Pictured: Poughkeepsie Quaker Meeting Member Renelda Walker with DCIC Honoree Reverend Jesse Bottoms.
Ten members of Poughkeepsie Friends attended the Dutchess County Interfaith Council Gala which was held at Locust Grove on Monday, October 23, 2023. Click Here to View
“LOVE Forward” was the theme of the 2023 Annual Awards and Reception. In this time of uncertainty and war, these gatherings are important to our communities. Honored were Vassar Temple, Tamara Bond-Williams and Souls United of the Hudson Valley, the Mid-Hudson Islamic Association and the Rev. Jesse V. Bottoms, Jr. of Beulah Baptist Church. St. Martin De Porres, Temple Beth-El, the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship and Poughkeepsie Friends were well represented. Sponsors, Patrons, Honorary Chair and staff worked diligently on its success. Other faiths attending included Bahai, and Buddhism.
Friends attending enjoyed the fellowship and purpose, meeting new friends, reestablishing with others. One Friend met Honoree Rev. Jesse Bottoms who both came to Poughkeepsie decades ago from Louisville Kentucky, grew up going to church within blocks of one another, and whose families and friends know each other. Poughkeepsie Friends attending this Gala all felt honored and blessed to be in the company of like-minded, peace-seeking and loving individuals of faith.