Special Campaign for Quaker Camp Opequon 

Bethesda Friends is seeking donations during 2024-2025 to support and build Baltimore Yearly Meeting's (BYM's) summer youth arts camp (Opequon) in Harper's Ferry, WV. 

Please read more about this campaign in the links below. 

You can donate to this Opequon campaign via check or credit card, noting that your contribution is for "Opepuon Special Campaign." 

More information

• Over the last 100 years, BYM Camps has grown to a family of four summer camp programs spread along the Appalachian Mountains – Opequon, Catoctin, Shiloh, and Teen Adventure. Serving more than 600 young people each year, each of our four camps offers distinctive programming tied together by the belief that there is “that of God” in each of us.
• As we enter the next century of BYM Camps, the creative arts camp, Opequon Quaker Camp, has moved to a new home at the Rolling Ridge Conservancy in Harper’s Ferry, WV. This beautiful, permanent home for Opequon Quaker Camp is the next step in the growth and long-term sustainability of BYM Camps. 
• WE ARE RAISING MONEY TO BUILD OPEQUON QUAKER CAMP – HELP US IGNITE THE FUTURE! Your Support will make the Difference. 

Learn More from these links to Baltimore Yearly Meeting's campaign (which your donation goes toward):

Frequently Asked Questions

Spring 2024 Campaign Update

Summer 2024 Campaign Update

Social Concern of the Month 

If you want to direct a donation to one of our Social Concerns, please choose from the list below. The donation should be made during the designated month. Use our Donate Online Now page to donate online. Scroll back up for information on how to donate via a written check.  

The Social Concerns Box for January is for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN)

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) is the first grassroots, nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to fighting global warming in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Their mission is to build and mobilize a powerful grassroots movement in this unique region that surrounds our nation’s capital and to call for state, national and international policies that will put us on a path to climate stability. Some BFM members join in CCAN's annual Polar Bear Plunge fundraiser, and a Quaker team often tops the donation chart.  

The Social Concerns Box for February is for the Quaker Coalition for Uprooting Racism (QCUR)

The Quaker Coalition for Uprooting Racism (QCUR) is a collaboration between six Quaker organizations -- American Friends Service Committee, Friends Committee on National Legislation, Friends Council on Education, Friends General Conference, Pendle Hill, and Quaker Voluntary Service -- who are working together to accelerate the movement for, and capacity to create, racial justice among (and beyond) Friends. QCUR leads a nine-month cohort program, which will include BFM participants in 2024, that allows racial justice changemakers in Quaker communities to learn and experiment with actions together, empowering them to support the racial justice work of their home communities. In 2023 QCUR developed a guide on "Racial Wounding and Racial Justice in Quaker Communities." To sign up for the QCUR newsletter, please go to https://groups.google.com/g/qcur-newsletter. QCUR relies on the financial support of individuals and communities that are committed to its mission.

The Social Concerns Box for March is for local camping assistance at Friendly Gardens

Donations in March support two youngsters from the Friendly Gardens (Silver Spring, MD) community to attend the Baltimore Yearly Meeting Summer Camps through their special STRIDE program (Strengthening Transformative Relationships in Diverse Environments).  BFM is raising funds for the students' camping equipment and supplies, while the general Meeting budget will cover the camp fees. Has your family attended camp? Can you help others have this experience? We want to also have friendly outreach to help these new families become familiar with and welcome at camp. For details and opportunities to participate, please click here.

The Social Concerns Box for April is for Ramallah Friends School 

The Social Concerns Box for May is for scholarships to the Ramallah Friends School in the Palestinian West Bank. Much of our contribution used to be raised at Spring Fling, and now we depend on offerings made via check or online. This support is an opportunity for us to help build peace in the Middle East via this Quaker school that has been in existence since 1869 (more than 150 years).

