[BES Friends] September Activities -- WELCOME BACK

[Stephen Meskin]

Unless otherwise indicated, activities begin at 10:30 AM, end at noon, 
and are held at the Society (306 W Franklin St, Suite 102; 21201-4517) 
and the number to call for more information is 410-581-2322. Our web 
address is www.baltimoreethicalsociety.org
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Schedule -- see details below
Sunday 9/5, noon to 3 PM - Start of Season Picnic at Sparks Bank Nature 
Center.
Saturday 9/11, 2:30 - 4:30 PM - Join us in participating in Women in 
Black's Peace Path at the corner of Charles & Pratt Streets
Sunday 9/12, 9:30 AM - BES Poetry Group, facilitated by Karla Mancero
_Sunday 9/12 “Born Again: A Conversion Story” by Fritz Williams, Leader 
of the Baltimore Ethical Society_
Friday 9/17 - Sunday 9/19 - Visit BES at the Baltimore Book Festival!
_Sunday 9/19 “It May Be Legal But is It Right? Professional Ethics in 
Government” by Richard S. Foster, Chief Actuary for CMS _
Sunday 9/26, 9:30 AM - BES Poetry Group - see 9/12
_Sunday 9/26 “Images for Wholeness” A multimedia performance by Carol 
Mays and Gary Blanchard_
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Details
Sunday, Sept. 5, noon to 3 PM - _Start of Season Picnic_ at Sparks Bank 
Nature Center. Bring a dish to share, and a grill if you want to use 
one. We'll picnic behind the nature center in beautiful Gunpowder Falls 
State Park and then enjoy visiting the animals and Naturalist Walter 
Massey (former BES Sunday School teacher), or walking or riding the NCR 
Trail. Take I83 north to exit 24, turn right at the end of the exit, 
then again at York Rd. Turn left onto Sparks Rd. and park in the lots on 
the right past the bridge. Questions? Contact KarenSElliott at aol.com .

Saturday, Sept. 11, 2:30 - 4:30 PM - Join us in participating in _Women 
in Black's Peace Path_ at the corner of Charles & Pratt Streets. They 
suggest we bring signs with peace written in one or more languages. 
Questions? Contact KarenSElliott at aol.com .

Sunday, Sept. 12 & 26, 9:30 AM - _BES Poetry Group_, facilitated by 
Karla Mancero. Bring something you like or that you've written. Contact 
Karla at
nada23_2002 at yahoo.com .

Sunday, Sept. 12 – _"Born Again: A Conversion Story”_ by Fritz 
Williams,_ Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society
This is the talk that generated such a positive response when Fritz gave 
it at the New York Ethical Society and it aired on WQXR-FM in New York 
City a year ago. In the talk, Fritz describes the profound changes that 
accompanied his journey from being a minister in the Episcopal Church to 
becoming an Ethical Culture Leader. It is a deeply personal reflection 
on conversion, the coalescence of forces it takes to bring it about, and 
its impact on human life.

_Fritz Williams_ is Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society and, in that 
capacity, serves as primary speaker, teacher, pastor, and organizational 
leader. To these duties, Fritz brings extensive ministerial and 
communications experience. He has worked as a parish priest in the 
Episcopal Church, and also as a writer and producer at public television 
stations in Harrisburg, PA, and Detroit, MI. He is especially loved for 
his down-to-earth narrative style of speaking and his "When I Was Kid" 
stories, based on his own childhood.

Sunday, Sept. 19 – _“It May Be Legal But is It Right? Professional 
Ethics in Government” by Richard S. Foster,_ Chief Actuary for the 
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Last summer the administrator of the Medicare program threatened to fire 
Mr. Foster if he released information to lawmakers on the estimated cost 
of last year’s prescription drug bill– particularly information showing 
that the bill would likely cost considerably more than the congressional 
Budget Office Estimates that Congress was using. Mr. Foster became the 
center of a media maelstrom in March when this threat of termination 
became public. Mr. Foster will give his views and reflect upon how he 
decided what to do.

_Richard Foster_ is responsible for all actuarial and other financial 
analyses for the Medicare and Medicaid programs. He became Chief Actuary 
in February 1995. He has served as Deputy Chief Actuary for the Social 
Security Administration. He is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries 
(1980) and is a member of the American Academy of Actuaries. He has 
written numerous articles and reports on Medicare and Social Security 
issues. Mr. Foster received an M.S. in applied math from the University 
of Maryland, and a B.A. in mathematics from the College of Wooster.

Sunday, Sept. 26 – _“Images for Wholeness”_ A multimedia performance by 
Carol Mays and Gary Blanchard
Carol Mays and Gary Blanchard will be doing a one hour multimedia 
performance, using poetry and live music coordinated with a PowerPoint 
presentation of 255 images. The theme will be “opening to the senses, to 
a larger sense of time, to the imagination, to play, and to each other.” 
They have rearranged some of the material used in their spring 
performance and have added new material.

_Carol Mays and Gary Blanchard_ are well known in the BES and in the 
larger community for their talent and creativity. Carol has authored 
many publications, the most recent of which is “Images for Wholeness.” 
She is also the creator of Carol’s Literary Greeting Cards. Gary is an 
accomplished musician, and has created a new type of recovery process. 
Gary has also authored a variety of pamphlets on this and related topics.