well with our tradition, but the Trustees have accepted the reality of this requirement and have attempted to develop a procedure that is both loving and thoughtful. The highest priority will always be the safety of the child.
Persons for whom Background Checks are required will include:
Adult Nursery workers 18 and over
Nursery Coordinators
Religious Education Committee and teachers
Persons who regularly are “Friendly Adults” caring for children
Both paid and volunteer adult workers will have Background Checks. They will be paid for by the Meeting, and the cost will be modest.
The Clerk of RE will review the procedure with possible workers and offer them an opportunity to share any background information that might be relevant.
A Trustee will forward the Background Check form to the investigating organization and will receive its report.
The Trustees will be responsible for the Background Check procedure and will report regularly to the Meeting as it is put into place.
The following marriage equity minute was approved in Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business on 3/16/2014:
In keeping with our Quaker testimonies of integrity and equality, Richmond Friends Meeting offers the same marriage under the care of Meeting to all couples. Because civil marriage is not legally available to all in the state of Virginia, we lay down our practice of signing marriage licenses, until such time that it is available to all.
For a number of years, groups of mostly RFM members and attenders have spent one-week in the spring working at sites affected by natural disasters, including the gulf coast (Hurricane Katrina), Ider, Alabama (tornadoes), and Crisfield, Maryland (Hurricane Sandy).
The following policy governing the oversight and financial support for disaster-relief groups was approved at the 11th month 2011 meeting for worship with a concern for business.
RFM policy governing the oversight and financial support for disaster-relief groups
Groups desiring to go on disaster relief missions as representatives of Richmond Friends Meeting will receive permission by writing to Peace and Social Concerns expressing their purpose, the dates of the trip, how the finances will be developed and a list of expected attendees. Disaster Relief groups will provide aid to the needy via labor to redevelop lost or damaged property, feed the hungry and serve the harmed following the principles of Quakerism. With the blessing of Richmond Friends Meeting, Peace and Social Concerns approval will allow the disaster mission to go as a Quaker group and allow them to hold fundraisers at Meeting. P&SC would request a short, written description of the work performed after their return. A separate line item will be included in the Richmond Friends Meeting budget and each group will have the authority to collect donations that will be posted on this line item of Richmond Friends Meeting financial statements.
Presented at Meeting for Worship for Business, Nov. 20, 2011, by Martha Foster, Co-clerk P&SC
In her will, Jean Jones Anderson offered a bequest to Meeting, with the stipulation that it be used for adult spiritual education. After much consideration, in November 2011, Meeting approved the following policy governing the use of the bequest.
Recommendations from the Bequest Use Committee to Richmond Friends Meeting Approved by 11th Month Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business (11/21/2010)
After a series of committee meetings, a listening circle, presentation at 10th Month Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business, and with consideration of feedback from the broader RFM community, the Bequest Use Committee brought the following recommendations to 11th Month Meeting:
These recommendations were approved and the Bequest Use Committee is now laid down. (Committee Members: T.J. Armstrong, Diane Bowden, Howard Garner (clerk), Bette Gilchrist, Steve Humphrey and Rita Willett.)
Richmond Friends Meeting Travel Policy
Proposed by Financial Stewardship Committee
Approved Eleventh Month, 2010
This paper lays out the manner in which Richmond Friends Meeting members and attenders may request financial support for travel related to voluntary service to Quaker organizations beyond the RFM community, or other Quaker pursuits. The opportunity to travel and learn more about the work of the Religious Society of Friends and to support RFM by representing our community is generally considered an act of service that enriches both the individual and the Meeting. Thus it is hoped that individuals will bear their own travel costs whenever feasible. However, no one should feel that opportunities to serve are hampered by lack of funds. In cases where personal funds are limited, Richmond Friends Meeting may supplement personal funds in the following ways.
