THE FRIDAY BEE                              🌷  April 3, 2026  🌷

 SCHEDULE FOR SUNDAY, APRIL 5 

10:20am

Greeter

Deborah Cooper

10:30am

Child Care

Starts in kindergarten building across the driveway

10:30am

Meeting for Worship

In the meetinghouse for hybrid worship, or on Zoom.

10:50am

First Day School

Older children attend Meeting for Worship with their families until 10:50 am, when their teachers will lead them to the Committee Room.

Questions? Please contact Carla Childs.

Note: Children of any age are always welcome to join their families in Meeting for Worship.

11:30am

Introductions & Announcements

Dorothy Cary

11:35am

Zoom Social Time

Zoom attendees, please stay online to join in a Zoom social time after Meeting for Worship!

11:40am

Refreshments

Sarah Kaufman

PROTOCOL FOR MEETING FOR WORSHIP (Zoom, hybrid, in-person)

Please maintain silence as you enter the Zoom meeting or the meetinghouse so Friends can center and settle into worship. Masks are optional in the meetinghouse. Feel free to wear one if you wish. We have a supply if you’ve forgotten yours. If you have a fever or are feeling unwell, please stay home and join our worship on Zoom.

MEETING NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

ANNUAL EASTER EGG HUNT

When?  Sunday, April 5, following worship

First Day School students will leave Meeting for Worship at 10:45 to join the children from Child Care in the Meeting kitchen to dye Easter eggs. The older children will hide the eggs in the graveyard, and after the rise of meeting all children will go hunt for eggs.All are welcome to come cheer them on! 

VOLUNTEERS ALWAYS NEEDED FOR REFRESHMENTS!!  ☕🍪

Our weekly coffee, tea & yummy snacks don’t happen by magic.

We need to recruit volunteers from amongst members/attenders to make them happen!

REGISTER NOW FOR THE GMM RETREAT 🌲🛶

Happening May 1-3, 2026 at Camp Dark Waters in nearby Medford, NJ.

Join us for a time of spiritual nourishment and community bonding. We will enjoy shared meals, worship, and fun activities for all ages, including canoeing, a ropes course, nature walks, and fireside singing. We’re committed to making the retreat accessible for all.

LET’S GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER BETTER!

More volunteers needed to host small get-togethers in their homes (8-10 folks?) from our Meeting (GMM). These popular events are fun, casual gatherings, and a fantastic way for us to get to know each other better.

What might these look like?

The options are limitless! A dinner (some of you might remember the old “Friendly 8’s dinners”); an afternoon tea; a wine & cheese gathering; a weekend brunch; a picnic; a walk in the Wissahickon; anything, really!

These are typically potluck, last for a couple of hours, and can be as casual (or fancy!), as thematic, as family-oriented (or even pet-friendly!), as each host prefers.

Interested in volunteering to host? 

SIGN UP FOR SPRING NIGHT CLASSES AT GFS!

GMM is invited to sign up for a course at GFS to explore cross-disciplinary ideas – from history to literature to art –  and learn and connect across generations. Classes are pay-what-you-can. Deadline April 8.

  • See link below in the “Germantown Friends School News” section 

QUAKER NEWS & EVENTS

LET YOUR LIFE STREAM: PUBLIC MINISTRY IN THE AGE OF ALGORITHMS

Pendle Hill First Monday Lecture

When? Monday, April 6, 7:30 - 9:00pm

Where? Hybrid – at Pendle Hill (338 Plush Mill Rd, Wallingford) & on Zoom

What does it mean to let your life speak in a world shaped by algorithms and influencers? In this lecture, Sweet Miche - a podcaster and Quaker activist - takes an unexpected starting point, Mormon media culture, to explore what happens when a faith community decides its life is worth showing. Drawing on their experience as a public minister and a lifelong observer of how faith communities tell their stories, Sweet Miche analyzes the ambivalence that many Quakers experience regarding public visibility and proselytization. In a world hungry for examples of lives lived in accordance with its values, this talk asks what stories Quakers can tell, and why it matters who tells them. Free and open to the public. Registration required.

OPENING DAY FOR ARCH STREET MEETING HOUSE!

