by WebPost | Feb 22, 2015 | Peace and Social Concerns
March is the month that Thrifty Quaker will donate sale proceeds to Quaker House. You can drop off items yourself at Thrifty Quaker in early March. Or you can bring them to meeting on Sunday, March 1 and Sunday, March 8 and we will deliver them to the store for you.
Obviously, the more gently used items we have donated, the better the inventory. And shoppers at the store will find great bargains while reusing our earth’s resources.
Thank you for encouraging Friends to support the store, and support Quaker House at the same time. For more info about Thrifty Quaker and the good work that they do, visit their website at www.ThriftyQuaker.com.
by WebPost | Feb 22, 2015 | Peace and Social Concerns
Employment numbers are up. Gas prices are down. Stock market is up. It seems like the hard times are over… for me maybe, or you. But, in Richmond, where 26.3 % of its residents live below the poverty line, many go to bed hungry and many children go to school without breakfast to carry them into their day.
For this reason, Peace and Social Concerns committee is sponsoring a food drive for Fan Free Clinic in March. Because FFC provides so many services; medical assistance, mental health counseling and aides testing, every donation they receive for their food pantry and every clean paper bag saves money they can spend on these other needed services. A box of cereal or pasta, a jar of peanut butter or pasta sauce, a can of tuna or salmon won’t make a dent in your grocery bill, but could feed a family of four for a day or two. So hold these people in the light and keep them from being hungry by participating with us in our Spring Food Drive. Every bit helps. We will also accept money to give to Fan Free Clinic; no amount is too small.
by WebPost | Feb 22, 2015 | Peace and Social Concerns
There were 14+ Quakers at the VICPP Day for All People on January 20th from 7 different Monthly Meetings in Virginia – Alexandria, Herndon, Hopewell Centre-Winchester, Maury River – Lexington, Midlothian, Richmond, and Virginia Beach. The following attended from Richmond Meeting: Christy Burns, Rhonda Ligon, Laura Cribbs, Monica Shaw, Ben and Julia Hebner, and myself. We met with our State Delegates and State Senators and discussed key poverty, immigration, social justice, and environmental issues currently before the Virginia General Assembly. Legislators we met with included Del. Jimmy Massie, Del. Betsy Carr, Senator Donald McEachin, Senator Stosch’s aide, and Delegate John O’Bannon’s aide. We would like to thank Christy Burn for providing hospitality for Judia Gallinger, the Quaker from Winchester Meeting who attended.
If you have not yet contacted your own Delegate or State Senator, please take this opportunity to do so since the General Assembly will be over for the year soon after you receive this Newsletter. Please remember that you can help them identify your State Senator & Delegate by accessing the following site where they enter their address: http://whosmy.virginiageneralassembly.gov/.
Following is a link to the key bills VICPP is tracking: https://docs.google.com/a/virginiainterfaithcenter.org/spreadsheets/d/1PSOkDeztK4_lCrS1ocsbdWJrXypml–TNRuIpYjce0I/edit?usp=sharing
Bills being tracked by Virginia Interfaith Center include:
Minimum Wage Increase: VICPP supports HB1512, HB1654, SB681, SB704, SB706 – while it is not likely that these will pass, it is hopeful that SB 704 may gather support so that localities could opt for a higher minimum wage
Virginia’s Earned Income Credit (EIC): VICPP supports SB810 and HB1831 which would make Va’s EIC refundable partly refundable to those who owe no tax. These are both dead for this year.
Redistricting: VICPP is supporting efforts to make the redistricting of State and Federal legislative districts nonpartisan. SJ224 (Lucas) and HJ 584 (Rasul)
Immigration: VICPP opposes efforts to take away in-state tuition from DACA (Dreamers), children of undocumented workers who meet other criteria as state residents. SB722 and HB1356 opposed by VICPP.
Gun Control: VICPP supports SB943 (Favola) which prevent purchase and possession of firearms by those convicted of misdemeanors related to domestic violence, sexual battery, and stalking
Medicaid Expansion: VICPP has continued to work for Medicaid Expansion, though it was clear that nothing would be passed this session. There is still a gap preventing more than 200,000 Virginians from subsidies under the Affordable Care Act.
