Quaker Heritage Day will be fun, educational
Since their days as whaling captains and protectors of slaves passing through the city on the Underground Railroad, Quakers have long been a fixture on the SouthCoast.
That's more than 300 years, if you're counting.
"They were our founding fathers in many ways," said Irene Duprey-Gutierrez, chair of the education committee for the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park. "They said no to slavery and yes to hard work and treating people fairly."
And this is one of the many reasons why the park paired up with the New Bedford Friends Meeting House and the Seamen's Bethel to put on the city's first Quaker Heritage Day. Sunday will be a fun-filled day of learning in downtown New Bedford as area Quakers join with others from throughout New England to share their long history with anyone interested.
"The education committee thought that many Quakers around New England know about Quakers but not about their primary (historical) industry, whaling," explained Pamela Cole, president of the local ecumenical group, Church Women United, and host of the Saturday morning weekly WBSM religious news radio feature, "The Church Lady Brings Faith Community News."
"And area residents know about whaling but not specifically about the Quakers who took the lead in the industry. It is hoped that the Quaker Heritage Day will bring both together," Cole said.
The Society of Friends (the Quakers) established the area's first ecclesiastical body in 1699. Just under 100 years later, in 1792, the New Bedford Monthly Meeting of Friends emerged from the Dartmouth Monthly Meeting.
It is even possible that New Bedford's motto, "Lucem Diffundo" or "I diffuse the light" (found on the city's seal) is a direct correspondence to the original Quaker settlers of the area. Also known as "Children of Light," many were involved in the whaling industry, which supplied whale oil that was used worldwide as a source of light.
Spreading a different kind of light, that of knowledge, the free and open to the public event kicks off at 10 a.m. Sunday with three different options. First, all are invited to attend a regular Sunday Meeting for Worship at the Friends Meeting House at 83 Spring St.
The second option — one especially good for children — is "Games Quaker Children Played." This program, which was included in the recent Hetty Green Day, will be held inside and outside of the Visitor Center at 33 William St. from 10 a.m. to noon. Activities for youngsters will include making paper dolls, playing marbles, and trying on traditional clothing, as well as 10 traditional Quaker games.
Also starting at 10 a.m., the Visitor Center theater will show the park orientation film, "The City that Lit the World," followed by a showing of a Dartmouth Cable Television program on the Quakers' 350th anniversary Yearly Meeting at the Great Meetinghouse of Newport, filmed in 2011.
Following the showings, at 11 a.m., local author George Salvador will discuss his 1969 book, "Paul Cuffe, The Black Yankee, 1759-1817" with an introduction by one of Cuffe's descendants, Robert Kelley. The book brought Cuffe, an area African-American/Wampanoag Quaker whaling captain, back into the historical spotlight.
A picnic lunch, very much a Quaker tradition, will be held at noon on the Seamen's Bethel (15 Johnny Cake Hill) lawn. Visitors are asked to bring their own lunches.
Inside of the Bethel's Saltbox (the ground floor hall), "Down to the Sea in Ships," a 1922 movie filmed in the area featuring local Quakers, will be playing continuously throughout the day.
At 1:30 p.m., everyone will head over to the Meeting House for "Welcome to the Friends Meeting House: Quakers in New Bedford, Then and Now." This features a welcome by the clerk Rob Ramsbottom followed by a talk by Marcia Cornell-Glynn about Quakers who have contributed to the area's culture and society during the whaling era. A tour of the building and exhibits as well as refreshments will follow.
At 3:30 p.m., the day will conclude with an Elm Dance, a circle dance that is held as a prayer for peace, on the Meeting House lawn. Everyone is welcome to participate.
"The event will be an eye-opener for a lot of people," Duprey said. Quakers are "alive, they're well, and they're a part of our community."
What: Quaker Heritage Day. When: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday. Where: New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park Visitor Center, 33 William St.; Seamen's Bethel, 15 Johnny Cake Hill; Friends Meeting House, 83 Spring St. More information: (508) 996-4095.
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