When? Thursday, April 9

Where? Arch Street Meeting House (320 Arch Street)

After closing for renovations in December 2025, Arch Street Meeting House will reopen on Thursday, April 9, 2026! Arch Street Meeting House’s new permanent exhibit, The History of Quakers: A Religious Revolution, will be on view Thursday – Sunday, 10 AM – 4 PM. Visit our website for updated hours.

A free Exhibition Opening Reception will be held Thursday, April 30, 2026, from 5 - 7 PM.

HELP ENVISION AN INTERNATIONAL QUAKER (AND QUAKER-FRIENDLY) POETS COLLECTIVE

We are currently in a "dreaming phase," of building an international Quaker (and Quaker-friendly) Poets Collective. We'd love you to be a part of our creative community. We need your perspective to help us shape what our collective could become. Friends have a profound way of practicing vocal ministry in the manner of poems. We want to build our poetic community around the actual needs, rhythms, and dreams of the poets who inhabit it. We are asking to hear from YOU!

In Peace and Poetry ~~ Jesse White, Alexander Levering Kern, and Lisa Lundeen

CELEBRATING THE LEGACY OF ANNA T. JEANES: STORIES OF STEWARDSHIP AND GENEROSITY

When? Saturday, April 11, 10:30am - 2:00pm

Where? Stapeley Hall (6300 Greene Street)

Join in at the historic Stapeley Hall to celebrate Anna T. Jeanes' Birthday and how this Philadelphia Friend's faith and generosity continue to shape our world today. Please consider joining this free event! You'll hear inspiring stories of stewardship and generosity, while learning how you can follow in Anna's footsteps and build your own legacy of impact. 

DEEPENING OUR WORSHIP DURING QUAKER MEETING

When?  Saturday, April 25, 9:30 - 11:30am

Where? Hybrid – Pendle Hill (338 Plush Mill Rd, Wallingford) & on Zoom

In this workshop, Ingrid Lakey, Eileen Flanagan, and Dwight Dunston are coming together to bring forth practices and conversations to strengthen the quality of worship for Friends, seasoned and new to Quakerism. Whether you yourself have struggled to stay close to spirit, or you have witnessed the quality of worship impacted by the disconnection from spirit in others, this workshop is for you.

Free and open to the public. Registration required.

REGISTER NOW FOR PHILADELPHIA QUARTERLY MEETING

When?  Sunday, April 26, 9:00am - 4:30pm

Where? Central Philadelphia Friends Meeting (1501 Cherry Street)

Theme: Called to Repair: Friends Engaging Reparations Work at Philadelphia Quarterly Meeting (PQM)

Friends are invited to a day of worship, fellowship, learning, and shared discernment. The day will include worship with Central Philadelphia Friends Meeting, lunch fellowship, Meeting for Business, and a hybrid, interactive conversation on reparations work led by Green Street Meeting's Reparations Committee. Optional early session (in person only) offers deeper connection for those already engaged in reparations work.

SOJOURN DAY WITH PQM AT PENDLE HILL – Register now

When? Saturday, May 9, 9:30am - 4:00pm

Where? Pendle Hill (338 Plush Mill Rd, Wallingford, PA)

Pendle Hill warmly welcomes Philadelphia Quarterly Meeting (PQM) and Concord Quarter for a special day of fellowship and exploration at Pendle Hill. This free, small-group gathering (limited to 30 participants) will include worship, a guided campus tour, shared lunch, a variety of afternoon activities, and the simple gift of being present in a beautiful, contemplative setting.

PHILADELPHIA YEARLY MEETING (PYM)

GERMANTOWN FRIENDS SCHOOL (GFS) NEWS & EVENTS

ESSENTIALLY GFS: SPRING NIGHT CLASSES – Sign up by April 8!

When? Wednesdays, April 15 - May 6, 6:30 - 8:30 pm

Where? GFS All School Commons

GMM is invited to sign up for a course at GFS to explore cross-disciplinary ideas – from history to literature to art – and learn and connect across generations. Classes are pay-what-you-can.

ATTEND GFS MEETING FOR WORSHIP DURING THE WEEK

GFS welcomes GMM to attend Meeting for Worship during the school year.

  • Middle School Worship: Monday, 4/6, 10:20 - 11:00am
  • Upper School Worship: Thursday, 4/9 10:10 - 11:00am

TAKE ACTION!

