The Need for Foster Families in Orange County and N.C.
2024-10-20 13:30 - 15:30 (America/New_York) | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
We are focusing on the need for foster families in Orange County, as well as in N.C. We have three guests from the Orange County Social Services Department who will speak about the challenges, and needs of foster care.
Courtney Byrd: Foster Home Licensing Social Worker. Courtney has many years of experience both as a social worker and a foster parent herself.
Rachel Floyd: Adoption Social Worker and Foster Home Licensing Social Worker. Rachel was previously an In-Home and Permanency Planning Social Worker in Orange County. Rachel has been with Orange County over 6 years including an internship completed for a graduate degree.
Tracey Trask: Foster Home Licensing Social Worker. Tracey has been with Orange County over 18 years.

This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make the request.

2024 Fall Members Meeting
2024-10-27 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
Each fall, EHST has a meeting of members, friends, and visitors to discuss how the current year has gone, and what looms ahead for the next calendar year. Our programs, budget, board activity, and needs are reviewed during the meeting. Questions are encouraged, which we will attempt to answer, as is feedback, to allow all to understand our “state of the union.” We also will kick off our pledge campaign for 2025. Come get the facts about our humanist congregation!
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make the request.

Exploring the North Atlantic with Gretchen Niver
2024-11-03 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
EHST Member Gretchen Niver joined a few members of the Skeptics Society, and others, on an Arctic and Greenland cruise on the Swan Hellenic Vega in early October. Learning about Inuit societies in Greenland and Northern Canada, and visiting such unique landscapes was a thrilling experience, which also included Northern Lights, sled dog puppies, icebergs, polar bears, and the only Viking settlement remains in North America. Come and share her journey this Sunday.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make the request.

Discussion Sunday - What Now That The Election Is Over?
2024-11-10 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
We will discuss the results of the November 5th election and what it means to us individually as well as an organization dedicated to nontheism, separation of church and state, and freedom of and from religion. Will the election make our lives and our commitments easier or more difficult? What lessons do we take away from this election?
This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

Volunteering in Ukraine: A Personal Perspective
2024-11-17 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
What inspires an ordinary person to volunteer in a distant country that’s at war, where even the alphabet is unfamiliar? What would the experience be like? And why might they be willing to return? You’re invited to hear the story of Philip Semanchuk who has been to Ukraine three times in the past year and will go there again soon. Philip Semanchuk lives in Pacifica Cohousing in Carrboro, NC. His surname comes from the Lemko people in the Ukranian highlands.

This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make the request.

Potluck for our members and friends and visitors
2024-11-24 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
EHST will start the holiday season with a New World Potluck. We will meet at our usual venue, Extraordinary Ventures. Attendees are asked to bring a dish to share that features New World foods. (See the list below.) Also, feel free to bring beverages or something store bought to share. And bringing something to share is not required to attend.
Come one, come all and celebrate our secular community!
This meeting is in-person only.

New World Foods for the potluck.
Grains
● Corn/Maize ● Quinoa ● Amaranth ● Wild rice ● Indian Corn (Flint Corn)
Legumes
● Peanut ● Pinto, tepary, black, kidney, navy, scarlet runner and lima beans
Nightshades
● Potato ● Tomato ● Bell and chili peppers ● Tomatillo
Fruits
● Pineapple ● Guava ● Passion fruit ● Papaya ● Cherimoya, sugar-apple, hog plum, and soursop ● Pawpaw ● Dragonfruit/pitaya ● Concord grape ● Huckleberry ● Strawberry ● Blueberry ● Cranberry ● Raspberry ● Salmonberry ● Oregon grape ● Thimbleberry ● Mayhaw) ● Blackberry ● Plum ● Black cherry ● Chokecherry ● Hawthorn Berry ● Staghorn Sumac ● Prickly Pear or Cactus Pear ● Persimmon
Nuts
● Peanut ● Cashew ● American chestnut ● Pecan ● Black walnut ● Brazil nut ● Butternut or White Walnut ● Acorns ● American Hazelnut
Other
● Cocoa ● Vanilla● Cassava ● Sweet potato ● Jicama ● Jerusalem artichoke ● sunflower ● Avocado ● Agave ● Pumpkin and squash ● Chayote ● Chia ● Maple Syrup ● Honey ● Yaupon ● Sassafrass
Meats
● Beaver ● White Tail Deer ● Wild Turkey ● America Bison ● Passenger Pigeon ● Quail

