SEEDS OF PEACE
BULLETIN
Empowering Children of War to Break the Cycles of Violence With the Seeds of Peace International Camp opening in less than one month, planning is now in high-gear as we get ready to welcome hundreds of teens to our facility in Maine. Take a look below to learn about our other exciting news.
IN NEW YORK Seeds of Peace would like to thank the 2,500 supporters who came to our annual Concert for Peace in the Middle East on April 28th at Lincoln Center. We were fortunate to have entertainment from Tony-Award winners Bebe Neuwirth (Chicago) and Brian Stokes Mitchell (Man of La Mancha), Marc Kudisch (Thoroughly Modern Millie), as well as performers from Movin’ Out and La Bohème. The event honored King Abdullah II and Queen Rania AlAbdullah of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan as well as Ambassador Thomas J. Pickering and the late Robert G. Lawrence. Made public on April 28th was the extraordinary news that Seeds of Peace will add two former US Presidents to its Advisory Board: George Herbert Walker Bush and William Jefferson Clinton. Seeds of Peace is also pleased to announce its acceptance in the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC), the annual fund-raising drive conducted by federal employees and military personnel. In April, Seeds of Peace held a fourday media conference with 25 alumni that included a panel discussion with international journalists as well as field activities in television, radio, press, photojournalism and the Internet. This workshop was held in anticipation of an upcoming major conference entitled “Breaking News, Making Headlines: The Role of Media in Conflict” planned for October 10-16, 2003. Thanks to the Seeds of Peace Education Program, almost 100 Seeds alumni are
attending schools and universities in the US including Manhattanville, Dartmouth, Smith, and Lehigh. And, our “Seeds Scholars” are already doing impressive work after graduating including one who is in the Masters of Foreign Service program at Georgetown University and another who is a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for Peace and has recently had his first article published in Foreign Policy magazine.
IN MAINE Seeds of Peace International Camp will commence its 11th summer in June with the participation of 450 youth over the course of three summer sessions. We are thrilled to welcome delegations from the Middle East, including Palestinians from throughout the West Bank. Seeds of Peace will also host youth from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Cyprus, the Balkans and the US. After a very competitive process, counselors and facilitators have been hired from around the world, all of whom possess great skills and desire to be a part of the Seeds of Peace team. Our staff is looking forward to re-opening the facility on Pleasant Lake and resuming coexistence sessions, athletic competitions, color games, NBA Day and much more. The Seeds will travel to Washington DC this summer for receptions at the White House, State Department, and Capital Hill.
IN JERUSALEM Despite the violence and turmoil in the region, Seeds of Peace has continued to bring our alumni together through its Center for Coexistence in Jerusalem. In April, Seeds of Peace held a remarkable event in Nir Ha-Emek near Afula, where 80 Israeli and Palestinian youngsters participated in a marathon of coexistence dialogue. In addition, the Center recently launched a graduate program, targeting the oldest group of alumni from
SPRING 2003 ages 18-23. Through this program, 25 Israeli and Palestinian graduates, now young adults during or after military service and/or university studies, are meeting every week for an intensive course on mediation led by Israeli and Palestinian professionals. The Center has also recently launched a new program for parents. This program was developed so that parents can understand and support their children in Seeds-related activities and also have an opportunity to go through a process of shared experience, selfawareness and coexistence themselves. The first meeting took place in May and an upcoming meeting is already planned. In honor of Center staff Ned Lazarus’ birthday, over 150 Israeli and Palestinian alumni and their families came together at the Center for the birthday celebration. Said Ned about this extraordinary day: “I was in a sea of people -- faces of people I love from the seven years I’ve spent here. They were all there. Seeds from every year from 1993 through 2002, from nearly every city in the West Bank and Israel. I couldn’t believe my eyes. My bunk from 1998, Bunk 15 -- who have literally since then become soldiers or been blindfolded and detained by soldiers -- came into the room together, singing, chanting and cheering our bunk’s signature tune from their summer together. “My birthday was a side event there. What really happened was a reunion of Seeds who had been separated for years and embittered by experience. Every one of them, no matter how awkward their first words to each other were after months of silence -- every one of them confirmed what we all hoped and believed during these dark times -- that the “Seed” is still alive in their hearts. They still feel love for each other, for us, for their memories and experiences, after everything they have endured.”
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