Welcome

Dear [[First_Name]],

Next week, we launch our first annual donor drive, Invest in Peace. It’s an incredible opportunity to share something that seems in rare supply: Hope.

Think about it. Every time we ask someone to donate, we share our passion for the Department of Peace and the possibility it embodies. We invite them into the vision of a world in which peace and nonviolence are organizing principles of society.

Riding the wave from Mother’s Day’s Peace of the Pie and Father’s Day’s letters to the editor, Invest in Peace starts on July 3rd. Indeed our founders’ spirits are with us, for few are the times in human history when a vision is so transformative it evokes a willingness to, "mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred honor," as did the signers of the Declaration of Independence.

This July 4th, remember too, that the Declaration was just a vision. It took years to manifest. Its form echoes in the Constitution, created, as its preamble declares, "in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity…"

We are that "posterity." As we too articulate a vision and work to bring it into form, we know there is nothing more patriotic than peace. What a unique and powerful privilege we have to share this vision with others, and to let them help make it happen.

In gratitude,

Wendy Greene
Managing Director
The Peace Alliance

DC Desk Report

Join me in welcoming two new volunteers to the DC office - Susan Owen and Mark Goldin. Both will support you and the campaign in various ways, and I’m so happy to have their presence and positive outlooks! Also, we have Julia Simon-Mishel, our Student Peace Alliance National Operations Director, interning here this summer. Our office is small but bustling!

Kathy and Julia in DC Office

Julia and I hosted a Father's Day open house, where Julia facilitated a letter-to-the-editor workshop. Since we are close to Maryland and Virginia, our MD and VA State Coordinators, Ted Nunn and Christine Johnson, were present as well as volunteers from both states. A spontaneous meeting of Maryland volunteers even took place in one area of the office suites we are part of! I love that we seize every opportunity to organize and plan!

Kid's Art Wall

The highlight was the presence of youth, who drew pictures of peace and created their own art wall. Photos were taken by our official youth photographer, Jared Nunn. Just looking at their photos and artwork every day provides joy and hope. I want to continue these open houses quarterly and continue to include youth in all that we do. Also, since my arrival May 1, we have had volunteers drop in who are visiting DC. It is so wonderful to have a presence in our nation’s capital and have a place for you to come and visit. I hope to see more of you in the months that come. Kathy Kidd National Field Director

National Campaigns

Father's Day LTE Report

For Father’s Day this year, the Student Peace Alliance led a nationwide campaign calling for a national dialogue to address the root causes of violence and asking fathers and other Department of Peace supporters to write letters to the editors of local newspapers in an effort to educate communities about the Department of Peace. For a sampling of letters published click here, and see below for New York State Co-coordinator Kevin Fagan’s, which appeared June 18 in the New York Daily News.

Invest in Peace: Monthly Donor Campaign

Are you a monthly donor to the Department of Peace campaign? A simple question, yet how many of us ask this of others? Do your family and friends know the depth of your commitment to this legislation? Might they like to join you and feel good about taking concrete action to sustain the movement for a culture of peace? Are you able to get past the word "peace" in talking to them?

If you answered "yes" to most of these questions, then you are ready to reach out and expand your circle of influence. If you answered "no," then you have an opportunity to increase your courage and skills.

The Invest in Peace donor campaign is designed to support you in reaching out to your circle of friends, family and volunteers. In addition to fundraising, you’ll get to share your passion and commitment for this legislation and feel comfortable discussing money and peace.

We’re asking everyone to consider investing in peace, just as we are asking our government to. Can you give 1% of your net monthly income? Or give $15 per month or whatever your perfect amount is. Can you ask others to do the same? Or are you willing to learn?

We’ll launch Invest in Peace on our July 3 All Call. During the 6-week campaign, we’ll have weekly conference calls to support you. We’ll celebrate our shared success on the final call, August 15.

For more information about this fun and personal growth opportunity and the opportunity to further deepen the financial sustainability of the campaign, read our step-by-step guide and other information for the Invest in Peace campaign, which will be available on our website beginning July 3. Also, join our weekly calls.

