The Green Group…
The Green Group is a gathering of Annapolis Friends which embraces the Quaker testimony of stewardship. We invite you to join us in our Spirit-led work to face the daunting challenges of climate change and the need to protect those vulnerable to it. Using our individual and collective resources, we educate ourselves and each other about the best ways to protect water, land and air, support biodiversity, seek environmental justice for all and live more simply and sustainably. We respect the native people whose land we live on, who respected nature and believed that all life is sacred. We welcome you to come to our monthly meeting on Zoom or to our in-person meeting – as soon as we set that up.
Our group began informally in 2023 when a few friends signed up for the Green Leaders Training Program offered by the Interfaith Partners of the Chesapeake (IPC). We formally launched our group with the IPC Partner’s Pledge Ceremony in May 12, 2024. We are about to begin our third year! We feel there’s much to do and invite Spirit to guide us, and welcome you to join us. Come to a meeting and if you like it, return!
Green Group Activities – where we’ve been, what we’re doing, where we’re going…
2026
Spring Activities
Earth Day at Quiet Waters Park – April 18th, 2026
AFM and the Green Group participated in Quiet Waters Park – Earth Day celebration.
Earth Day – Rain Barrel Workshop – Wednesday, April 22, 2026
AFM and the Green Group are Partnering with St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, Bestgate Road, Annapolis.
Spring Migration Bird Watch – with Chris Eberly – Saturday. May 30th
Flat shoes. Bring binoculars if you have them. Come when you can, we’ll start at 8am – 10am.
Summer/Fall 2026 Activities
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- A Hydroponic Garden Demonstration and a season of growing is being sponsored by Children’s Religious Education and will be utilizing the Green Group’s planting carts that we assembled in 2025.
The Hydroponic Garden Team will be growing fall vegetables!
Help was provided last growing season by one of our littlest Quakers. Here she is receiving planting instruction from one of our most green minded Friends who is also a vital part of the Children’s Religious Education Activities.
Winter-Sowing for 2026? – We’ve got our milkjugs ready.
Last year’s winter milkweed seedlings did well at first but then were overwhelmed by water in our carts that had inadequate drainage. So holes are to be drilled in our carts before this year’s planting.
Activities – 2025
Fall 2025 – Seed Collection at Annapolis Friends Meeting – Come shake our Trees!
The Green Group and Friends with the the Interfaith Partner of the Chesapeake, and the Department of Natural Resources had a first ever Seed Collection event at Annapolis meetinghouse. On a weekday in September Friends helped to harvest the seeds of our mature Flowering Dogwood and Eastern Redbud trees. The seeds we collected went to the Maryland state seed bank to help replenish their collections. With thanks to our trees and our partners in stewardship!
Oct 2025 – World Quaker Day, the Green Group had a display “Love Your Neighbor – Love Our Planet around the 2025 WQD theme.
On October 5th, at the monthly potluck following 11am worship, the Green Group presenting an eco-friendly display and discussion.
December 2025 – Quaker Holiday Market, supported market by forcing paperwhites to bloom to promote sales.
April Earth Day 2025. The Green Group hosted the first in-person Movie Night at AFM since the pandemic with thanks to the technical savy of young Friends!
The Green Group and Friends shared the award-winning documentary about regenerative agriculture, “Kiss the Ground” with an accompanying eco-friendly product display, native plant door prizes, an AFM Library book display, and refreshments.
2024
November 2024 – The planting of the Edible Trail at Annapolis Friends Meeting
Special thanks to all Friends who took part, the Meetinghouse & Lands Committee, members of the Green Group, and our partners - the Interfaith Partners of the Chesapeake, and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources!
We invite you to come for a tour of our trail-in-progress and welcome your help in caring for our meandering nursery of paw paws, persimmons, and other natives! Most of our trees have now made it through their second winter, but we need to do more caging and recaging of trees to protect them from deer browse.
Planted with the help of Friends (see them here), we have thirty plus native fruit and nut-bearing trees and shrubs, representing thirteen species, that now encircle the meetinghouse. As they mature they will offer food for us and wildlife and will help us maintain and increase biodiversity on the land we steward. We welcome your help in caring for them watering, weeding, mulching, and adjusting cages. We also invite you to join us as we learn more about these native trees and consider the educational opportunities they present.
A downloadable .pdf brochure for the Edible Trail (three panel, two page)
with map and species identified, is available here.
Interfaith Partners of the Chesapeake (IPC) Pledge Day Celebration, Meeting for Learning Program “Making Peace with Mother Nature” by Fran Palmieri (supported by Jean Christianson), Tree planting, and Sacred Chant & Dance with Sylvia Oliva. Mother’s Day, May 12, 2024