Fighting Christian Nationalism in Minnesota
2024-12-08 13:30 - 15:30 | Virtual Program using Zoom
As marketing co-chairs of HumanistMN, Suzanne Perry and Ellie Haylund worked together last year to put up a billboard near the Minnesota state capitol that read, “Reject Christian Nationalism: Keep Religion Out of Government.” The billboard drew widespread media attention and raised people’s awareness of their organization. This effort was instrumental in expanding knowledge of humanist values in the community and significantly increased their membership.
Suzanne Perry is a Board member and co-chair of the marketing committee for HumanistsMN. An ardent advocate for separation of religion and government, she has coordinated an annual event at the Minnesota State Capitol to commemorate the National Day of Reason and worked with legislators to set up the Secular Government Caucus. She is now helping to plan a Forum on Religious Freedom in January in Minneapolis.

Ellie Haylund is an enthusiastic humanist and has been involved with her local chapter, HumanistsMN, for almost a decade. Since 2016, she has served on HumanistsMN’s board of directors, is their current president, and co-chairs the marketing committee. She is passionate about bringing widespread visibility to humanism, cultivating the next generation of humanists, and advocating for the separation of religion and government.

This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

2024 End of Year Extravaganza!
2024-12-15 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
Please join us for our final meeting of 2024. As this is the last gathering of the year, we will be hosting a triumvirate of programs:
1) Ethical Action: Foster family gift wrapping:
We are sponsoring a local family through the Foster Care Division of the Orange County Department of Social Services. We are providing help in a variety of ways, including some gifts that we will be wrapping. This family is also in need of help with basic necessities (some clothes, shoes, and even groceries) that we will provide for with gift cards so they can make their own shopping choies. If you are able to attend and would like to bring a financial donation, that would be great. If you are not available on Sunday, please consider donating on our website, https://ehstnc.org/support/ . Please add a note that this donation is for the foster family sponsorship. All donations are welcome!
2) Forecasting the Future:
We will have surveys available to fill out with some questions regarding 2025. They will range from world politics through sports straight on to pop culture. Once these are gathered and consolidated, your responses will reappear at a later meeting next year.
3) Social time with members and friends:
This is a great time to celebrate the holiday season and enjoy the company of others. Standard refreshments will be provided, but if you would like to bring an extra snack to share, please feel free to do so!
We will not be Zooming this program. Nor will we meet on 12/22. The program on 12/29 is an all AEU program. See you next year!

EHST Holiday - no program today
2024-12-22 13:30 - 15:30
We will not be meeting today. We look forward to seeing you in 2025!

Gathering Light In Our Times
2024-12-29 11:00 - 12:30 | Virtual Program using Zoom
EHST will join the American Ethical Union (AEU) program today at 11:00 am EST. You may see more about this program here. Note that registration is required. Use this link to register: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEkf-2vqzgjGdIEmPWGty7Khr_QFgiUBWq7#/registration

https://aeu.org/2024/11/december-29-aeu-all-societies-platform-gathering-light-in-our-times/

A Discussion of Atheism and Ethical Culture
2025-01-05 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
According to a Pew Research Center report from 2024, roughly 28% of Americans are religiously unaffiliated, classified as “nones”. Of these, 83% profess to be agnostic or vaguely uncertain about religion, with the remainder being atheists who claim god or gods do not exist. If, however, atheism is defined more broadly as an absence of theistic belief, most “nones” may be considered to be atheists. In general many accuse atheists of being nihilists or lacking a foundation for moral and ethical standards. However, it may be argued that because atheism does not adhere to the dictates of a predefined moral code, it supports the development and evolution of an ethical culture based on critical thinking about human interactions and social justice. Fred Breidt will lead a group discussion of what atheism is and how atheism and religion can influence Ethical Culture values.