Walk for Peace During Culture of Peace Month

September is International Culture of Peace Month, with literally thousands of pro-peace activities all around the world.  In our campaign plans are underway for our second annual Walk for Peace walkathons on September 15, the Saturday between Patriot Day (9/11) and the International Day of Peace (9/21). Districts across the nation are already creating their own walks. It’s a fun, creative, dynamic way to raise money and awareness about the Department of Peace. Updated resources and planning tools will be on the web shortly. In the meantime, check out last year’s information.

• Welcome
• DC Desk Report
• National Action Campaigns
• Father's Day LTE Report
• Invest in Peace Campaign
• Walk for Peace and More During Culture of Peace Month
• Actions from Capitol Hill
• Support Continues to Grow!
• Grassroots Spotlight: "Kids for Peace"
• Campus Corner: Student Peace Alliance First Annual Conference
• Media Update
• Grassroots Conference Calls in July
• Quote of the Month
• Campaign Materials and Merchandise
• Supporting the Peace Alliance
• Get Active in Your Community!
  

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Choose Peace

New Yorkers for a Department of Peace (NYDOP) is coordinating Choose Peace, a follow-up to last year’s commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Satyagraha, Gandhi’s commitment to nonviolence.

Choose Peace begins with a musical event in New York City the weekend before September 11, 2007, and continues with a Global Peace Film Fest (in the form of house parties - everyone can participate), concluding on the International Day of Peace. For more information, click here.

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Actions from
Capitol Hill

Congressional Co-Sponsors. Rep. Fortney Pete Stark [CA-13] on June 13 joined the coterie of congressional co-sponsors of HR 808! Congressman Stark was a co-sponsor in the 109th Congress, and we welcome him again in the 110th. Please, especially if you are in his district, call his office at 202-225-5065 and thank him for his support. For a complete list of the 67 co-sponsors to date, click here.

Congressional District Work Period. Representatives and Senators will be home for the July 4th holiday July 2-5. This is an opportunity to meet in their offices or attend public appearances and ask them about their support of the Department of Peace. If your rep is already a co-sponsor, ask him or her to help recruit others and to speak to it on the floor of the House and in public appearances. If not yet a co-sponsor, ask him or her to sign on. If a member (or chair!) of one of the committees HR 808 has been referred to (Foreign Affairs, Education and Labor, Government Oversight and Reform, and Judiciary), ask him or her to have the bill heard in committee. For senators, ask them to submit a bill in the Senate.

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Support
Continues to Grow!

City Council Endorsements. The City of West Hollywood, California, on May 21 became the 21st city or county to endorse the legislation to establish a cabinet-level Department of Peace. And on June 20, Arcata, California, became the 22nd. Many thanks to Maggi Koren and Jerilyn Stapleton, team leaders for CA Congressional Districts 1 and 28, and their teams for these fantastic accomplishments!

Native American Endorsement. In Michigan, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Tribal Council on May 20 passed a resolution to support the creation of a U.S. Department of Peace and Nonviolence. This is the first Native American tribal council that we know of to officially endorse the legislation. See the news story in the Petoskey News-Review.

For a complete list of the 23 cities, counties, and, now, tribal councils who have endorsed the Department of Peace and Nonviolence, and to find out how you can do likewise in your city, click here.

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Campus Corner:
Student Peace Alliance
First Annual Conference

Save the date! The Student Peace Alliance will hold its first annual National Conference on October 19th-21st at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts.

The conference will bring together student leaders from around the country to develop their peacebuilding and organizing skills while educating themselves about various programs that support nonviolence. Leaders in conflict resolution education, peace education, nonviolent communication, and more will share their expertise.

The conference will open Friday afternoon with a Keynote Speech by Arun Gandhi, grandson of Mohandas K. Gandhi and co-founder of the M.K. Gandhi Institute of Nonviolence.

Noted international speakers, including Michael Shank and David Hartsough, will present. Several members of Congress have been invited to address the students on Saturday evening during a special evening program.

Registration for the conference will open soon. Please contact Julia at spa.pr@thepeacealliance.org with any questions. For more information about the Student Peace Alliance, click here.

Student Peace Alliance
National Student Campaign for a U.S. Department of Peace
www.studentpeacealliance.org

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Quote of the Month

If you have a favorite quotable from a notable about peace or evocative of what peace means, we will be happy to consider it for this space. Please send to mike@thepeacealliance.org.

