250+ FOR supporters to celebrate Seabeck's 50th anniversary!

It's the start of June, which not only means that summer is around the corner, but in Fellowship of Reconciliation terminology means that the annual FOR Pacific Northwest conference is coming up. This year's Seabeck conference (named after the conference center 90 minutes west of Seattle, where the gathering is held each year) will be the 50th annual!

I'm delighted to be one of the guest speakers at the July 3-6 conference, "Persevering for Justice and Peace," one of two representing FOR's national staff. My friend and colleague Maryrose Dolezal, co-director of FOR's Youth & Militarism program, will also be traveling to Seabeck from her base in Minnesota to speak and lead workshop's on organizing young people for social change (including information about the Nonviolent Youth Collective).

The keynote speaker this year is George Lakey, a FOR member for some 40 years, author of many books, and founder of Training for Change, a national organization that works to facilitate training for social transformation. Lakey's bio notes that he "directed a Quaker Action Group's mission to South Vietnam on the sailing ship Phoenix, was an unarmed bodyguard for Peace Brigades International in Sri Lanka, and has led over 1,500 social change workshops on five continents." I can't wait to meet him!

Lakey, Dolezal, and I will each speak in a plenary session and also lead a couple workshops. There are two dozen workshops being offered on a wide variety of peace, justice, environment, and arts themes. From folk singing to organizing against nuclear energy; from prison issues to contemplative social action; from military counter-recruitment to compassionate listening -- it's a richly diverse set of opportunities.

I spoke last week to one of the organizers from the Oregon FOR, Janet Brown, and learned that the conference is more than 90% booked. If you have been thinking about attending, time is short to register! Visit the conference website now to reserve your participation -- hope to see you at Seabeck next month!