New Quaker Checklist #50
FGC recommends the following tip for newcomers to the Quaker faith: Attend your yearly meeting annual session to observe and participate in the decision-making process.
Many Friends feel reinvigorated in their faith when they meet in-person with others! Have you attended events for your yearly meeting before?
A yearly meeting is a group of Friends across a region – sometimes across one state, sometimes from many states or provinces – who meet together to make decisions. These groups are called “yearly meetings” because they typically meet once a year. Some yearly meetings also meet in the spring or the fall.
Yearly Meetings host Annual Sessions, which are like work parties for a community. People meet to make decisions, approve the budget for the coming year, lift up concerns, and to deepen their connections to one another. While many Annual Sessions focus on Meeting for Worship for Business, there are also social opportunities. These can include campfires, sing-a-longs, newcomer lunch tables, and special interest groups. Annual Sessions can be a great “mixer” event to meet more Friends in your region.
Many groups hold their Annual Sessions at the same time from year to year. For instance, Southeastern Yearly Meeting usually meets in April. Lake Erie Yearly Meeting usually has Annual Sessions in June. For a list of dates from 2025, visit here.
Some yearly meetings have a Healing Center or a Young Adult Friends group at their Annual Sessions. Many offer programs for children. At some Annual Sessions, you will see people bring knitting, quilting, or other handwork. We hope you find new community, new connection, and new insights on the Quaker way when you attend Annual Sessions!