There typically are five situations that may require occasional travel:
1) Those individuals recruited by Nominating Committee and approved by Meeting to represent RFM on Quaker organizations (examples: FCNL, AFSC, Quaker House, Friends General Conference, Baltimore Yearly Meeting)
2) Those individuals accepting leadership assignments directly from Baltimore Yearly Meeting or Quaker organizations outside of RFM
3) Those individuals chosen by RFM committees to represent our Meeting in Yearly Meeting activities
4) Those individuals requesting scholarships for Yearly Meeting participation or other Quaker opportunities
5) Those individuals who are called to travel in spiritual service and whose ministry is under the care of Richmond Friends Meeting
The guidance for financial assistance in each situation is provided as follows:
1) Those individuals recruited by Nominating Committee and approved by Meeting to represent RFM on Quaker organizations (examples: FCNL, AFSC, Quaker House, Friends General Conference, Baltimore Yearly Meeting). Each of these individual positions is under the care of an associated committee: Thus
Under the care of Ministry and Worship: Baltimore Yearly Meeting rep, Friends General Counsel rep
Under the care of Peace and Social Concerns: American Friends Service Committee rep, Friends Council on National Legislation rep, Quaker House rep
Thus, our guidance is that committees with associated individual positions under their care should anticipate any related travel expenses beyond the financial capacity of the individual accepting the position and itemize this expense in their annual budget request.
2) Those individuals accepting leadership assignments directly from Baltimore Yearly Meeting or Quaker organizations outside of RFM
When an individual is invited to serve a Quaker organization and chooses to do so out of genuine interest independent of Richmond Friends Meeting, our guidance is that participation at that level and all relevant expense should be the responsibility of the individual. (If assistance is essential in order to serve, see 4c below)
3) Those individuals chosen by RFM committees to represent our Meeting in Yearly Meeting activities
If an RFM committee decides it is useful and productive to endorse a committee member to serve in a related role at the Yearly Meeting level, the committee should anticipate any related travel expenses beyond the financial capacity of the individual accepting the position and itemize this expense in their annual budget request.
4) Those individuals requesting scholarships for Yearly Meeting participation or other Quaker opportunities
When there is a serious need for supplemental travel funds, Friends are encouraged to take their request for support to a relevant committee. The committee may a) consider reallocating the use of its budgeted funds; or b) include the travel request it its annual budget request; or c) propose to Financial Stewardship for recommendation and approval by Meeting for Business an event to raise funds to support the travel-related activity.
Technically, there are no funds in the RFM general fund budget specifically designated for travel support. Modest support is available through the Mary Hulburt Scholarship Fund for first-time attendance at Friends General Conference; this fund is administered by the Care and Counsel committee.
5) Those who are called to travel in spiritual service and whose ministry is under the care of Richmond Friends Meeting
BYM Faith and Practice clearly states on this subject:
A Friend who feels called to travel in Truth’s service to visit with families, make public speeches, speak at called meetings, or the like should lay the concern before the Monthly Meeting, preferably first bringing it to the Committee on Ministry and Counsel.
If the Meeting unites with the concern, it should record a minute describing its member’s leading and proposed service, expressing the Meeting’s approval and support, and asking for the assistance of Friends to be visited. The Meeting should provide the Friend under concern with a copy of the minute.
The Friend who sets out on such a journey should be accompanied, when practical, by a Friend in sympathy with the concern and able to give counsel and companionship. The Monthly Meeting issuing the minute is responsible for seeing that the service is not hampered by lack of funds.
Thus, our guidance is that anyone called to travel in spiritual service and whose ministry is under the care of Richmond Friends Meeting may be supported in those endeavors, if needed, by and through a relevant committee, and it is the committee’s responsibility to anticipate reasonable and relevant expenses to present in a budget to monthly meeting via Financial Stewardship Committee.
The Building Committee, requests that Financial Stewardship consider and recommend to the next Meeting for Business on December 19, 2004, a $43,000 increase in the construction budget for the Religious Education Building. This increase will be used to solve two major problems that have been encountered during the early stages of construction. If approved, the overall budget for the expansion and renovation of the RE Building would increase from $590,000 to $633,000.
