Throughout the school year the ESR community joins together for a common meal on Tuesdays at 11:20am. We begin by joining hands together in the gathering area of the ESR student center to share joys and concerns. A volunteer welcomes the group, encourages the sharing of joys and concerns, and then concludes the time with a blessing for the meal. Students, faculty, and staff pay by semester or per meal as they go through the line. The meal is served buffet style. Before the program begins at Noon, a volunteer  asks for announcements, and has visitors introduced. Several volunteers help with early and with late cleanup. A variety of programs are offered throughout the year and conclude at 1pm.

Once a month ESR and Bethany get together for a joint common meal.

Common Meal 2012-2013 Spring Session Schedule:

All meals are on Tuesday from 11:20 - 1:00 unless otherwise noted

Jan 29 - New Student/Employee introductions, Intro to Student Meeting for Business (Sodexo)

Feb 5 - Supervised Ministry information from Stephanie Crumley-Effinger (Laura Dell)

Feb 12 - Nellie Ashmore and friends: The Grow Food Grow Hope program at Wilmington College, dedicated to building a sustainable and food secure community in Clinton County by teaching small-plot gardening. GFGH is funded through the Co0pration for National and Community Service, overseen by AmeriCorps VISTA. They have 30 garden plots on the College campus, as well as multiple apartments, school and backyard gardens. (Leigh Eason)

Feb 19 - Joint Common Meal - ESR student Jestimore Musombi will share information from his thesis: A Land Without War: Kenyan Quakers and the Peace Curiculum (Sodexo)

Feb 26 - Friend in Residence: Irene McHenry , Director of Friends Council on Education, will reflect on her personal spiritual journey. (Laura Dell)

Mar 5 - Encounters with Peter Rollins
Rollins, who will be coming to the ESR campus on April 8 as this year's Willson Lectures speaker, is the founder of the experimental collective Ikon - which "describes itself as iconic, apocalyptic, heretical, emerging and failing and engages in what it calls theodrama and 'transformance art'" - and author of several books including Insurrection and The Idolatry of God. Join us as students and faculty share about their encounters with his work as we prepare for his visit. Matt Hisrich will serve as moderator, with Michael Sherman, April Vanlonden, and Anna Woofenden serving as panelists.  (Laura Dell)

Mar 12 - Members of Student Meeting for Business Pastoral Care Committee lead a discussion about self-care (Leigh Eason)

Wednesday March 20 - Joint Common Meal hosted by Bethany

Mar 26 - SPRING BREAK, no meal, no program

Apr 2 - Abbey Pratt-Harrington will discuss her Independent Study on Economic Aid: How it's done, what works, and what doesn't (Laura Dell)

Apr 9 - Rollins visit debriefing
Join us as we process together our responses to Peter Rollins following his visit for ESR's Willson Lectures, and discuss together if and how we might put some of his ideas into action. (Sodexo)

Apr 16 - Joint Common Meal, readings from our Ministry of Writing students (Sodexo)

Apr 23 - Marcelle Martin - Mullen Fellowship presentation (Laura Dell)

Apr 30 - Graduating Students SWAN SONG! (Sodexo)

May Intensives, Wed May and 22, noon - 1:00, no program