About Us

We are part of New York Yearly Meeting. Our region stretches roughly from Syracuse in the East to Fredonia in the West. There are 12 meetings in our region and several worship groups, including worship groups in Attica and Auburn prisons and a seasonal worship group at Chautauqua. We are a united meeting, belonging both to Friends United Meeting and to Friends General Conference. We work together under the New York Yearly Meeting book of Faith and Practice.

Service Work

Quakers are active in peace, social justice and other community groups. They were some of the earliest Americans to set their slaves free, 100 years before Abolition. A belief in gender equality led many to work in the suffrage movement and several Quaker women are highlighted in the Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls.

More recently, Friends have been active in establishing Restorative Justice programs and in facilitating the Alternatives to Violence Project in prisons and war-torn areas around the world. Individual meetings may take on major responsibility in international peace missions, such as Crossroads Springs in Kenya, Friends Peace Teams' Indonesia Initiative and the Bolivian Quaker Education Fund. Smaller service projects are on-going in all meetings.

Gatherings

Our meetings regularly gather for worship. Lookup a meeting near you on our 'Find a Meeting' Page.

We also meet outside Meeting for events and workshops. You can go to our Events Calendar for current information. Every year the region has three major gatherings. Spring Gathering, the largest and most ambitious, is held every May on Seneca Lake at Long Point Camp. For three days we gather to pray, learn, laugh, sing, eat, play and visit together. There is also a business meeting. Another business meeting is held in January and one in the fall.

If you are Organizing Spring Gathering you can find Helpful Info Here.

Powell House

Powell House is the conference and retreat center of New York Yearly Meeting - Religious Society of Friends. Its mission is to foster the spiritual growth of Friends (Quakers) and others and to strengthen the application of Friends' testimonies in the world.

This is a quiet, peaceful place near Albany, New York, conducive to reflection and spiritual growth. Programs and facilities are structured to foster community development and strengthen group identity. It is also available for personal retreats

First Day School

Most Meetings offer a First Day School program for various age groups ranging from preschool to high school, depending on the Meeting's population.The children are taught either before or during Meeting for Worship. First Day School provides our children with the opportunity to learn about the bible, Quaker history and traditions, as well as take part in community service and other forms of leadership building.