National Peace Essay Contest Week '98

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The National Peace Essay Contest Awards Banquet Program Reception Welcoming Remarks Pamela Aall, Director, Education and Training Program Pamela Aall W. Scott Thompson, Member, Board of Directors W. Scott Thompson Introductory Remarks Dr. Richard H. Solomon, President Richard H. Solomon Keynote Remarks The Honorable Stephen Solarz Stephen Solarz Student Comments Keith Proctor, Washington Sarah DeBergalis, Puerto Rico Keith and Sarah were selected by the students to express their thanks and offer brief comments on their experiences in Washington DC. Below are some of their comments: "Our Cambodian simulation was fantastic! It was a great learning experience. We had to apply the abstract to practical reality. We ran into the problems that negotiators face, such as private political agendas. We had to consider the issues of unity, stability, and justice, and try to create from those vague guiding points a solution that would satisfy all of us." "One thing that has been mentioned repeatedly in our briefings with State Department, Congress and others -- is that our discussions about Cambodian war crimes and Cambodia's future stability are really on the cutting edge of the problem. No one knows what's going to happen or how the situation in Cambodia will evolve. And that's possibly what we liked most about the simulation. No one could come in and tell us we were wrong." Sarah DeBergalis and Keith Proctor "The other evening it occurred to me that last Saturday none of us knew each other. And yet now, a few days later, we're long term friends. There are people here who will stay in contact for the rest of their lives based only on the few days we spent together. It reminds of this quote: 'there's not a word yet for old friends who have just met' … I think I heard that on the Muppets or something." "You know, Tolstoy, who was probably as great a thinker as any of the Muppets, believed that it is the masses rather than the heroic individual who creates history. That the masses have fashioned the world we live in and individual performances are in vain. Maybe he's right, I don't know. But what I do know is that the masses didn't harness the power of the atom, or build the cotton gin or the printing press. We are individuals and it is our achievements that create progression for the rest of mankind. It is our independent thinking that can forge a path of peace for the rest of civilization. Today is a celebration of our individuality, for it was individual talents that brought us here. And it is individual talents that will guide us as we become future caretakers for the planet. We have a lot to be proud of and we must never lose sight of our gifts or our responsibilities." "Thank you!" Presentation of First-Place Certificates & National Awards Dr. Richard H. Solomon Tim Shenk receives the First Place Award from Richard H. Solomon National Winners l to r: Tim Shenk (VA), Ting Chen (NJ), Julie Ellen Bales (TN), Frank McGovern (ID)