The first problem is the need to replace the first floor of the Religious Education Building. When holes were dug to tie the foundation of the addition to the existing building, the builders discovered that our existing floor consists of only one inch of a mortar-like material over one inch of gravel. (Apparently they were cutting corners in 1937). This floor should be removed and replaced with four inches of gravel and four inches of concrete. The cost for removal and replacement is approximately $30,000. Labor costs are high for this change order because it is not feasible to bring large power equipment into the building to dig up the old floor. A new floor will solve many of the moisture problems we have experienced over the years–a problem we would have had to address with or without this renovation.
The second problem concerns the elevation of the outdoor meditation area and the need to prevent flooding in the stairwell of the new side door of the multipurpose room. The builder and architect tell us the elevation of the meditation patio needs to be raised by ten inches to ensure that water drains away from the building. An additional step will have to be added to the stairwell. A new retaining wall will be constructed along with a concrete swale to drain water out to Kensington Avenue. In addition, the existing ramp for persons with disabilities will receive a new foundation. The total cost of these changes totals $13,000. (Note: we do wonder why these elevation and drainage issues were not identified prior to construction. We will address this with the architect in our next meeting.)
When we began the construction phase of this project, we had a contingency fund of $30,000 to pay for unexpected expenses. As one can see, the two problems discussed above clearly exceed this amount. In addition, there are other expenses we have incurred or expect that will be paid from the contingency fund. For example, we had to employ an independent, engineering firm to test the steel and concrete at critical stages of construction, and we have asbestos in our window glazing, floor tiles, and glue that must be removed by a specialized company. The good news is that there is no asbestos in our ceiling tiles and glue.
There is some urgency in our deciding how best to handle this situation. If we choose not to increase our budget, we will have to delete something from our current design. The only line items the Building Committee could identify were the replacement windows on the second floor of the RE Building, the new insulation for the north wall, and the drywall over that insulation. Cost savings by eliminating these items would be about $22,000. If we choose this path, we need to inform Century Construction this coming week so they will not order the replacement windows for the second floor. The downside of this choice would be our missing the opportunity to achieve new energy savings. If we replace these windows at a later time, the costs will be more, and we would have to move out of the RE Building a second time. We do not recommend this course of action.
It should be noted that the Building Committee is asking for permission to spend an additional $43,000 only if absolutely necessary. The estimates for the proposed work were made on the high side, and thus, we are hopeful that the actual costs will be less. We are looking for some cost savings during construction in the electrical area where we may have more in the budget than actually required. There also may be more money in the budget for furnishings than needed. Another possibility to reduce the amount we have to borrow is to ask Building and Grounds to spend some of our major maintenance funds to pay for part of the new floor.
Below are the construction and contingency budgets and along with the charges to the contingency budget to date plus anticipated charges.
Construction Budget $440,503
Contingency Budget $30,000
Anticipated charges to contingency other than the floor ($30,000) and meditation area drainage problem ($13,000)
Engineering inspections and tests $6,000
Hardware for one-hour fire doors 8,000
Undercut for foundation tie-in 1,500
Asbestos removal (floor tiles, window caulk) 5,000
Total to date $20,000
In summary, if this request is approved, we are authorized to spend up to $43,000 to replace the first floor in the RE Building and make the changes in the meditation area to prevent flooding. This increase will allow us to proceed with our plans to install replacement windows, new insulation, and drywall on the second floor of the RE Building. We will be able to meet the contingencies we have already encountered and still have $10,000 remaining in our contingency fund. The Building Committee recommends the approval of this request in a timely manner to avoid delays in the construction schedule and increased costs.
Submitted to Financial Stewardship on December 12, 2004, on behalf of the Building Committee by Howard Garner, Clerk of the Construction Subcommittee.