This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

The Tipping Point I Got Wrong
2025-01-12 14:00 - 16:00 | Virtual Program using Zoom
We will watch a brief TED Talk by Malcolm Gladwell, “The Tipping Point I Got Wrong” and follow it up discussion based on some of the points brought up in the talk. Because a central theme to this talk is the danger inherent to and unconstitutionality of stop and frisk, we expect a lively dialogue! Gladwell wrote a book, published in 2000 titled “The Tipping Point“. He has now published a book (2024) titled “Revenge of the Tipping Point”.
This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

Annual Business Meeting
2025-01-19 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
All members and friends are strongly encouraged to attend our annual business meeting. This is an important opportunity to discuss priorities for EHST in the coming year. The 2025 budget will be presented, with time for Q&A and potential modifications, before a vote on accepting the budget. We also will be electing Board trustees and officers.

This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

Embracing AI in the 4th Industrial Revolution
2025-01-26 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
This talk explores the transformative impact of artificial intelligence (AI) as the driving force behind the 4th Industrial Revolution. It delves into how AI is reshaping industries, from automation and predictive analytics to personalized experiences and sustainable practices. The presentation will highlight the opportunities AI creates for innovation, economic growth, and societal advancement, while also addressing the challenges of ethical AI development, workforce transitions, and equitable access to technology. Attendees will leave with insights into how to navigate and thrive in an AI-powered future.
Todd Bishop has spent 36 years as an IT professional, from programming to senior technical lead, with the last 15 years at GlaxoSmithKline. He has an undergraduate degree from Duke University, a masters of education from UNC, and an MBA from Duke. Although he has never worked in artificial intelligence specifically, as an IT professional he understands computer systems and how AI is evolving, and is excited about the changes that are taking place.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

AMA (Ask Me Anything) on Race
2025-02-02 14:00 - 16:00 | Virtual Program using Zoom
EHST member Solomon Gibson III will entertain your most sensitive and/or casual queries in exploring the experiences of being Black in America; as well as share general insights and observations on racial hierarchy, survival culture, American history and some of its direct connection to the current state of the country. Bring your most penetrating questions, knowing that no sincere interest in learning will offend. Mr. Gibson is an actor in local dinner theater productions, an advocate for women’s rights to medical care including abortions, and also happens to be African American. He has spoken many times to EHST; he is a member, and is on our board of directors.
This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

How Music Moves Us
2025-02-23 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
EHST member Jay Niver will share the backstory behind one of the most powerful and controversial songs in US history, “Strange Fruit.” It became Billie Holiday’s signature song and sold more records than any she recorded, but few know that it originated as a protest poem written by a New York City English teacher.
Jay will also discuss another haunting, troubling, and sometimes-banned composition, “Gloomy Sunday” – also known as “the Hungarian suicide song.”
It all relates to the power of music as a universal language (and some of us might share our “favorite” tune and why it’s personally meaningful).
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

Meaningful Personal Musical Moments
2025-03-02 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
In follow-up to Jay Niver’s powerful presentation on the song “Strange Fruit,” we will have a special program highlighting meaningful songs or musical experiences of our members and friends. Jay will host this, in which members will come to the meeting and share the impact of music that has had personal significance for them, followed by playing the piece. A smart phone is one suggestion for the song sharing, as it can be held up to the microphone and will be heard by the live audience as well as the Zoom audience. Please join us for this musical introspective!
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

How the Elite rigged Society (and why it’s falling apart)
2025-03-09 14:00 - 16:00 | Virtual Program using Zoom
David Brooks, a prominent conservative writer (and former Republican), spoke at the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship Conference about how the “elite” rigged society and why things are now falling apart. Join us as we view the short talk on Youtube (about 15 minutes) and discuss the key points and our reactions.