Japan Summit

The Global Alliance for Ministries and Departments of Peace is holding its Third Global Summit for Ministries and Departments of Peace, September 21-26 in Kisarazu and Tokyo, Japan. The Peace Alliance will be sending a delegation, and groups from 25 or more countries are expected to attend.

Post-Summit outreach events are scheduled for Kyoto, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Okinawa, concluding on October 2, the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi and the recently declared UN International Day of Nonviolence. The program will include campaign updates from attending countries, training sessions, discussions about the role of ministries and departments of peace, and strategic planning for moving the Global Alliance forward.

Many delegations are coming from lower income countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America and need assistance funding their participation in this historic event. Donations to the Peace Alliance will help provide scholarships to ensure diverse perspectives on peace are represented at the Summit.

For reports of the first two Summits, in London and Victoria, click here.

Grassroots Spotlight: "Kids for Peace" When it comes to learning and practicing peacebuilding, sooner is better. The same goes for responsible civic engagement. In San Diego, California, Kids for Peace, a new nonprofit inspired by the Department of Peace Campaign, helps young people do that and more. According Jill McManigal, co-founder of Kids for Peace with high school student and fellow Department of Peace Campaign volunteer Danielle Gram, the key to working with youth is variety. "Kids have lots of diverse interests and ways of expressing their gifts," said Jill. "It’s important to provide a potpourri of activities so they have a platform to choose from." The Department of Peace Campaign is sprinkled throughout the Kids for Peace activities as a way to educate the youth and those they serve. "We recently did a play called 'Peace through Children's Eyes,'" Jill noted. "It provided a great opportunity to speak about peace and how the Department of Peace is a way to help us have what we want." As a community group of children working together to create a culture of peace both locally and globally, Kids for Peace is anchoring the spirit of youth. "Our vision is bringing peace to the world, with children leading the way," Jill said. They meet monthly, have many activities planned throughout the year, and welcome all ages, from babies to teens.	"We do a lot of service work because it just feels good, and kids like to give in that way," Jill said. "And that service helps create a Department of Peace." For example, while attending a recent public forum, Jill talked with a staffer from her Republican Congressman’s office. "Kids for Peace had sent valentines to all the aides, thanking them for their service," she explained. The two talked about that action and about world events. Jill asked what was the biggest challenge they were facing in their office and learned they were struggling to support the many wounded Iraq veterans coming to San Diego for care, many of whom are suffering from loss of limbs and have no family in town. To the staffer’s surprise, Jill said Kids for Peace could visit the wounded vets. "I told him that was what the bill was all about," Jill continued. "He looked at me and said, "I think I need to go read this bill.’" Jill added, "It really matters to them that we’re helping them solve a problem in the community."  She also noted that it might not have happened without the inspiration of Kids for Peace, saying, "The sweetness and softness of children helps them get over the cynicism that’s in the world." Jill and Danielle hope the vision of Kids for Peace will spread, and offer their support to anyone wanting to follow the Kids for Peace model. "We have a national vision of Kids for Peace groups in all states, and in every city," said Jill. For more information, contact Jill at info@kidsforpeaceusa.org or call (760) 730-3320, or visit www.kidsforpeaceusa.org.
Do you have a local event or action you'd like us to highlight?  Write a 500-word story and send it to us! We'll consider it for inclusion in our monthly E-newsletter and on our website. Stories must be received by the second Friday of the month. All stories are subject to editing for length and clarity. Be sure to include a picture and your name and contact information. Send to mike@thepeacealliance.org.
