Category Archives: Process and Policies

Finances, Process and Policies

Budget Process for Financial Support of Attendance at Quaker and Other Spiritually Nurturing Events (9/2006)

From the minutes of the meeting for worship with a concern for business, 9/3/2006:

Budget Process for Financial Support of Attendance at Quaker
and Other Spiritually Nurturing Events

In the spirit of spiritual hospitality, our meeting provides funds to help pay for attendance by active participants of our meeting at a variety of events that would nurture their spiritual growth and enrich the life of the meeting.

Nurturing the life of the meeting is the responsibility of all participants in the meeting and particularly members of committees. Promoting attendance at spiritually enriching events is one way to do that. We ask Friends to be alert to events that could be especially enriching and to identify people who could be enriched by them. The more we anticipate these opportunities the more we can be sure to budget sufficient funds and encourage participation.

Our annual budget process is one opportunity to think about and plan for how many Friends we would like to sponsor for which events.  Anticipating such opportunities through our budget process would help us to sustain our awareness of these opportunities and our desire to encourage attendance. Using the budget process in this way is not intended to set absolute limits on funds the meeting will provide; the meeting can modify the budget at any time during the year.

Examples of such events include:

a. BYM summer camps;
b. BYM Annual Sessions (including youth programs);
c. Other BYM-sponsored events, such as the Women’s Retreat and conferences for Young Friends (high school), Junior Young Friends (junior high school), or Young Adult Friends (roughly 18-35);
d. The Annual Gathering of Friends General Conference (FGC);
e. The mid-winter gathering of Friends for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Concerns (FLGBTQC);
f. Pendle Hill and other Quaker retreats and workshops;
g. Board Meetings of Quaker Organizations.

Budget Process for Scholarships

1. Each committee will identify events at which it would like to encourage attendance and how many people it would like to support for each. Committees are encouraged to consider which individuals to sponsor for each event, though no commitment is expected at this time.
2. Each committee will itemize in its budget request an estimate of the amount required for those events and include a list of those events.
3. The treasurer will pull together these estimates in determining the proposed budget item for scholarships. The treasurer will also provide a list of the events proposed by the committees.

Concerns, Notable Minutes, Process and Policies

Minute to Establish South Mountain Friends Fellowship at the Maryland Correctional Institute-Hagerstown under the care of Patapsco Friends Meeting

On Second Day, First Month, 2005, Patapsco Friends Meeting approved a Minute of Recognition of a Patapsco Friends Meeting Prison Ministry to support and hold in the Light inmates at the Maryland Correctional Institute-Hagerstown (MCI-H) as they followed their leading to start a Friends worship group. Since that time the meeting at Hagerstown has grown from three to seven attenders supported by nine prison ministers from Patapsco Friends Meeting. As the group has grown in number they have grown in awareness of their meeting as a safe and caring community, a cherished community they have built in the midst of difficult and dangerous circumstances.

For those of us who have had the opportunity to support them, it has been a time of testing. Friends have no creed, no catechism. What do we teach and how do we teach it? Again and again we have been brought back to the foundations of our faith: that Jesus taught us to love God, to love our neighbors as ourselves, to love our enemies. We teach by our faithful attendance, by our care and concern for the attenders of this meeting and for their community, and by modeling Friends exploration of their spiritual experience through queries, in worship sharing and in silent worship. They think our presence is a miracle. It opens us to the power of the advice of George Fox: “Friends, meet together and know one another in that which is eternal, which was before the world was.” We’re not sure any of us know exactly what that means, but we all know what it feels like.

Ten years ago, a small number of us determined to found a meeting in Howard County. We had the same concerns that the early attenders at MCI-H had. Would it work? Who would come? How could we make ourselves known to the community? Each week at Mt. Hebron House a miracle happens. Each week at Hagerstown a miracle happens. It is the gift we give to each other and offer to the world.

Now the men at Hagerstown desire their community to be known as the South Mountain Friends Fellowship. In recognition of their continuing commitment to meet together in the manner of Friends, we hereby minute our approval of the establishment of this Fellowship under the care of our meeting. We will forward this minute to Baltimore Yearly Meeting; and place this Fellowship on the list of Friends Meetings in Friends Journal.

