Cannon Valley Friends Meeting
Cannon Valley Friends Meeting is an unprogrammed meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, also known as Quakers. We are located in Northfield, MN, about 35 miles south of Minneapolis/St. Paul.
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Thank you for visiting the website for Cannon Valley Friends Meeting. The main front entrance and all public spaces in the Meetinghouse, including the main-floor and gender-neutral restrooms, are wheelchair-accessible.
Cannon Valley Friends Meeting has suspended all meetings at the Meetinghouse due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
We are holding virtual Meeting for Worship each Sunday at 10:30 via Zoom. If you are not on our distribution list for the link and would like to join us, please contact us at [email protected]. You will be provided with the link. Anyone having difficulties getting the Zoom app or using it can also use this contact.
Please Note: Only the first 1-2 sentences of entries posted to the website are displayed on this home page. Click on the title of the posting to see the entire announcement or story.
The Meeting House has been quiet but not entirely empty...Jean has been sharing updates of the Meeting House cloaked in snow.
Last fall, Northern Yearly Meeting created a working group to address systemic racism within the yearly meeting and facilitate anti-racist efforts in the wider community. You can find a link to this working group below; their resources focus on promoting anti-racist education and action.
The NYM working group also provided resources to support the Minneapolis protests and wider movement for racial justice, linked below (these resources are community-based and not affiliated with NYM or FGC).
Rainfall in Northfield has set records this year, which brings to mind our RAIN GARDEN… an inviting surprise tucked behind the Meetinghouse at 512 Washington.
Each morning Emily Walser-Kuntz helped the early-birds create a collage inspired by that day's topic.
Participants were introduced to five young inventors on the second day of Peace Camp. Many of these ideas were inspired as ways to help other children facing special challenges (image 1).
Louis Braille was just a boy when an eye injury made it difficult to continue reading. Ricky shared the story of how he developed the system of raised dots that is still used by blind people. He was only 12 when he started to develop his system. She also had some familiar children's books with braille. Then each camper made a braille name tag for themselves (image 2).
Starting the first day of Peace Camp 2019, Pat Johnson led a discussion with the twelve participants (ages 6-9) about what makes each of them feel safe.
The camp's theme is about how children have been effective in working for change. This first day focused on Human Rights and Peace. Pat read a book about Sadako Sasaki who worked for peace following WWII by trying to fold a thousand origami cranes. We all folded cranes together.
After outdoor games and snacks, the children created a storyboard about the things we talked about.
After Meeting for Worship on July 28th, Charley & Chris Skinner, former members of Cannon Valley Friends Meeting, presented an update on their work at the University For Peace https://www.upeace.org in Costa Rica. They invite people to learn more about the school and support its efforts to work for peace throughout the world.
Kessa Andrews graduated from Carleton on June 15th. In the fall, she is going on to work with the Lutheran Volunteer Corps' Restorative Justice Program in St. Paul. She sent a note and created a watercolor for members of the CVFM!
Memorial Minute
Ruth Anne Susanne Giovanna Epsilon Houtermans Fjelstad
April 13, 1932 – June 20, 2019
Northern Yearly Meeting Memorial Minute
Nancy Cantwell
March 23, 1930 - November 16, 2018
[Please Note: The following obituary was copied from the Northfield News, Nov. 29, 2018].
Long-time Northfielder Nancy Cantwell died on the morning of Nov. 16 in Timonium, Maryland, where she had been in an assisted living community for the past two years. Her son Jim, who lives nearby, had been with her for much of the previous evening.
Alden T. "Mac" McCutchan
April 10, 1921 - December 23, 2018
[Please Note: The following obituary is from the Northfield News, Dec. 27, 2018.]
Alden T. “Mac” McCutchan, 97, passed away peacefully December 23, 2018 at his Sogn Valley farm home with family by his side. He was born on April 10, 1921 to Blaine Ross and Josephine Layman McCutchan.