The Social Concerns Box for May is for the Right Sharing of World Resources (RSWR)  

This Quaker program Right Sharing of World Resources was established in 1967 with the notion that well-off people had much to learn from poorer people. With our donations, RSWR can award grants to groups of marginalized women in Kenya, Sierra Leone, and India to fund individual micro-enterprise projects. The start-up money provided by RSWR promotes self-sufficiency such as the purchase of seeds, well-digging, or the purchase of animals. RSWR provides Friends the means by which we can examine our life of plenty, offer a practical outlet to assist and empower some of the poorest people in the planet (some of whom are Quakers), and come to a deeper understanding of economic discipleship as part of our individual and corporate life as a faith community. The RSWR web site also has educational resources for youth and adults. 

The Social Concerns Box for June is for Comfort Cases

Comfort Cases believes that every foster child deserves to feel a sense of dignity, for example to be able to pack their belongings in a special bag that they can call their very own. Each Comfort Case for a baby, child, or teen is a soft backpack or duffel with PJs, a blanket, toiletries, stuffed animal, and books (including a coloring book or journal).  The group also engages communities and educates the public about the issues facing youth in foster care, for example by providing volunteer opportunities for all ages. Learn more at https://www.comfortcases.org/about-us. 

 

The Social Concerns Box for July is for Jubilee Jobs

Jubilee Jobs, since 1981, has placed nearly 25,000 people into marketplace employment. Work for sustenance, dignity, and hope describes the common goals Jubilee Jobs shares with those in need, including those who are homeless, in recovery, ex-offenders, public welfare recipients, and recent immigrants. It provides continuing support for up to two years. See www.jubileejobs.org to learn more and to volunteer.

The Social Concerns Box for August is for Bethesda Helps

Bethesda Helps, Inc.  is a community-based, all-volunteer nonprofit organization established in 1968 to support neighbors in need. They provide critical safety net services, for example, food assistance and limited financial assistance for prescriptions and utilities, to those in need who reside in lower Montgomery County. 

The Social Concerns Box for September is for the Mary Jane Simpson Scholarship Fund  

Each year this fund awards college scholarships to DC public school seniors with high potential, who are coping with difficult backgrounds and have very low incomes. The fund is managed jointly by Bethesda Friends Meeting, Friends Meeting of Washington, and Langley Hill Friends Meeting. BFM plays a vital role in funding, selecting the awardees, and making decisions about the program’s policies and practices. Since the scholarship fund first began, it has awarded 163 scholarships to graduates from 20 DC Public schools. The amount of each scholarship depends on the donations received--and ranges from $1,500 to $2,500 per year per student for the four years of college. Each year the program supports about 5-10 students, again, based on the funds we have. Please be generous. 

The Social Concerns Box for October is for Interfaith Works

For nearly 50 years, Interfaith Works has provided affordable housing and social services to families in Montgomery County as they transition from homelessness to independence. Key programs are their clothing center, emergency assistance, and vocational services.  BFM has long been one of the member organizations, and BFM children participate in an annual mini-walkathon for the homeless. Interfaith Housing Coalition is a subsidiary of Interfaith Works that provides permanent housing and supportive services to  families in 26 units across the county. 

The Social Concerns Box for November is for A Wider Circle 

A Wider Circle is the recipient for the Social Concerns Box in November. It is a local non-profit organization that assists individuals and families moving out of shelters to more stable living situations. A Wider Circle also offers intensive courses on job skills, financial planning, stress management, nutrition, and parenting. Its mission is to end poverty. Anyone in need of help can find it there. In one year, A Wider Circle furnished the homes of more than 13,300 children and adults and delivered more than 400 educational programs. They also recycled more than three million pounds of furniture and home goods. More than 10,000 volunteers serve at A Wider Circle annually, including members of BFM several times a year.

The Social Concerns Box for December is for Bread for the City

Bread for the City is a major provider of food, clothing, medical care and legal and social services for thousands of low-income DC residents. In 2020, its greatest pandemic-period surge (as reported by its centers in Shaw and Anacostia), is a 400 percent increase over 2019 in families needing free food. Also up sharply in 2020: demand for legal services involving evictions, debt disputes, and withheld government benefits. In 2020, Bread for the City has also been providing free COVID tests on demand for walk-ins.  In October 2020, its advocacy unit won a federal lawsuit restoring SNAP (food stamp) benefits for 20,000 DC residents that the U.S. Department of Agriculture planned to eliminate in April.