Approved, Fifth Day, Third Month, 2006

Ramona Buck,

Clerk, Patapsco Friends Meeting

Finances, Process and Policies

Policy on Expenditures (7/2005)

From the minutes of the meeting for worship with a concern for business, 7/3/2005:

Friends discussed PFM’s redrafted Policy on Expenditures. The policy was approved with the understanding that it is a living document and can be revisited as necessary.

Patapsco Monthly Meeting of Friends
Policy on Expenditures

Every year, each Patapsco Friends Meeting committee should submit a proposed committee budget to the Treasurer in preparation for the annual Meeting budget approval process.

Committee Expenditures

Committee clerks may submit requests to the Treasurer to use that committee’s budgeted money, and two of the following (the Treasurer; the Clerk; the Assistant Clerk) may approve such requests without discussion by the full Meeting, for the following kinds of items:

1. Paying expenses for Meeting sponsored (meaning approved at the monthly business meeting) events or projects; or routine activities overseen by the committee in question.
2. Buying publications or religious education materials/books for the Meeting or community, related to the topic served by the committee in question.
3. Personal assistance to an individual as approved by the Personal Assistance Committee

Expenditures requested by individuals

One of the following (the Clerk, the Treasurer, the Assistant Clerk) may approve requests from individuals without discussion by the full Meeting, for the following kinds of items:

1. Expenses the individual incurred on behalf of the Meeting for food and food related items for the simple meal, or food supplies for the kitchen.
2. Expenses the individual incurred for food for the monthly Grassroots meal.
3. Copies for the Meeting/miscellaneous

Two of the following (the Clerk, the Treasurer, the Assistant Clerk) may approve requests from individuals without discussion by the full Meeting, for the following:
Scholarships for Patapsco Friends to attend Quaker events and conferences or non-Quaker events and conferences which foster or promote Friends’ principles.

Guiding Principles for Scholarships

The budget item for scholarships should serve members and committed attenders, should serve as many people in the Meeting as possible, should be distributed fairly, and is meant to empower individuals both to represent the Meeting at Quaker or other events and/or to foster Friends’ principles or to enhance the individual’s spiritual growth and that of the life of the Meeting.

Sponsored Friends (either with scholarships or not) are invited to report back to the Business Meeting on the experience in order to enrich the life of the Meeting.

See specific guidelines for scholarships below. These guidelines may change from year to year.

All Other Requests for Expenditures

All other requests for expenditures by individuals, committees or outside groups should be brought to the Business Meeting as a whole for consideration.

If the Treasurer and/or the Clerks receive a request for expenditure which seemingly is covered by the above policy, but about which either has any doubt, they may discuss it further with the person or committee requesting the expenditure. If clearness is not reached, such questions and concerns should be brought to the Business Meeting for further guidance.

Items Approved by the Meeting as a Whole

Payments approved by the Meeting as a whole (such as the BYM apportionment) may be paid by the Treasurer without further discussion.

Last modified, June 2005
Approved, Meeting for Business, July, 2005

Guidelines for Scholarships

While scholarships/grants may be given for a variety of events, not all of which may by known or anticipated, specific guidelines are given for those which occur most often.

Those members or committed attenders who plan to attend BYM events (examples: Yearly Meeting, the Women’s Retreat or one of the summer camps); or broader Quaker events such as FGC or Pendle Hill would qualify for a grant, as follows:

The cost of one week of camp per child

25% of the annual BYM cost

25% of a BYM sponsored event (other than camp, covered above)

25% of FGC (at the lower end of living arrangements, such as camping or
cooperative dining)

25% of the Pendle Hill Cost

People needing more than the above amounts should not hesitate to request more for consideration.

Note: these guidelines for scholarships were revised 2/6/2011.

Process and Policies

Minute on Renaming Ministry and Oversight to Ministry and Care (6/2003)

From the minutes of the meeting for worship with a concern for business, 6/22/2003:

Ministry and Oversight

Donelda Stayton, clerk of the Ministry and Oversight Committee, brought forth a proposal from the committee to change its name to Ministry and Counsel. The committee wants to replace the word “oversight” since it brings up connotations of slavery to some people. Continue reading Minute on Renaming Ministry and Oversight to Ministry and Care (6/2003) →