LaNelle Olsen
August 31, 1929 - March 6, 2019
[Note: The following obituary was written by the Olsen family]
LaNelle Olsen, campaigner for peace and social justice, passed away March 6, 2019, at Three Links Care Center at the age of 89. Those who knew LaNelle admired her energy, humor and positive outlook on life.
[Please Note: This article/poem originally appeared in the January issue of Friends Journal. Reprinted/republished with permission. You can read the original article at https://www.friendsjournal.org/fgc-racism-task-force/ and subscribe to Friends Journal at www.friendsjournal.org/subscribe/.]
The Final Report of the Friends General Conference Institutional Assessment on Racism is available, along with a summary version.
Please click on the links below to see both versions of the report.
QuakerSpeak, a project of Friends Journal, has created a series of videos on topics of particular interest to Friends. Anyone who is interested in learning more about Quakers may find these videos informative, as well.
Northern Yearly Meeting has completed its own version of Quaker "Faith and Practice", after more than 17 years of work by many dedicated individuals.
CVFM held another successful session of Peace Camp in August. This year Peace Camp included 12 6-8 year olds. They were energetic, curious, kind, and conscientious. The focus for the week was Building Peace by Caring for the Earth. Each day had a different theme and focus, including water, soil, wind, plants, and energy. Most days included a field trip to nearby sites, ending with the planting of a tree and Central Park on Friday.
Photos and text courtesy of Corinne Smith
Wren sings and scolds
until her brood fledges,
So ordered, bound
to earth we walk away.
--Poem by Sam Johnson
Meeting Times
We are holding virtual Meeting for Worship each Sunday at 10:30 via Zoom. All are welcome. If you are not on our distribution list for the link and would like to join us, please contact us at [email protected]. You will be provided with the link. Anyone having difficulties getting the Zoom app or using it can also use this contact.
Mailing Address: We do not receive mail at our street address. Please use the following address for mail: Cannon Valley Friends Meeting, PO Box 805, Northfield, MN 55057
Contact us by email at: [email protected]
Monthly Calendar of Events
CVFM Newsletters
CVFM Committees
What's New
The Meeting House has been quiet but not entirely empty...Jean has been sharing updates of the Meeting House cloaked in snow.
Last fall, Northern Yearly Meeting created a working group to address systematic racism within the meeting and facilitate anti-racist efforts in the wider community. You can find a link to the group below; their resources focus on promoting anti-racist education and action.
The NYM working group also provided some resources to support Minneapolis protesters and the wider movement for racial justice, linked below.
Last fall, Northern Yearly Meeting created a working group to address systemic racism within the yearly meeting and facilitate anti-racist efforts in the wider community. You can find a link to this working group below; their resources focus on promoting anti-racist education and action.
The NYM working group also provided resources to support the Minneapolis protests and wider movement for racial justice, linked below (these resources are community-based and not affiliated with NYM or FGC).
Cannon Valley Friends Meeting has suspended all meetings at the Meetinghouse due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
We are holding virtual Meeting for Worship each Sunday at 10:30 via Zoom. If you are not on our distribution list for the link and would like to join us, please contact us at [email protected]. You will be provided with the link. Anyone having difficulties getting the Zoom app or using it can also use this contact.
The meetinghouse will be open on Sunday, March 15, for Meeting for Worship. Cindy will open the meetinghouse, and Kay will be there for childcare. There will be no First Day lesson. We encourage people who choose to attend to continue the practice we began last week of greeting each other without touching and of maintaining a social distance during worship. The Forum scheduled for this Sunday, on becoming an anti-racist meeting, will be postponed until April 26.
Worship with us!
We are holding virtual Meeting for Worship each Sunday at 10:30 via Zoom. All are welcome. If you are not on our distribution list for the link and would like to join us, please contact us at [email protected]. You will be provided with the link. Anyone having difficulties getting the Zoom app or using it can also use this contact.
Mailing Address: We do not receive mail at our street address. Please use the following address for mail: Cannon Valley Friends Meeting, PO Box 805, Northfield, MN 55057
Contact us by email at: [email protected]
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