This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

Call to Action: Amplifying the Voice of Ethical Culture in Our Community
2025-03-16 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
Now more than ever, nurturing an ethical culture demands ethical action. It is time to make our voices heard and to back our words with action! Sunday’s program, which will be led by EHST President Fred Breidt, will seek to discover the best ways to focus our efforts to maximize our impact on the community. Your input and ideas are needed for this discussion!
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

Ending Extreme Poverty - One Idea
2025-03-23 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
We will first listen to a Ted Talk by Rory Stewart titled “To End Extreme Poverty Give Cash Not Advice.” Stewart is a former UK Member of Parliament and presents an “evidence based” idea that seems just too obvious, or is it? We will then discuss his talk. Does such fit in with the current “smaller government” paradigm advocated by President Trump as well as traditional conservative politicians?
This meeting will not be available via Zoom. Many of our members are participating in the local Chapel Hill/Carrboro CROP Walk to raise money to fight world hunger so we won’t have the staffing needed to present via Zoom. But please watch the Ted Talk.

The Brick Wall Brain: Why Facts (Usually) Don’t Change Minds
2025-03-30 11:00 - 12:30 | Virtual Program using Zoom
Our national organization, the American Ethical Union, will present a program at 11 a.m. Eastern featuring Seth Andrews. He will share his thoughts on why facts don’t normally change minds. Seth Andrews is a former evangelical and Christian broadcaster who now hosts The Thinking Atheist one of the most popular podcasts and online atheist communities in the world. The Thinking Atheist is not a person. It is an icon encouraging all to reject faith and pursue reason and evidence. Joseph Farkas, Ethical Culture Leader-in-Training, will moderate the platform, which will be followed by a breakout session for Zoom participants.
There is no cost to attend, but all participants must register using this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/VtpB3QYnRBqk8xbP9XhfTA#/registration.
EHST will not meet today due to this program. Our next meeting will be April 6.

Protesting: A Time-Honored Tradition
2025-04-06 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
EHST member Maura Breidt will give a short talk about protesting, including its history, some of its impact, and how it has evolved over time, especially in recent years with the advent of social media. There will be ample time for discussion, both to learn about what demonstrations or protests EHST members have attended in the past, and their viewpoints on both the drivers and the efficacy of this type of social action.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

The Brick Wall Brain: Why Aren't Facts Changing Minds
2025-04-13 14:00 - 16:00 | Virtual Program using Zoom
We will play segments of a video featuring Seth Andrews on why facts don’t seem to change minds. This confounds those committed to reason and facts. Seth Andrews is a broadcaster, storyteller, author, activist, and public speaker best known as host of the popular website, podcast, and online community, The Thinking Atheist. Afterwards we will discuss his talk, and takeaways from it.

This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

Celebration of Earth Day 2025
2025-04-20 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
We will have a brief introduction of Earth Day and its 55-year history, followed by discussion.
Some possible discussion points:
1) What are your environmentally-friendly practices?
2) What would you suggest to others?
3) What are your views on positive success, especially considering the depredations the current administration has made on federal programs?
Please bring to the meeting any other discussion points you would like to consider and talk over.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

The Strengths and Weaknesses and Future of the NC Corrections System
2025-04-27 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
Bianca Harris, Program Director of the Criminal Justice Program at Meredith College, will speak about the strengths and weaknesses of the N.C. Department of Corrections as well as its possible future. Ms. Harris has extensive experience in the field of criminal justice management, having served as warden of North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women before moving into the position of district manager of the Division of Alcohol and Chemical Dependency unit of the state Department of Public Safety.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

No EHST Meeting - Mothers Day
2025-05-11 08:00 - 17:00 | Virtual Program using Zoom
EHST will not meet today, neither virtually nor in person. We hope everyone has a pleasant Mothers Day, and we wish all Mothers regardless of age the best of life! Thanks for all you do and have done!

