Governance at BHFH

A Quaker center in downtown Boston — residential community, place of worship, and hub for learning and action.

Who We Are

Beacon Hill Friends House is a residential intentional community, a home for Beacon Hill Friends Meeting, and a center for Quaker learning and public engagement.


Our mission is to embody the Quaker principles of faith, simplicity, integrity, community, and social responsibility in order to nurture and call forth the Light in all of us.


We live that mission daily — through shared meals, worship, conversation across difference, cooperative living, and public programming rooted in reflection and action.


Beacon Hill Friends House exists to cultivate depth, community across difference, and public faithfulness in a time that urgently needs all three.

Diagram showing Decision Domains and Circles of Responsibility, mapping governance relationships between boards and staff.

Where We Are

Beacon Hill Friends House is located at 6 & 8 Chestnut Street, Boston, Massachusetts, in the historic Beacon Hill neighborhood.


We sit just steps from the Massachusetts State House and within walking distance of the Boston Common, downtown Boston, and public transit.


Our location matters. We are rooted in a residential neighborhood and positioned near the center of civic life — a place where contemplation and public engagement meet.

Land Acknowledgement

Beacon Hill Friends House acknowledges that the land our building occupies has been a site of human life and stewardship for more than 13,000 years. We honor the Massachusett and Pawtucket peoples whose ancestral lands we live and work on, along with the Wampanoag and Nipmuc peoples of this region.


We recognize that acknowledgment alone is insufficient and commit to continued learning and solidarity.

Our History

A Building Two Centuries Old.

Nearly Seventy Years of Intentional Community.

Designed by architect Charles Bulfinch and completed in 1805, our building at 6 & 8 Chestnut Street began as two private homes as one of the early houses on Chestnut Street, right off the Boston Common. The buildings were combined in 1921 to become a grand estate, complete with a ballroom with 18-foot ceilings. In 1957, the property was gifted to a newly formed Quaker nonprofit and became Beacon Hill Friends House.


For nearly seventy years, BHFH has maintained a Quaker presence in the heart of Boston — offering hospitality to travelers, nurturing a residential community, hosting worship, and serving as a launching pad for social justice work.


The building carries two centuries of history. The community inside it is always becoming.

What We Do

A group of people pose for a photo in a brightly lit, arched room. Some smile and wave at the camera while holding a dog.

Residential Community

A multigenerational intentional community grounded in Quaker practice. Residents share responsibility for cooking, governance, and care while discerning their next steps.

A diverse group of people gather in a well-lit room with patterned rugs for an informal meeting around tables and chairs.

Worship & Spiritual Life

Home to Beacon Hill Friends Meeting and regular Quaker worship, spiritual formation, and dialogue.

People sit in wooden pews in a room, watching two individuals lead a presentation in front of a whiteboard.

Public Programs & Learning

Lectures, workshops, retreats, and conversations exploring faith, justice, leadership, and nonviolence.

An audience sits in wooden chairs in a hall with tall, arched windows, watching a musical performance on a small stage.

Hospitality & Gathering Space

Guest rooms and meeting space for individuals and organizations aligned with our mission.

Our Staff

Meet the team that runs BHFH
A person with long brown hair smiles with arms crossed in front of a yellow sign reading
A person with a rainbow teardrop earring sips a white drink through a straw in a booth setting.
A person wearing a cap and a blue button-down shirt sits in a desert landscape under a blue sky.
A smiling person wearing glasses and a teal shirt, standing in front of a colorful wall map of the ocean floor.

How We Are Organized

Beacon Hill Friends House is an independent Quaker nonprofit organization.


Our Corporation and Board of Managers guide the long-term vision and strategic direction of the House. The Board includes at-large members, representatives connected to Quaker meetings, and resident representatives, and works through committees focused on building stewardship, finance, development, governance, personnel, and program strategy.


Day-to-day operations are led by the Executive Director and staff in partnership with residents, reflecting our commitment to shared responsibility and discernment.

Meet Our Board

A smiling person with grey hair wearing a patterned shawl in front of a white metal grate with green ivy leaves.
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Smiling woman with wavy gray hair and a light green shirt, positioned outdoors near a body of water and a car.
A person with glasses smiles while standing in front of a river and a building on an overcast day.
A person with long brown hair stands with arms crossed, smiling in front of a yellow sign that says
A man with short dark hair and clear-framed glasses, wearing a dark blazer over a grey shirt against a blue background.
A smiling person with a shaved head and a gold hoop earring against a blurred, yellow-green foliage background.
A smiling person with layered, shoulder-length brown hair featuring prominent blonde highlights, wearing a beige top.
A smiling person with glasses and a beard, wearing a dark blue kimono-style jacket, poses with arms crossed against white.
A person wearing glasses, a grey button-down shirt, a blue tie, and a textured blazer, standing outdoors.
A person with long hair and glasses smiles in an office setting with a poster in the background.
A headshot of a person smiling, wearing a light tan blazer, a striped shirt, and a patterned tie against a black background.
Portrait of a man with a gray beard wearing a suit and tie, smiling against a soft, blurred background of water.
A smiling person with long dark hair and dark-rimmed glasses, wearing a patterned top, framed in a circle.
Head-and-shoulders portrait of a person with gray hair, wearing a dark blue shirt against a light blue background.
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