HELP WITH VOTER REGISTRATION

When? Saturday, April 4, 11:00am - 2:00pm

Where? Free Library of Philadelphia, Central Parkway branch (1901 Vine Street)

Let's make sure Philadelphians' voices are heard!  Come out and help register voters at the Free Library of Philadelphia Central Branch. You'll meet in the Lobby. Registering voters will boost turnout in the important May 19 Primary election. Last Day to Register to Vote in May Primary: May 4, 2026.

We'll provide all the materials you need and a quick training at the beginning.

Hosted by Indivisible Philadelphia

GUIDE TO ICE WATCH HOTLINES AND IMMIGRATION RESOURCES

Provided by GMM member John Colgan Davis; also available at the resource table at GMM on Sundays. 

A list of resources and organizations with guidance on immigration support.

Many of these on-the-ground organizations have been working with immigrant communities for years.

TRYING TO FIND SOCIAL JUSTICE EVENTS?

Mobilize is a central posting site that has opportunities concerning local actions for protest and in support of social justice.

➤ LIST OF ONGOING/WEEKLY SOCIAL JUSTICE EVENTS

CLICK HERE for a list of ongoing, weekly/regularly scheduled vigils & protests supporting immigrants, Palestine, peace, Constitutional rights, etc.

  • Includes standing events such as — Fridays @ Fettermans, Mondays @ McCormicks, We the People Wednesdays, etc.

(These used to be listed every week in the Friday Bee, but we are consolidating them into their own linked document.)

Have more ongoing protests and vigils to include? 

Send them to the GMM Office (gmm@germantownfriends.org)

GERMANTOWN & NEARBY

LINCOLN DRIVE CLEAN-UP WITH FRIENDS OF THE WISSAHICKON

When?  Tomorrow, Saturday, April 4, 9:00am - 12:00noon

Where? Meet at Historic RittenhouseTown

Join Friends of the Wissahickon for a special large-scale clean-up along Lincoln Drive! For this effort, the Drive will be closed from Wissahickon Avenue to Ridge Avenue, providing volunteers with safe access to a heavily traveled road. By removing litter along the roadway, we can prevent trash from washing into the creek during rainstorms and help protect habitat and stream health.

All are welcome to attend, and no experience is needed.

FIREFLY HOURS: FIBER ARTS AT ALLENS LANE – 3 EVENINGS

When? Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday, April 7, 8, 9; 5:00 - 7:00pm

Where? Allens Lane Art Center (601 W Allens Lane)

As part of Historic Germantown’s neighborhood Firefly Hours initiative, Allens Lane Art Center invites the community to gather outdoors at dusk for a three-evening spring fiber arts series. Inspired by the renewed season of gathering and the quiet magic of early evening, these relaxed, all-ages workshops celebrate small acts of making, connection, and shared light—like fireflies flickering across the lawn. Participants are encouraged to bring blankets or lawn chairs and settle in for gentle, hands-on fiber activities that build across the three evenings. Free, no registration required.

NIGHT ONE (4/7): Nature-Inspired Surface Design

NIGHT TWO (4/8): Small Frame Weaving

NIGHT THREE (4/9): Community Stitching with Mama Carla Wiley

QUAKER RESOURCES

OTHER (VIRTUAL) WORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
  • Pendle Hill – Daily Zoom meeting for worship online from 8:30-9:10 am
  • Friends Council on National Legislation (FCNL) Witness Wednesdays: Weekly worship at 5:15pm (ET)
  • Friends General Conference’s (FGC) has many options for worship & discussion, including Newcomers & Seekers, Friends of Color Monthly worship, BIPOC Womxn’s space, White Friends Confronting Racism, Gen X Friends (new), Neurodivergent Friends (new). The offerings keep growing! Click here for the calendar
  • Quaker Voluntary Service (QVS) Worship with Attention to Gaza/Palestine: Tuesdays, 12:00noon (ET) 

FOR QUAKER NEWCOMERS: Friends General Conference New Quaker Hub

QUAKER ORGANIZATIONS

Stay connected with news, work and resources of various Friends groups. Bookmark them for easy reference

Philadelphia Quarterly Meeting (PQM)

Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (PYM)

Friends General Conference (FGC)

Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL)

Friends Council on Education (FCE)

American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)