Caring for the Formerly Incarcerated: New York to North Carolina
2025-05-18 14:00 - 16:00 | Virtual Program using Zoom
Carol Van Deusen became involved with the formerly incarcerated in 2016 after retirement. She needed something else to do and New York City has a wonderful program called NYCares that offers opportunities to volunteer for various social service programs on a daily basis without feeling committed. She tried many different volunteer opportunities but found her calling helping people newly freed from prison to reenter society. The New York Society for Ethical Culture sponsored and provided office space for the Social Justice Network (SJN), dedicated to reentry. Carol and Dick now serve on the SJN board.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

Ethical Action: Rise Against Hunger - May 2025
2025-05-25 14:00 - 16:00
For the third time, EHST is leading a coalition of secular groups in the Triangle to partner with Rise Against Hunger in their mission to end global hunger. On May 25th these secular organizations will make donations and provide volunteers to prepare over 7000 meals!
In 2024, Rise Against Hunger served nearly 54.3 million meals across 41 countries. This year, we’re joining the effort again by packaging nutritious, dehydrated meals that are shipped directly to communities in need. If you haven’t done this before, you’re in for a fun time! Volunteers work in an upbeat assembly-line environment, with energetic music and gongs sounding off for milestone moments.
“Rise Against Hunger works in countries worldwide to fight hunger, targeting communities facing high rates of food insecurity… We partner with local leaders to implement sustainable agriculture and income-generating projects that support long-term solutions to food security and empower communities to become self-reliant and thrive.”
— Learn more about Rise Against Hunger
Our event will be at Rise’s Raleigh warehouse in place of our usual Sunday meeting at 2pm. The warehouse address is 3200 Wellington Ct #112 · Raleigh, NC. We need EHSTers to participate as we are the sponsor organization! But if you can’t participate, please consider donating to sponsor others. Sign up to volunteer or make a donation here.
Participating groups include:
Ethical Humanist Society of the Triangle (EHST)
Triangle Freethought Society (TFS)
Sunday Assembly Chapel Hill (SA)
Secular Women of the Triangle

Poetry Sunday: A Celebration of Our Humanity Through the Arts
2025-06-01 14:00 - 16:00 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
We are hosting a poetry reading with several poets, ranging from absolute amateur to published authors. Please join us in supporting the arts!
Morrow Dowdle (they/them) is the author of the chapbook Hardly (Bottlecap Press, 2024) and has work forthcoming from New York Quarterly, RATTLE, ONE ART, and Southeast Review. They have been nominated for the Pushcart and Best of the Net, and were a finalist for the 2024 Red Wheelbarrow Poetry Prize. They work as a creative consultant for NC Public Art and run a performance series which features BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ voices. An MFA candidate at Pacific University, they live in Durham, North Carolina.

Hugh Giblin is a sometimes poet, sometimes activist, and sometimes supporter of the Ethical Humanist Society of the Triangle. He is also a master of the brief bio form.

Eric R. Pedersen is a retired English professor who is a published poet and author of a textbook, Challenging Composition. Pedersen taught creative writing at Butler County Community College (PA) for thirty years and advised the BC3 Writers’ Club and FACETS, the College’s award-winning arts and literary magazine. He is the author of Voyages, a book of poetry that was compiled and published during COVID in 2021. A member of the Thoreau Society and Hemingway Society, he is an avid canoeist, fisherman, hiker and traveler. Pedersen lives on a lake near Hillsborough, NC and is a proud and dedicated father and grandfather.

Jeff (Blue) Marvin grew up moving every four to six years as the quintessential preacher’s kid. Blue’s father was also a poet but their styles differed so much his father once asked him, “I wonder what a psychiatrist would say about your poems?” Blue started writing poetry as a grade schooler but it became a compulsion in college, studying under his mentor Peter Meinke at Eckerd College. Peter’s influence is easily seen by the vivid imagery and the truthful diction of Blue’s poems. The subjects of many of Blue’s poems are society, nature, relationships and the arts. All of which usually have a hint of humor. Blue’s poetry has been published in the Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel, The Tethered Muse, and the Dreaming Tree.

This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.

Discussion Sunday
2025-06-08 14:00 - 16:00 | Virtual Program using Zoom
This Sunday we will be having a roundtable discussion, focusing on current events and the ethics involved. There will be discussion points to get things started; however, your own topics are welcome, and of course everyone’s perspectives and opinions are vital to a good discussion. Come ready to rumble (in a good way)!
This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form (https://ehstnc.org/contact-us/) to make your request.
