July 9, 2022 Report to Subud USA

The Subud USA board asked me to create a video for my July 9 report and you can view it below. I’ve also put in my notes. I am grateful to be the Chair of SICA-USA and we DO NEED MORE PEOPLE willing to send us content. Don’t be shy!

SICA-USA is the cultural wing of Subud USA and an independent non-profit 501(c)(3) organization which “fosters true human culture for and from all of mankind in all manner of human endeavor, focusing on local culture in a global community.”

We had our first Board Retreat in four years at CoPlay in Muncie, Indiana and despite having one board member resign 6 days before the retreat and our National Helper liaison back out due to health issues 5 days before the retreat, we managed to meet and come up with a plan of action for the next 2+ years.

We’re grateful to Helena Mertens, who agreed to our last minute request for a helper “with delight” and she was remarkable, as was her movement workshop, which she received and developed via her Latihan.

We are working to have the first in-person Cultural Conversation event, somewhere in California in the Fall. Is Subud Culture a thing? What is the difference between Subud culture and culture in general?  As Subud members, do we benefit from having a unique lens through which to view and understand culture? These are among the questions at the core of the Cultural Conversation.

Our retreat was the first Subud event at Susannah Rosenthal’s venue CoPlay, but hopefully not the last. The Midwest Regional Congress started as the SICA-USA retreat was ending. It will be Susannah’s last meeting as a SICA Board Member as she has to focus on CoPlay and we’d be open to collaborating with her in the future. Our frugal board made the retreat happen with $1,712 dollars. (This was before airfares went through the roof, no pun intended.)

We have brought on former SICA-USA Chair Rosana Schutte as a board member and she is going to help with communications, including blog posts. Our blog continues to have content, but we’d love reports from all over the Subud world, so send us material.

Lawrence Pevec is now Vice-Chair.

Sanderson Morgan is the Treasurer and is getting HUGE help from Alexandra terHorst and others to learn how to use Quick Books Online Plus. We also have installed Little Green Light as a CRM software system.

Kristiana Kalab is our Secretary.

Yours in Subud Culture,

Paul