Each year, New Garden Friends School selects one of the five core Quaker testimonies—Simplicity, Peace, Integrity, Community, Equality, and Stewardship—to explore more deeply throughout the academic year. For the 2026–2027 school year, the Quaker Life Committee chose Stewardship as the testimony for our community to focus on and put into practice.

But what is a testimony?

As Jonathan Dale explains in Faith Into Action:

“A testimony is different from a secular value. The word testimony is used by Quakers to describe a witness to the living truth within the human heart as it is acted out in everyday life … Testimony is a way of living, not a creed. It is not a form of words, but a mode of life based on the realization that there is that of God in everybody, that all human beings are equal, that all life is interconnected.”

Recently, NGFS faculty spent time reflecting on stewardship and what it means for our school community. We asked ourselves: How can we improve the care we give to the resources entrusted to us—including the tangible and intangible resources of our school community, those of our larger community, and the air, water, and soil on which all life depends?

Friends strive to use their gifts wisely, understanding that gifts come in many forms. They include our talents and possessions, as well as the natural environment we share. To Friends, good stewardship means caring for what has been entrusted to us, not only for our own benefit but also for the well-being of others and future generations. As Jonas Salk said, “Our greatest responsibility is to be good ancestors.”

At NGFS, we teach students to be stewards of the environment. From TerraCycle recycling initiatives to conversations about consumption and waste, to service-learning groups that give back to the local community, stewardship is deeply rooted in the NGFS educational experience.

But stewardship extends beyond caring for the environment. We also encourage students to consider how they can be stewards of themselves and one another. What gifts do you possess that can help make the world a better place? How can you care for yourself and those around you? How can you help others recognize and share their own gifts?

At the heart of NGFS is the belief that every individual has unique gifts to share with the world. Sometimes, those gifts simply need the right environment, encouragement, and opportunity to be discovered. Through our commitment to Quaker values, we strive to help each student recognize their gifts, nurture their potential, and use their abilities to make a meaningful difference in the world.