Gila Friends Meeting reactivated our Peace and Social Concerns Committee a couple of years ago, after several years of inaction. Many “social concerns” had begun attracting our attention, and we wanted to act on them. Then during one of our committee meetings, someone asked about the “peace” part of our mission. What would we do about “peace”? And thus, it began.
We realized we all felt concerned about peace in the world, peace in our country, and peace between neighbors. We saw anger and dissension hanging like a black cloud over our town, Silver City, New Mexico. Disgustingly, even a “F*** Biden” flag was allowed to fly in a yard across the street from one of our schools!
We decided that peace should begin with us locally, but we weren’t sure what we could do. After much deliberation, we settled on designing a yard sign that we could display for friends and neighbors to see. It would promote peace, love, and goodwill in our community. After that decision, we took months deciding what to put on our sign.
We started by looking at other signs that were already posted around the community. We agreed that many of the signs we saw, even though they were for worthy causes, were just too wordy. With too much writing on a sign, you really couldn’t read it as you were driving past. So we knew we wanted simplicity and few words.
We had a long discussion about whether to put the Gila Friends Meeting name on the signs, but we decided against it. Although we were proud of our accomplishment, we wanted people of all faiths – or no religion at all – to feel comfortable displaying these signs themselves. Our goal was to spread peace and harmony, not the meeting’s name. As we finalized the design, we added one missing element – a pair of white doves as the symbol of peace! It was done!
I knew our sign was attractive and encouraging, but even so, I was cautious when I placed the first order with our printer, Signs of Justice. I only ordered ten that first time. They were gone as soon as I received them. And so, I ordered twenty! And that was the beginning of many more orders of twenty.
I think I first really knew that we had gotten it right on the day that I was planting a requested sign in a yard in town, and a man walking by gave the sign a puzzled look. Then his eyes lit up with a smile, and he stopped, saying “Oh! You’re Quakers, aren’t you?” I was delighted that the sign spoke about who we are, even though our meeting’s name isn’t on it.
Our sign has traveled to many states, partially due to a couple of “super spreaders.” These are Friends who give our signs for Christmas gifts and as going-away presents to visitors. One “super spreader” tells of a time when a friend stopped by her house on the way to a gathering. The friend saw her sign and wanted one and gladly took it with her to the gathering; then another person at the gathering wanted a sign, too, so the first friend gave her hers; then another neighbor saw the sign and wanted one. As the original “spreader” said, “Now I have three signs on my street and one more in my car, waiting to be delivered.” At this point, besides many signs in Silver City and other towns in New Mexico, our signs stand in yards in Texas, Arizona, Colorado, Wisconsin, California, Michigan, and I am sure other states that I am not aware of.
Especially exciting have been the times when I have encountered our sign unexpectedly. When we visited a shelter for asylum seekers in a nearby town, I saw it – right beside the front door, our sign! “Have Hope ~ Choose Love ~ Be Kind.” What a perfect home for it!
Another time, I attended a Rotary meeting. The speaker (not a Quaker) displayed one of our signs and concluded her speech by saying, “This is my motto: Have Hope. Choose Love. Be Kind.” I am sure my smile was beaming.
Our yard sign is also encouraging members of our meeting to reach out to neighbors. One Gila Friend, who lives in an outlying rural area, told me she had seen our sign in the yard of someone she did not know. She said, “I think I want to meet those people.”
In another case of encouragement, one of our meeting’s attenders took a yard sign home, but felt too uneasy to display it. She knew she was surrounded by neighbors with a different mindset than hers. Then, when the recent heated election cycle brought out many signs in yards surrounding hers, and she thought, “Well, maybe now is the time.” She put our calming message on display: “Have Hope ~ Choose Love ~ Be Kind.” She said she felt better. Maybe her neighbors did, too!
We are so pleased that our yard sign with its message is now available for anyone, anywhere, to order online directly from the printer. Signs of Justice is a small company, run by a young couple who produce reasonably priced signs about many social concerns. You can find our sign on their website, signsofjustice.com
Gila Friends are trying, one simple yard sign at a time, to bring peace to our neighborhoods, our communities, and across the country. We consider every small step in the right direction to be a success. Our sign has been quoted in a well-attended public meeting. It has comforted weary travelers from other countries as they struggled in an unfamiliar place. It has helped like-minded neighbors to connect. And perhaps, people who disagree on other issues have decided that this is a common-ground message that all can embrace: “Have Hope ~ Choose Love ~ Be Kind.”
This is our wish for each of you, too! ~~~
Sandy Feutz is a photographer and attends Gila Friends Meeting in Silver City, New Mexico (IMYM). She clerks their Peace and Social Concerns Committee.