Practicing Peace

This fall at Perry School, the new theme is “Practicing Peace”. So, how do we practice peace in our daily lives? We practice peace every day in the peace room, but one story sticks out. One afternoon, two of the peacemakers in the room got into a fight and it did not seem that either one was going to give in. However, after identifying the problem, hearing both sides perspectives and ultimately apologizing, both sides were back to being friends again. When we are willing to stop and listen to each other, it becomes much easier to forgive.

Garden at Perry in full swing!

We've started our garden again at Perry! The kids love to get outside and get their hands in the dirt. We've already planted radishes, tomatoes, beans, peas, squash, carrots, spinach, and broccoli! Planting has reminded us where our food comes from, and we'll have fresh and healthy food throughout the summer. It's also nice to have a project that we can return to on a regular basis. Some of the boys have been working with Mr. Jerry to paint new boards for the perimeter of the garden, which will look beautiful once they're done. We've been talking a lot about what it means to keep Mother Earth peaceful and take care of all of her plants!

Capitol Area Association for Peace Studies Conference

This past Saturday, volunteers Anna, Kendra and Rachel attended and presented at the 24th Annual Capital Area Association for Peace Studies (CAAPS). One of the highlights was seeing Daryn Cambridge, the director of Knowledge and Digital Studies at the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict and professor at American University give his keynote address at the conference. He talked about his experience at various peace organizations and different and unique strategies on how to approach peaceful change. One of the most interesting suggestions Cambridge had for lasting peace was the use of humor to make a point. After this we had the chance to view and discuss DC area student’s projects and ideas on peace. For our presentation, we talked about why LFFP is unique among a sea of other after school programs because of its unique emphasis on peace. We also demonstrated LFFP traditions like the peace pledge and check in while we shared our philosophy on teaching peace at an early age. Overall, the conference was a lot of fun and a great way to get LFFP’s name out to a community of students concerned with peace.

2011 Summer Camps Announced

LFFP is excited to release the 2011 Summer Peace Camp schedule. This year, thanks to Holy Trinity Catholic Church, MJ and Jerry Park are taking the Peace Train global, with a week long camp to be held in El Salvador. They will continue their long standing partnerships with camps at UUCA, Perry Center, Mount Rainier and for the second year are elated to work with TASSC and hold a peace camp in Cheverly (MD).

If you are interested in having LFFP host a camp or workshop at your location, or provide training materials please contact us at mjpeace@gmail.com. See below for the peace camps already scheduled for the summer including three with open enrollment.

Peace and conflict resolution is on the rise, help us spread the germ of peace!

For registration information please email tf.park@gmail.com

Week of	Location
June 20th	TASSC
June 27th	UUCA(VA) Perry Center (DC) camp begins
July 25th	Cheverly(MD) Peace Camp- Open
August 1st	Peace Leaders in Mt. Rainier(MD)- Open Perry Center(DC) camp concludes
August 8th	Mt. Rainier (MD) Peace Camp- Open
August 15th	Peace Camp in El Salvador

Georgetown's TeachUNICEF visits Perry

Georgetown's TeachUNICEF Committee recently visited the Peace Room at the Perry School. Five committee members gave a lesson on poverty, including a story about Himal, a boy from Nepal who was living in poverty and who had to give up school in order to work. Here are some of the volunteers' reflections on their time in the Peace Room:

Ally: I was able to make some progress with the little girl I was working with when we talke

d about and drew pictures of the differences between rich and poor.

Charlotte: My experience reminded me how much young children deserve attention...To me, it seemed like our mere presence at their school demonstrated to them how much we care. I think we can help make a big difference in their lives.

Katie: I first had a hard time trying to engage the student to our discussion about Himal and Nepal, but she got excited about the drawing activity, and eventually showed interest in our activity. I hope she understood a little more about poverty, children, and life in Nepal.

Berk: I really liked the idea of a “Peace room” in which children decide on their rules, have material to express themselves, be reminded of the importance of international peace, and welcome guests like us.

Lotus: One of the children was completely fascinated by percentages, what they mean, and how to calculate them. These percentages dealt with the proportion of children in the world who lack certain resources, such as access to clean water and adequate nutrition. I think the girl I was working with was better able to grasp the magnitude of these deprivations through working with actual numbers. It was a joy to teach and interact with the children at the Perry School!

Valentine's Day Party

On the Sunday before Valentine’s Day, members from all across the Perry Community came together to celebrate peace, love and creativity. Artist Thalia Doukas taught a great seminar to students on how to make woven valentines out of two pieces of paper. With the help of GWU volunteers Diksha, Mignotae and Rachel, the younger kids decorated their Valentines with stickers, and peace themed cutouts. After a healthy meal, the peace kids put on a spontaneous talent show on the Peace Room stage to express their creativity. We then sang songs together with Rachel playing the guitar. The Valentines Day Party was a great way for new members of the Perry Community to meet each other and for everyone to show their creativity in a peaceful way.

Family Night

This past Thursday, the Perry community gathered for our monthly Family Night. The main focus of the night was to teach families ways to keep their bodies and their minds healthy for the New Year. To show how families could stay healthy at home, everyone participated in a beginners yoga class to learn about ways to calm the mind and increase flexibility in a low impact way. As a community partner at Perry School, Little Friends For Peace is working at peace starting with oneself and yoga is the perfect outlet for this. It is important to have peace in yourself before you can share peace with others. After yoga, we joined together for a balanced meal of pasta, salad, fruit and vegetables. The night was a lot of fun, and families are now equipped with the tools to continue living a healthy and peaceful lifestyle.