Bills supported by CURE (info from Al Simmons):
Grand larceny; threshold increase: SB1234would increase from $200 to $500 the threshold amount of money taken or value of goods or chattel taken at which the crime rises from petit larceny to grand larceny. The bill increases the threshold by the same amount for the classification of certain property crimes. Passed Senate. In House Courts of Justice (criminal laws)
Environmental Issues (report from Suzanne Keller):
Support two bills that were put forward to help people in the path of the gas pipelines planned to go through Virginia:
Support SB 1338 would repeal the 2004 statute that allows natural gas utilities to enter people’s property without permission. It was left in committee without a vote.
Support SB1166 would have put public service corporations under the freedom of information act to make information more transparent. It was defeated in committee.
Oppose bill drafted by Dominion itself:
SB1349 This is bill that freezes Dominion rates and removes Dominion from the regulatory review that insures they do not overcharge customers. It passed in both houses. PLEASE CONTACT GOV. MCAULIFFE AND ASK HIM TO VETO IT. 786-2211.
by WebPost | Feb 22, 2015 | Peace and Social Concerns
- Creating a public “information center” about Quakers; a public outreach by Quakers to seekers
- Providing our locality a Quaker place for community service and volunteering
- Encouraging recycling by providing donated thrift items at very low prices
- Helping provide food to hungry local children by partnering with Backpacks of Love as a donation center
- Helping provide food to impoverished local families by partnering with Bethel Baptist Church as a donation center for their Food Pantry
- Giving approximately $1000 to $5000 each and every month to a different charity that has no religious or political agenda (twelve charities receive grants every year!)
- Spot-lighting twelve charities every year by supplying the community with information about them on The Thrifty Quaker bulletin board.
- Working with trusted Social Services agencies and local Quakers to provide Friend$hare emergency funding to non-Quakers who are in danger of losing their home, health, transportation, utilities, or livelihood (approximately a total of $5000 in cash given away every year!)
- Partnering with Rock Church to help victims of addiction by giving our surplus thrift items for resale at their thrift store
- Partnering with Powhatan Community Church by giving our surplus thrift items for resale in order to fund service projects to impoverished villages in Nicaragua
- Providing free clothing and household items to local victims of fire, theft, and poverty
Thank you, Richmond Friends, for making all of this possible by donating and shopping at The Thrifty Quaker. Please tell your friends and family about us! 13567 Midlothian Turnpike, Midlothian VA 23113 804 794-7158 www.ThriftyQuaker.com
Legislative Update from Peace & Social Concerns re
by WebPost | Jan 29, 2015 | Peace and Social Concerns
From P&SC, Upcoming Events
1. On Sunday February 22nd the same co sponsorship will present the film Five Broken Cameras at RFM. Refreshments will be available at 5:30 and the film will follow at 6PM.
2. On Sunday February 1st at 9:30, P&SC will present a PVS [Prisoner Visitation and Support] visitor recruitment film downstairs in the Meetinghouse. Everyone with even a slight interest in visiting prisoners at the Federal Correctional Center in Petersburg should attend. Current volunteer visitors will be on hand to reflect on the film and answer Questions.
by WebPost | Sep 18, 2014 | Peace and Social Concerns
Announcements from Peace & Social Concerns Committee
- A climate change summit is being held at the United Nations in New York City on Saturday and Sunday September 20-21. The organizers of a rally planned for Sunday are hoping to have massive, record-breaking crowds to signal summit attenders that the American people want concerted action on climate change. Bus transportation from Richmond is being planned.
- If events in Iraq are challenging your commitment to non violent, and non military responses to turmoil and human tragedy, please go to the FCNL website and read their 8-15-14 offering entitled,” Drop Food Not Bombs.”
- Please mark your calendars and be sure to attend the following events: Sunday, October 5th, an hour-long film entitled “The Wisdom to Survive” will be shown in the Community Room. This film gives a thoughtful overview of climate change and “explores how unlimited growth and greed are destroying the life support system of the planet, the social fabric of society, and the lives of billions of people.” Do we have the wisdom to survive? Sunday, November 2nd, Gordon Davies and Dave Depp will share their thoughts about the book The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert. Their intent is to further develop some of the themes contained in the film shown on October 5th.
