All posts by Chuck Fager

“Passing the Torch” – “I did a year in prison for that . . .” “Passing The Torch” Authors Speak #2

Carter Nash is one of the authors of the new book by and about American Quaker elders, Passing The Torch: I’m a 65-year-old gay man of African descent. I was born in Huntington, West Virginia at a time when Jim Crow laws were still in effect. The hospital I was born in was segregated and … Continue reading “Passing the Torch” – “I did a year in prison for that . . .” “Passing The Torch” Authors Speak #2 →

“Passing The Torch” – “Pray for Segregation!” The Authors Speak (First in a series)

I went looking for interesting Quakers with interesting lives and stories for the new book Passing the Torch, which is now out. Barbara Bernsten certainly qualifies. She has lived in Norway for many years. But she’s American born, and I first heard of and from her more than ten years ago, in an email to … Continue reading “Passing The Torch” – “Pray for Segregation!” The Authors Speak (First in a series) →

Peg Champney: Tribute to a quietly powerful Friend

I owe a lot to Peg Champney, who died November 5, at 87. But I did not know her that warm day in the late 1980s when I turned off Sandy Ridge Road in the small eastern Ohio town of Barnesville, onto the campus of the Olney Friends School, where she was. The grassy, … Continue reading Peg Champney: Tribute to a quietly powerful Friend →

Quaker House at 50: We tried everything to stop U.S. torture. Even Bible study.

In 2004, like the rest of the world, at Quaker House we began to learn about U. S. torture in the “War On terror.” In one way, it wasn’t much of a surprise. Situated next door to Fort Bragg, we knew that besides being home to the 82nd Airborne Division (Airborne means they troops jump … Continue reading Quaker House at 50: We tried everything to stop U.S. torture. Even Bible study. →

Quaker House: Domestic Military Murders and the War at Home

When I arrived at Quaker House at the beginning of 2002, work on domestic violence was not in my job description. There was already plenty else to keep a one-person staff busy: troops from Fort Bragg were already fighting in Afghanistan, and plans for invading Iraq were clearly taking shape. Besides, I had no experience … Continue reading Quaker House: Domestic Military Murders and the War at Home →