The following article was written by Wendy Garf-Lipp, United Neighbors of Fall River's Executive Director for the Herald News Community Voices section.
Okay. I admit it. I am one of those. I have a peace sign decal on my car.
I know you are probably shaking your head and saying, “The Age of Aquarius is over — get with it. It is a new millennium.” I have probably had a peace sign on my car from the very first VW bug I drove sometime in the ’60s. I recently scraped the old one off the windshield and was putting a new one on when I was approached by two college students. They politely asked me if I had purchased that decal.
Thinking they wanted to purchase one for themselves, I effused about my purchase. They stopped me mid-effusion and stated, “You and the world would be a much better place if you took the money you spent on the decal and sent it to an organization promoting peace.”
I was speechless — something that rarely happens. The students moved on. I thought about the encounter and now wish that I had the opportunity to find those students and talk to them.
They are definitely correct in assuming that the $8 donation to a peace organization would be a more tangible contribution. However, after thinking about it, I decided that my peace sign has its importance as well. I did send a check to a peace organization and felt good that I was able to do that, but there is something to be said about having a visual reminder of peace on my car. I want people to look at the decal, recognize that it represents my wishes and desires to promote peace in my life and in the lives of those with whom I connect. I want people to know that I am working along with many others in our community to bring about peace and domestic tranquility to our lives. We are a society that responds to visual reminders — corporate logos, team logos, school logos. We sport them all and we instantly understand what they mean and what the logo wearer is trying to say about his/her connection to the organization. We display logos because we are proud, supportive, connected to the brand and, in my case with my peace sign, because we desire more than what we have.
Pursuing peace is something that we take seriously at United Neighbors. We are proud to be one of the 20 Fall River organizations that are working toward bringing peaceful solutions to our city. The Peace by Piece summit is our opportunity to engage the community in finding solutions to the problems of violence in our lives and in our city. We don’t want to just talk. We want to create action plans to make peace a priority in Fall River.
The summit will take place on Saturday, March 27 at Kuss Middle School from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The free conference is open to all in Greater Fall River. During the summit, participants will have the opportunity to look at the many types of violence that affect our lives: gang violence, domestic violence, cyber-bullying and cyber-violence, sexting, neighborhood violence, violence from drugs and alcohol, teen dating violence and our own sense of inner turmoil. Break-out sessions will explore all these topics, and the keynote speakers will be members of The Peaceful Coalition. All participants will be treated to a healthy, scrumptious lunch.
So back to visual reminders. All participating organizations, businesses, schools, faith based groups, neighborhood associations and service providers will have the opportunity to obtain a peace pole to create. Peace poles are handcrafted monuments erected the world over — including in Fall River, in front of St. Vincent’s — as an international symbol of peace. They are four-sided and approximately six feet tall. There are thousands of peace poles worldwide. Participants have the opportunity to write personal messages and thoughts of peace and harmony. These messages are encapsulated within the pole. On each side of the pole are four languages depicting the same, “May Peace Prevail on Earth” message. Their purpose is to spread that message and to act as a constant reminder for us to visualize and pray for world peace.
Peace begins in the hearts and minds of each individual. As we learn to honor each other, our environment and all creation on earth, the vision of global peace through sincere communication will gradually become a natural way of life. By igniting the flame of international friendship through the constant reminder, “May Peace Prevail on Earth,” we can stimulate a shift in attitudes in all areas of planetary work — political, economical, environmental and social.
The Peace Pole Project is a non-profit, grassroots movement. We invite you to join in the worldwide effort to bring this powerful message of peace to the people of all lands. Mayor Will Flanagan will plant a peace pole prior to the Peace by Piece Summit at Government Center. Then, in the spring, Flanagan will designate a peace pole planting day when all of us will be able to plant our peace poles throughout the city using this visual reminder that we are working together to pursue peace.
Join us in our project and at the Peace by Piece Summit. Go to MyFallRiver.org and register for the conference and for more information or call United Neighbors at 508-324-7900.
I’m not sure there is anything more important than peace. I also am not sure we think about that very often. If prayer ever works, if artistic expression ever has an effect, if there ever is value in building a monument to anything, it seems to me that one ought to be built for peace.
