July 25, 2026 NY Quarterly Meeting Minutes and Reports

New York Quarterly Meeting (NYQM), AKA the NYC Quakers, met for worship, a potluck picnic, and business on Saturday, July 25, at the Friends Cemetery in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. You can read the minutes from the meeting, which include links to all reports.

NYC Friends were fortunate to have near-perfect weather for this time of year: sunny with a high of 81. The tall trees surrounding the cemetery’s clearing kept us cool. During the business meeting, Friends regularly had to pause while airplanes and helicopters loudly passed overhead – a good excuse to stop and take a breath. As one Friend put it, we practiced plain plane speaking. It was a comfortable and peaceful day.

Some highlights from the business meeting:

The Cemetery Committee reported on the past year. They are considering a project to research and publicize the history of the cemetery. Quarterly meeting Friends approved a new photo policy for the cemetery, advising visitors not to photograph names on gravestones; see minute 2026.07.04.

After a second reading of the Fund Reorganization proposal, Friends approved shifting the quarterly meeting’s many individual funds into seven funds arranged by purpose. This new arrangement will simplify accounting and help Friends understand what funds are available.

Jess Hobbs Pifer, NYQM Community Organizer, reported on the first two years of the Community Wellness Program. Because of this program, Pastoral Care Committees in NYC are able to refer Friends to services provided by University Settlement. The next year will bring promotion of the one-on-one consultations offered through the program and an increase in day-long, drop-in community days.

We heard reports about the schools and students in the Great Lakes Region of Tanzania and in Davanga, Kenya, being supported by Friends in our quarter.

Ted Bongiovanni, NYQM Executive Director, spoke about the cross-pollination that is strengthening the quarterly meeting community.

Dan Seeger, Clerk of NYQM Trustees, discussed what the Trustees and the quarter plan to take on after the disambiguation of our finances is complete: a consideration of how the management of our financial assets expresses Quaker values. As Dan puts it, “Since the founding of our religious society, Friends have sought ways to address the problem of how moral individuals, or a moral spiritual fellowship, can exist in an immoral society.“ We will have to find our way forward, just as other Quakers have done for centuries.

Read the minutes for more reports and details. The next New York Quarterly Meeting will be on October 18, 2026, at Flushing Meeting