Pre-Gathering Retreat for People of Color and their Families

Friends of Color and multiracial families are invited to a retreat immediately prior to the 2019 FGC Gathering. This retreat is for Gathering attenders only.  Keep reading to find out more about:

Why a Retreat

Where and When

Cost and Financial Aid

How to Register

Invite a Friend

Retreat Organizers

Why a Retreat

Friends of Color are a small population in the Religious Society of Friends in the U.S. and Canada, and at the FGC Gathering.  Experience indicates that the better we know each other, the better we can support each other throughout the year and at the Gathering.

FGC’s Committee for Nurturing Ministries Ministry on Racism Program is sponsoring a pre-Gathering retreat for Friends of Color and their immediate family members to come together to create a multigenerational community as a resource for the Gathering and beyond. Friends of European descent are welcome provided they are attending with a family member (e.g. spouse, child) who is a Person of Color. The retreat is designed for Friends who are also attending the FGC Gathering. You must be registered for the Gathering to participate (full-time or half-Gathering).

Programming will include adults and adolescents. There will be special programming for middle schoolers, and childcare for younger children.

During our time together over the weekend we will build our community through:

• Mutual support and sharing
• Worship
• Sharing why Quaker faith and practice is important to us
• Identifying ways to support each other throughout the week of the Gathering
• Discussing how we can share our experience at the Gathering with our meetings

Where and When

Overnight accommodations, meals, and program will be held at the site of the 2019 FGC Gathering: Grinnell College in Grinnell, IA. The retreat starts with dinner on Friday, June 28 and continues until lunch on Sunday June 30.  Friends are encouraged to arrive Friday, and are welcome to join the retreat whenever they arrive on campus.  Friends with Junior Gathering or other responsibilities on Sunday may need to leave the retreat early.

On-site check in starts at 3 pm, Friday June 28.

Cost and Financial Aid

The retreat fee (in addition to housing and meals) will be $30 for ages 11-Adult, and free for ages 10 and under. Actual costs may vary depending on type of housing selected. Friends are housed in the same room for the pre-Gathering retreat as for the Gathering itself.

The pre-Gathering meal plan begins with dinner on Friday night, and runs through Sunday lunch. You can register for a pre-Gathering meal plan that includes breakfasts or not. (The Gathering meal plan will not begin until Sunday supper, June 30.)

The only cost for children under 11 would be for meals and housing if they sleep in a bed (no retreat fee).

FGC offers scholarship assistance to those who need it to participate in the Retreat.  FGC hopes that no one will stay away from the Retreat due to financial concerns. Apply for assistance when you register for the retreat. 

Bayard Rustin Fund: Gathering Travel Support Fund for People of Color This fund provides grants to support travel costs for Friends of Color. This assistance may be for travel to attend the FGC annual gathering, travel to attend People of Color gatherings, or for travel to participate in committee work of FGC. The fund is designed to ensure that Friends of Color can fully participate in the work and retreat opportunities FGC offers. The fund was initiated by a generous gift from Friends for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Concerns. View the Bayard Rustin Fund application.

Given the limited amount of money we have available for grants, and in our attempt to provide equal support for Friends, we may not be able to grant continuous support for Friends who had received aid more than two times from Bayard Rustin Fund. We look forward to a future in which we will have fewer limitations on funding. We encourage those who were unable to receive aid to seek other avenues of support through their Monthly and Yearly Meetings, as well as other sources of financial assistance through FGC.

How to Register

If you are an adult or Middle School or High School Program participant, when you register for the Gathering, choose the “Pre-Gathering People of Color Retreat.”  Registration opens April 1.

If you are bringing younger children (under 11), do NOT choose the Retreat as part of their registration. Instead, you should indicate on your adult Retreat registration if you are bringing children, and whether you expect the children to participate in the Retreat, participate in the child care program, or move between the two.

Please note that the last day to register for the pre-Gathering People of Color Retreat is June 10th.

Invite a Friend

Are you planning on attending the retreat?  Invite a friend to join you.

Retreat Organizers

FGC Committee for Nurturing Ministries Ministry on Racism Program. If you have further questions, please contact Ministry on Racism staff.

For other general questions about the FGC Gathering itself, use the Gathering Contact Form.