LEARNING TOGETHER
These transcripts are a learning tool for anyone who wants to build a strong and limber faith community. We hope that, in sharing them, we might inspire new possibilities. They include creative solutions that sprang forth from our act of listening. All ages on this page are the person's age at the time of the interview.
The stories shared below are from Friends who agreed to share them. We have worked with participants to edit transcripts for clarity, content, and privacy. We also edit to convey the "feel" of an interview. For instance, if we pause for silence as a group and the conversation changes tone, then we might add additional words or a note to show what shifted in the silence. For more about our editing process, click the link below.
RECENTLY
PUBLISHED
Lisa Graustein
Lisa, a 46-year-old Quaker, is a co-host of Three Rivers Meeting and carries a concern for equity. In this vivacious and fresh conversation, we discuss community care, humility, and ways to transform patterns of oppression
SUGGESTING
CHANGES
Keira Wilson
Keira is a 35-year-old Friend. She describes living her values in both work and faith communities, righteous anger, and how we can evolve and adapt in each situation to have integrity with ourselves, each other, and our work.
Johanna Jackson
Johanna is a 31-year-old Quaker. In this speech to Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, she speaks plainly about practices that shut out people's voices – both locally and nationally. This transcript is a call to action which concludes with a prayer for healing.
COMBINING TRADITIONS
Anna Weber-Loomis
Anna is an 18-year-old seeker who combines Quaker meeting with ceremonies from the Lakota tradition. Anna shares about her spiritual journey within the two traditions, and how her Quaker community brings a sense of continuity over time.
Cai Quirk
Cai is a 24-year-old queer Quaker writer and photographer. Cai (they/them) carries a strong sense of wonder, and suggests seeking an"in-between" space as a place to live and thrive. We recommend this interview to anyone who is curious about living with a new vibrancy.
MOVING INTO A
BETTER WELCOME
Kaitlyn Pawlukojc
Kaitlyn is a 35-year-old Friend who identifies her meeting as a welcoming place. She describes how she has been invited into the circle, and shares concrete steps for a welcoming meeting. This is a great transcript for anyone on Outreach committee.
Melinda Wenner Bradley
Melinda, a 50-year-old Friend, is the Youth Religious Life Coordinator for Philadelphia Yearly Meeting. She brainstorms about how we could better integrate people's spiritual gifts. This transcript is recommended for anyone who is on Nominating Committee.
REFLECTIONS FROM
OLDER FRIENDS
Gary Fosmire
Gary is a 79-year-old Friend. He reflects on the past, including the makeup and structure of Quaker committees. Looking forward, as we grow and change, he identifies what he sees as the most valuable gems of Quakerism to retain. This is a great transcript for younger Friends, in particular, to read.
Helen Fox
Helen is a 77-year-old Friend with a natural curiosity about others. She compares the connections she had with students as a professor to the connections she has with younger Friends. This is a great transcript for Friends of all ages to understand structural barriers.
This is a small sample. There are many more interviews that we have yet to edit and transcribe.
Do you have feedback on what you read? Please share ideas and feedback with us. Our email address is below.
To see how we made these transcripts, check out our Editing Process.
FORWARD IN FAITHFULNESS
We are a network of Quakers who work for inner transformation and collective renewal. Our goal is to motivate one another toward revitalization, so people of faith may become creative, relevant, and thriving for years to come.
FOR AUDITORY LEARNERS
We recognize that all of the resources above are visual media. For people who learn better orally, that is a lot of text to read. Though we don't have audio files for these conversations available, may we point you toward our songs, podcasts, and other resources that can be played aloud?
