I'm not normally a believer nor a church goer -- but my when my great uncle passed away, the memorial was hosted at the church where he had been a member for many decades with his spiritual family.
The building is gorgeous - and super clean and tasteful, inside and out. I went down to the basement when I arrived to offer my help setting up for the reception. I even brought vegan doughnuts which looked garish next to the wide array of home baked goodies brought in by volunteers in the community (it turned out ok - they were a hit!).
The pastor is super nice -- and the service was very low key and sweet. They even record their regular services and memorials so you can listen on their website!
Inside the sanctuary - it was just beautiful. Nice big high ceiling in sort of a dome/half circle shape -- the place had fantastic acoustics. There's also a LIBRARY! The library was pretty impressive - lots of Quaker history and other spiritual books, as well as a children's section -- all labeled with Dewey decimal system and a little self-service check out area!
Most importantly - the people were incredibly welcoming, warm and supportive. There were many people who had known my great uncle for a long time - and they shared their memories with me, including one woman who had recently moved into to the same retirement community where my uncle had been living and who remembered meeting him when she was a little girl more than 50 years ago!
Thanks so much to the Newberg Friends for their grace and kindness. read more