Perhaps community is a constellation. Each one of us is a light in the emerging collective brightness. A constellation of light has the greater power of illumination than any single light would have on its own. Together we increase brightness.
-John O’Donohue, 2001
“The testimony of community invites us to see ourselves as part of something larger” (Princeton Friends School, https://www.princetonfriendsschool.org/quaker-testimonies). Friends come together in community to worship so that we may enhance our ability to listen to the still voice inside, but we also place value in relationships we build with our broader community. Relationships that center love and mutual respect lead to mutual support and caring. Hudson Friends seek to engage with others to support the local community of the City of Hudson and surrounding areas.
Columbia Memorial Hospital
Currently, Hudson Friends Meeting members have joined with clergy from Columbia and Greene Counties in a campaign to prevent the loss of beds and the closure of departments at Columbia Memorial Hospital. Located in the City of Hudson, the hospital serves both counties, and the planned downsizing and removal of services from the current location will create hardship for many who do not have the time or means of transportation to access services which may be as far away as Albany, Poughkeepsie, or Westchester.
Walk Over the Hudson
Recently members of Hudson Friends Meeting joined with other Friends from monthly meetings located within the Hudson Valley. They gathered at the Walkway Over the Hudson State Historic Park, the world’s longest elevated pedestrian bridge, connecting Poughkeepsie with Highland, NY. They carried a banner which said, “Practicing peace through the power of love.” The stated goal of the walk was to bring attention to the Quaker meetings in the area.