Dear Friends,

I am writing to you from McMenamins in Troutdale after a minister’s retreat and a couple of days of hanging out with Joe after.  We came to the retreat after the evaluations for 2026 were completed. They had been presented to the church at the business meeting last Sunday (April 26).  Thankfully, the church came to the consensus to renew our contract with the church for another two years. The retreat started on the following Monday. It felt like a great way to celebrate the evaluation process being behind us and to celebrate having another two years to focus on spiritual growth at Klamath Falls Friends Church.

At the retreat, there was time to mingle with other pastors and hear about any difficulties and challenges they encountered in the last year.  We could be of support to one another as well as share ways in which we all struggle to grow into better pastors for God and for the congregations that we serve.  It was a time to learn from other ministers in the field and to find support in one another. There was in-depth sharing that happened as we talked about things like what gave us hope in 2026; how to be inclusive of diverse beliefs and belief systems in our unique congregations; and how to function at a very pivotal time for progressive Christians in America..  Some of the pastors were going through similar things or had had the experience of going through something similar before. We were able to learn better and healthier ways to respond and be better pastors going forward.  A sense of community was built as well as an atmosphere of following Spirit in our work and in our lives as pastors and Friends. I look forward to returning home with the increased growth and depth that came from the retreat and time with other ministers.

I hope you are all doing well and look forward to hearing from you what ways you wish to grow spiritually in 2026 and beyond, and what spiritual needs we as your pastors can help meet now and in the next two years.

Blessings,

Leigh

Announcements

• May 3 – 9:00 Bible study: Colossians 1
• May 3 – 2:00 Singing Resistance
• May 6 – 5:30 Music Committee Meeting
• May 9 – 9:00 am – Church cleaning
• May 10 – 10:00 – Mother’s Day Celebration
• May 10 –11:00  Book Group – Richard Rohr’s The Naked Now, Chapters 3-5
• May 11 –5:30  Ministry and Care
• May 15 – 5:30 Poster Making Party – supplies will be furnished or you can bring your own.  We will have light refreshments and a good time making our signs for the NAMI Walk
• May 16 – 10:30  Meet at the courthouse in town for the NAMI walk.  There are sign-up sheets and more information in the church office. It is also an opportunity to wear our Klamath Falls Friends T-shirts if you have one. They are available through several venues.  If you purchase a T-shirt, there is a logo for the front and the back of the shirt already set up at Trekkers in town.
• May 17 – 9:00 Peace and Social Concerns
• May 18 – Meeting of the Admin Committee
• May 30 – 6:00 Candlelight Vigil and singing resistance songs
• June 12 – Pride celebration at Klamath Lutheran Church.  This is a joint effort of Klamath Lutheran, Klamath Friends Church and Klamath Falls Universal Unitarian Fellowship.  Plans are for there to be music and have a cook out with refreshments.