Resident Position Open
Santa Fe Friends Meeting is seeking Resident Friend(s) to live in garden cottage in historic Canyon Road district and join in Meeting fellowship. Free rooms and utilities in exchange for about 15 hours per week scheduling use of guest apartment and care of Meetinghouse. Starting date to be determined, but no later than September 1, 2008. Residency will be for a one-year term with option to renew by mutual agreement after six months. Please send a letter of interest and resume to: sfresident@desertgate.com. For detailed information about the resident(s)' duties, please see the job description, below.
Resident Job Description
The resident of the Santa Fe Monthly Meeting:
Lives on the property at 630 Canyon Road.
Joins in the fellowship of the Meeting as one who shares Quaker values and is a valued participant in Meeting activities.
Makes a one-year commitment to the residency (with the option of a subsequent year by mutual agreement, after six months).
Is a member of and responsible to the Residence Committee. Serves as ex officio member of the Building Committee and the Garden Committee. Since many of the activities of the Garden Committee and the Building Committee impact the Resident or require input, the Resident is expected to work closely with these committees, as well as with the Residence Committee.
In return for free rent and utilities (a combined value of about $10,000 a year), the resident performs the following duties:
--Serves as a public representative and first-line contact person for a Meeting of about sixty attendees. In many cases the Resident is the Meeting’s public face in their interaction with guests in the apartment, drop-ins off Canyon Road, and other visitors. In this capacity, the Resident:
--Answers
meetinghouse phone and responds to recorded messages within
twenty-four hours.
--Collects and distributes mail to appropriate
people in the Meeting as needed.
--Directs callers in need toward
the appropriate helping agencies and administers the petty cash fund
for emergency assistance.
--Maintains the scheduling and preparation of the guest apartment. The guest apartment is not only a form of hospitality ministry by the Meeting but also the main source of income for maintenance of the property. Thus, a certain firmness and efficiency is needed in taking reservations, moving visitors in and out, and making them aware of the need to formally cancel if they cannot use their reservation. In this capacity, the Resident:
--Schedules
reservations made via phone and email for use of guest
apartment.
--Prepares guest apartment for use, including
laundering and replacement of linens and any necessary cleaning.
--Works with the treasurer collecting and securing money from the contribution box and guest apartment income.
--Keeps records of guest contact information, money received, expenses for supplies for the Meeting, and the petty cash fund for emergency assistance.
--Performs regular meetinghouse and garden tasks. Securing the Meetinghouse is one of the most important duties in this area. This includes making sure daily that doors are locked and that gates and the garage are closed when no one is on the property. In addition, the Resident:
--Turns up the
heat in the meeting room and classroom for First Day and groups using
the meetinghouse during the week. Reminds groups using the
meetinghouse to leave it in a clean and acceptable condition after
use.
--Maintains a calendar of events in the meetinghouse (the
resident is not responsible for scheduling the events).
--Updates
bulletin boards periodically.
--Assists the Garden Committee with
garden maintenance, including watering the garden as requested and in
compliance with the city regulations.
--Shovels snow and salts
down walkways.
--Sets out garbage and recycling for city
pickup.
--Launders soiled kitchen linens in the meetinghouse and
returns them to use.
Logs hours spent at various tasks and provides a monthly report on activities to the Residence Committee and in person to the Meeting at Monthly Meeting for Business. (The current resident's reports indicate that over the past year and a half she has averaged 48 hours per month, ranging from 34 hours in November to 74 hours in May, when she was active in the garden.)
The Residence
The
meeting provides the resident with a small house called the casita,
in the garden of the meetinghouse property, plus sheltered off-street
parking (except Sunday morning, when it is used by disabled
attenders).
This historic adobe structure is
characteristic of early southwestern dwellings. It is rustic,
with heavy timber beams (vigas) in the main room’s low ceiling,
a beehive-shaped kiva fireplace, cupboards and hand-hewn bookshelf.
It is heated by gas, and has a refrigerator, gas stove, and washing
machine.
The casita has approximately 290 square feet of
living space, consisting of a living/sleeping room, kitchen with
small eating area, bathroom with shower, and small closet area.
The building is simply furnished, with minimal storage for clothes,
linens and other belongings.
In addition to providing the
casita and use of the meeting's phone and Internet access, the
meeting pays all utilities, including gas and electricity.
The
casita shares the 1/4 acre garden with First Day School children on
Sunday mornings. The garden is also visited by guests or
tourists who happen by, especially during summer, but it is
completely fenced and provides a sense of privacy and peaceful
retreat most times of day and year.
Links to More Information
Procedures for the Resident and Committee