COMMITTEES:

 

Click Here for Committees and Assignments for 2008

 

Care and Counsel* is concerned with the individuals in the meeting: takes care of 'pastoral concerns' such as giving care and aid in time of illness, personal problems or material needs; arranges clearness committees for persons applying for membership or marriage; changes memberships, maintains periodic contact with absent or non-resident members; administers funds for relief of sufferings and distributes camp and Hulburt scholarships. Care and Counsel is responsible for greeting at 11 am worship each First Day. Members serve for three years.

 

Ministry and Worship*:is responsible for holding meetings for worship in good order; for nurturing the spiritual life of members and attenders; for meetings for marriage and memorial services; and, for the yearly spiritual state of the meeting report. They are responsible for adult education including Quakerism 101, as needed, and the Fall Retreat. Members serve for three years.

 

Nominating*: is appointed by the Clerk of Meeting. This committee is responsible for matching the talents and gifts of RFM members and attenders with the committee and business needs of the Meeting. Members serve for three years.

 

Buildings and Grounds: oversees the maintenance and the physical improvements of the meetinghouse, organizes biannual workdays, hires the caretaker, contracts for repairs, takes care of emergency maintenance, supervises landscaping, restoration of furniture, and stocks paper products and soap for the bathrooms and kitchen.

 

Clearing Oversight Committee: oversees the appointment of two sub-committees: Maintenance and Promotional. They are responsible for developing an overall plan for the coordination and accountability of the work of its subcommittees. Members serve two years and meet at least quarterly.

Maintenance Subcommittee: the upkeep and maintenance of the lodge and Clearing land

Promotional Subcommittee: promotes use of the Clearing facilities to Friends and like-minded groups

 

Financial Stewardship: prepares and proposes annual budget; considers requests for exceptions to budget; recommends fees for use of the meetinghouse; assumes responsibility for all other policy matters pertaining to finance.

 

History and Archives: collects information and responds to correspondence about the history of the Meeting; compiles written or oral history; and informs Meeting of current activities.

 

Hospitality: directs the preparation of monthly potluck at the rise of meeting on the 4th 1st Day and refreshments on other designated occasions. Members are responsible for a big kitchen cleanup twice a year and monthly monitoring of the contents of the refrigerator. This committee ensures that basic foods like tea, coffee, sugar, etc. are stocked and available in the kitchen.

 

Library: selects, purchases, catalogs and maintains books and other materials in the meeting library.

 

Newsletter Editor: (usually two people) is responsible for collecting, compiling and printing newsletter.

 

Newsletter Mailing: responsible for folding, attaching mailing labels and organizing newsletters for bulk mailing in accordance with postal regulations.

 

Peace and Social Concerns: fosters greater personal understanding of peace in the lives of members and attenders; focuses on activities that promote understanding of wider (local, national, and international) peace concerns. It embodies and reflects the social conscience of the Meeting through direct action, and membership in like-minded organizations; and informs the meeting of current issues.

 

Religious Education: plans and implements a program of religious thought and experience for children during First Day school; considers ways to incorporate children into the life of the Meeting and to deepen relationships among generations. This committee runs according to the school year from Ninth Month to Sixth Month.

 

Spring Retreat: plans and directs the annual spring retreat held at The Clearing each May.

 

Website: designs, monitors and updates website for RFM, as well as our information on the BYM website. Creates and moderates list serve. Informs f/Friends how to post information on RFM website.

 

Work Camp: organizes service projects, including weekend work camps and other related activities.  The committee also serves as a liaison between Richmond Friends Meeting and other service groups providing similar activities.

 

POSITIONS:

 

Clerk of Meeting*/Assistant Clerk*: serves the Meeting for the execution of its business affairs, convenes regular or especially called meetings for business, guides deliberations, carries out the Meeting's instructions for actions between business sessions, and works with the assistant clerk who becomes acting clerk in the clerk's absence. The Assistant Clerk performs the duties of the Clerk in the Clerk’s absence. The Clerk and Assistant Clerk serve for two years.

 

Treasurer*/Assistant Treasurer*: receives, records, and deposits income for the Meeting and its committees; maintains and updates financial records; pays meeting expenses: presents monthly, annual and special financial reports; submits books for annual review; treasurer and assistant treasurer work closely together and the assistant treasurer becomes treasurer in the treasurer's absence.

 

Recording Clerk: takes notes during monthly meeting for business, prepares minutes and conveys them to the Newsletter Editor(s), presents minutes for approval or correction at the following monthly business meeting.

 

Building use coordinator and assistant coordinator- schedule the use of the building by Friends and other groups,  receive and monitor building use payments, distribute keys to the building, and communicates the Meeting’s guidelines for using the building.

 

Bulletin board: receives materials and decides about posting on appropriate boards, keeps things neat and discards old notices on a weekly basis,

 

Child care coordinator: procures, supervises, and approves payments of child care helpers during meetings for worship and meeting for business; makes sure someone else can fill in as needed.

 

Directory manager: maintains current computerized mailing list to provide labels monthly for newsletter mailings; publishes directory semi-annually.

 

Recorder: keeps records for members of births, deaths, marriages, marital status, and membership; periodically forwards this information to Baltimore Yearly Meeting.

 

Outreach: responds to requests of individuals in our community, including telephone inquiries, requests for speakers, some Meeting correspondence, and supporting the growth of indulged and preparative meetings (with Ministry & Worship).

 

Representatives to Quaker and other organizations: attend meetings in order to represent RFM and to communicate the organization's concerns to Meeting.

Baltimore Yearly Meeting (BYM) Interim Meeting Representative

BYM Religious Education Representative

BYM Ministry and Counsel Committee

BYM Interchange Editor

American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) Representative

Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) Representative

Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy

 

For additional information, contact persons currently serving in these roles or members of nominating committee.

 

* You must be a member of meeting with prior experience on RFM committees.