Dear Friends,
It has been more than three years now that we as a family have been here in Klamath Falls. It does not seem that long ago. The sunsets still look as spectacular, and the snow-dusted mountains look as picturesque as they did the first week we arrived. But the relationships are finally becoming deeper and more trust-filled than when we first arrived. I remember the honeymoon period and then how it felt when it was over and reality set in both for me and for you. And I think it took us all a year to bring things back to a semblance of normalcy. It took us, as family, all three years to not be dependent on GPS to find where you live. So as we look at the end of the year evaluations this year that will be discussed at this week’s meeting for worship with attention to business, I know you will get to evaluate Joe and I with more knowledge of who we are as people and with clearer eyes and expectations. I feel like you have finally gotten to know the real us. You are such an incredible community to work with and for. My prayers are with you as you discern the best way forward for our church and its two pastors.
The Bible says that you can tell a “tree by its fruit” and the fruit here from this church has been one of not just a people who sometimes give to the community, but who give whole-heartedly and consistently under any circumstances, truly trusting the processes to move things forward in as spirit-filled a way as possible. A couple of the fruit from this tree are volunteering at the Interfaith Food Pantry and the annual walk for the NAMI walk here in town. For more information about the Interfaith Food Pantry, please email me. For more information about the NAMI walk, please go to NAMIWalks.org/KlamathBasin. As you probably know, the food pantry is held every month on the last two Tuesdays of each month. If you want to volunteer, please get in touch with Alicia Pinkerton. You can call to get more information as well.
I’m excited about this year’s NAMI Walk. This year it will be on Saturday, May 16. It starts at 10:30 at the courthouse on Main and ends at The Commons on 11th and Main. It will last until 2:00. If you have your t-shirts with the Klamath Falls Quaker Church logo on the front and SPICES on the back, please wear them if possible. You can see how to get one by going through the last few Friday with Friends. One newsletter a few weeks ago has the files for the logo and back of the shirt to download and take to a T-shirt shop or order through Zazzle. If you are looking for an easier method, Trekker’s in town has the logo for the front of the shirts and the SPICES for the back of the shirts already loaded. You have to buy a T-shirt of your choice.
We will not only be known by our “fruit” (good works). We will also be known by our T-shirts. But regardless of those two things, we will be known by our posters! We are having a Poster-making party at 5:30 on Friday May 15. There will be poster-making materials and light refreshments. So come on over and let’s have some fun!
Lastly, we will be having another candlelight vigil on May 30 from 6-6:30. There will only be silence and candlelight for the first fifteen minutes (no religious rhetoric at all) followed by fifteen minutes of Singing Resistance songs led by Griffin Toffler. These are songs that originated in Minneapolis during the ICE raids and are for unity and love of all people. Please come and let it refill your cup to go out and either do more justice work or just better emotionally and spiritually handle this country’s latest antics and crimes. We will end at exactly 6:30, so it won’t take long to be present and re-energized.
Finally, just a note from SCYMF about an opportunity for service that our yearly meeting has: “We are looking for additional members for the Sierra-Cascades Gathering Committee for the 2026-27 year, beginning in July after annual sessions. We would like to train someone to be the registrar for the Yearly Meeting, and we need committee members who would like to help plan events.
If you have ideas on how you would prefer our Gatherings to run, you might be a good member. The registrar needs to be detail oriented, and it is best if they are used to spreadsheets of various kinds. We will be glad to train those who join the committee. The usual commitment is three years, but it must be at least one year. Please put how many years (1-3) you want to commit to on your nominations form.”
Sincerely,
Leigh
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