QuEST Fellows’ Community

QuEST accepts five to six young adults to participate in the program each year. Fellows come from a variety of socio-economic, cultural, racial, and religious backgrounds, and share a commitment to service, social justice, and simplicity. The Fellows’ experience includes living in intentional community in a shared house, having regular household meetings and reaching agreements on household matters, sharing meals, sharing a household budget, enjoying social time together, and supporting each other throughout the year.

Read more about the experience of community living in this reflection by a recent Fellow.

Financial Support and Benefits

Fellows live together cooperatively in Quaker House, a six-bedroom 1910 home in the University District of Seattle. They commit to practicing simplicity during their year of service with QuEST. The program covers all living expenses, including rent, food, utilities, bus pass, and out-of-pocket health care expenses. Each agency also pays $150 a month in direct compensation to their Fellow for personal use. Upon completion of the program, Fellows receive a $1000 exit stipend. QuEST also has an Access Fund, which can provide additional financial support for Fellows who come from poor and working class backgrounds and those who have self-identified financial needs connected to equity, inclusion, and identity.

Sponsoring Quaker Community

QuEST is a ministry of University Friends Meeting (UFM) and South Seattle Friends Meeting (SSFM), unprogrammed meetings of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). These meetings gather in silent worship on Sundays with participants speaking as they are led by the Spirit. They seek to recognize that of God within every person and to live out testimonies like peace, equality, and integrity. You can learn more about Quakerism through the website of Friends General Conference and the videos of QuakerSpeak.

UFM and SSFM connect with QuEST Fellows through several events during the year, including a fall introduction potluck and a spring panel discussion. Members from these meetings serve as mentors to QuEST Fellows and as members of the QuEST Committee, which provides support and accountability to the director and the program. Fellows are welcome but not required to participate in worship, programming, and social activities of the sponsoring Quaker Meetings, and this participation is open to all regardless of faith.

Quaker House, the home of the QuEST Fellows, is owned by University Friends Meeting and located adjacent to its meetinghouse. In addition to QuEST, UFM has several other ministries, including travelers’ lodgings on the lower floor of Quaker House, partnerships with homeless organizations that provide services and shelter in meetinghouse basement, and community and spiritual support for both survivors of sexual abuse and past sexual offenders. UFM is a safer place for both children and adults because of the awareness and education of this final ministry, and QuEST welcomes applicants’ questions about it.

Nonprofit Placement

QuEST recruits and retains placement agencies that provide our Fellows a high quality experience in the nonprofit field. QuEST strives to maintain a balanced offering of agency placements including direct social service, program support, and organizing or policy work in a variety of fields. Each site provides a meaningful full-time position as well as appropriate training and supervision. Our placements for 2022-2023 Fellows are:

Read more about the experience of service in this reflection by a recent Fellow.

Training and Mentorship

QuEST sponsors two monthly training sessions called QuEST Time as well as fall and spring weekend retreats. Some QuEST Times are educational workshops on topics like financial literacy, self-defense, anti-racism, or class awareness, often led by an outside facilitator or community organization. Other QuEST Times give space and structure for the Fellows’ individual and group reflection, when they have opportunity to use writing prompts, mindfulness practices, visual art, and discussion to process and integrate their experiences. Retreats focus on community building.

The Program Director meets one-one-one with the Fellows several times a year. Each Fellow also has the opportunity to partner with a local Quaker or a former QuEST Fellow for a mentoring relationship. The mentor and mentee can explore Seattle together, discuss professional options, encourage each other’s spiritual growth, and/or form an intergenerational friendship.