Media Update We have new numbers since our last Media Update, and I am eager to tell you the good news. Again, if you see any errors, please feel free to let me know at pattyk@thepeacealliance.org.  I. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Goal for 2007:  150 published We more than doubled our number of published LTE’s to 54! This is due to two things: better reporting of letters that have been published and the recent LTE campaign lead by the Student Peace Alliance. Letters have been published in 24 states (up from 18), with a breakdown as follows: AZ – 1 CA – 3 CT - 4 FL – 2 ID – 1 IL – 1 IA – 1 KS – 3 MA – 2 MD – 4 ME – 3 MT - 2 NC – 2 MI – 3 NH - 1 NV – 1 NY – 3 OH – 2 OR - 7 PA - 1 SC – 1 SD - 1 TX - 3 WA - 1 Yoga Journal - 1 Many of you have started doing LTE parties that are not only productive but fun as well. Others have taken the same letter and sent it to several different (small) newspapers with success. Others keep trying to land a large newspaper. Whatever your approach, please know that your efforts are not only appreciated, but they are paying off. We are over a third of the way to our goal of 150 published LTE’s - keep on writing! II. RADIO INTERVIEWS: Goal for 2007:  50 radio interviews; 1 show on NPR We’ve moved up to 26 radio interviews or shows on the Department of Peace legislation! We’re over half of the way to our goal! Great work to all. III. ARTICLES: Goal for 2007: Placement of 2 op-eds by congressional supporters; op-eds by supporters; articles in major papers, including the NY Times and Washington Post; and generate as many positive articles as possible. A. OP-EDS - OP-EDS – No change; we’re still at one op-ed (by Representative Jim McDermott (D-WA-7th) published in the Seattle Times). We are looking for another co-sponsor to step up to the plate. Please consider approaching co-sponsors in your state to see if they would be willing to write an op-ed on HR 808. We just need one more to meet this goal! If you want help strategizing, please contact me.	We are aware of three more published op-eds by supporters: • Glenn Norris – The Edmund Sun, Oklahoma, written 2/07 • The Newport Times, Oregon (follow up to Claire McGee’s op-ed of 2/07), written 3/10/07 • The News Leader, Missouri, written 5/05/07 That brings us to six for the year. If you know who wrote the Newport Times or The News Leader articles, please let me know so we can give them a public nod. If you’re interested in writing one and want assistance, just contact me B. ARTICLES – We're at 56, including 12 online articles and blog entries (The Nation, Harpers, NewsBlaze, Alternet, etc.). Here’s a breakdown: AZ – 1 CA – 2 CO – 1 CT – 1 IA – 1 ID – 1 IL – 2 KS – 1 MA – 6 MI – 5 MN – 1 MO – 1 NH – 3 NJ – 1 NY - 2 OH - 2 OR - 5 PA - 1 UT - 1 VT - 3 WA - 3 IV – NEW! TELEVISION INTERVIEWS!: We’ve had three television interviews on the Department of Peace legislation Marianne Perez was on Brian Lehrer Live on CUNY-TV (April); Patty Kuderer was on live on KOMO 4 News (May); and a local Oregon station recently did a short piece on legislation after receiving a state press release (June). Finally, here’s my plea for media coordinators. We are definitely moving at a faster rate than last year, and media coordinators will make a huge difference in our ability to rapidly respond to the media. You are all doing terrific work – thanks for helping to put this legislation and the campaign in the news! Patty Kuderer National Director of Communications email: pattyk@thepeacealliance.org Get Active in your Community! click here
Grassroots Conference Calls Nonviolent Communications Thursday, June 28 These calls are intended to support you in your communication challenges with regards to your work, using the methods of Nonviolent Communication (NVC) to enhance the effectiveness of the Dept. of Peace campaign. Times for all calls: 6:00 PM Pacific/ 9:00 PM Eastern Call In Number for all calls: (605) 772-3001 access code: 470821# Monthly All-Call Tuesday, July 3 Invest in Peace! As a community, we know that investing in peace works! This month we'll explore the difference we can make in shifting the financial conversation around peace and peacebuilding. We'll launch our first annual donor drive, "Invest in Peace" and learn how to turn our passion into financial sustainability. Forget everything you ever thought you knew about fundraising, and step into a whole new relationship with money. Please join us for this inspiring hour! FUNdraising and Events Tuesday July 17 Please join us for our monthly Event/FUNdraising conference call. All are welcome. During the call we brainstorm creative fundraising and event ideas, and answer questions about fundraising protocol and how fundraising relates to our local and national organizations. Those who have hosted events are asked to share their experience and give feedback to others. Our team is looking forward to providing tips on fundraising and supporting your local and national event plans. Hope you can join us.

The Peace Alliance
1730 Rhode Island Avenue NW, Suite 712 | Washington, DC 20036 | Tel 202-296-1187
www.ThePeaceAlliance.org

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