Started with pinwheels, INSPIRED and celebrated by SIX BILLION PATHS TO PEACE T-shirts and empowered by PEACE ONE DAY, WE-THE WORLD and WORLD PEACE VILLAGE (2015-Mrs. Morgan-Interfaith Unity through the Golden Rule)
Pinwheels for Peace History at Casady School
Mrs. Susan Bruce and her 4th grade class wanted to help promote the Oklahoma City Pinwheels for Peace Festival at Casady School. Mrs. Bruce connected to Mrs. Carmen Clay, Director of Service-Learning in the Upper Division. The 4th graders and the Fridays with Service-Learning Freshman Class made the first 80 pinwheels for peace for the 2007 Pinwheels for Peace Festival at the Gold Dome. The pinwheels for Peace Festival took place on International Day of Peace, 9/21/2007. This was the first time the Casady Service-Learning Program became aware of 9/21 as International Day of Peace.From 2007-2017, Pinwheel making at Casady Schools found fertile ground the week of 9/11-9/21 in the Primary Division, headed by Mrs Jane Sharp with facilitating teachers, Mrs. Pat Czerwinski, and Mrs. Catherine Fowler. In 2017, UD YAC help assemble the PD pinwheels.
In the Lower Division, pinwheels were made the same week at regular scheduled classes, first by the 4th grade team, then by the entire school. Pinwheel making was enhanced by LD themes of the year as well as creative ideas from faculty under the leadership of LD Director, Mrs. Anne France. In 2017, the Lower Division Girl Scouts made pinwheels for peace while learning about a Peace Path, a conflict resolution strategy. UD YAC help assemble the LD pinwheels.
In the Middle Division, the leadership of pinwheel making found a home in Mrs. Crossno's English classes first, then in the foreign language classes and finally, the intentional leadership of pinwheel making came from the MD International Club under the sponsorship of Mrs. Lynn Robertson. In 2017, Mrs. Melody Huber and her students made 90 pinwheels for peace during art class. The pinwheels were assembled with rulers with the intention to be donated to a hurricane affected school.On 9/21/2013, all divisions of the school provided pinwheels for the pinwheels for peace sign in front of chapel. Over 800 pinwheels were made by Casady Schools, Boys and Girls Club art classes/green team and the Statesman's Club at the Vineyard. The tradition of planting pinwheels for peace at the peace sign drawn by Mr. Mark Coate, Grounds Supervisor, has continued on a yearly basis, as it has been the connection to taking pinwheels to the UN Association of Oklahoma Observance of the day.
In the Upper Division, when Fridays with Service-Learning was cancelled due to changes in schedule, the pinwheel making activity found various homes. First in French, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese classes and then in foreign language clubs, Gales, YAC (Youth Acting in the Community), Casady's service club, and Youth LEAD OKC, a cultural competency youth board founded by the interest of one Casady student, Sidney Jones'2015. Casady YAC took pinwheel making to after school programs such as Boys and Girls Club at Memorial Park, Casady's After School Care, and Summer by the Lake. YAC also took pinwheel making and raising awareness that a day for cease fire existed to Independent Living Facilities, elementary schools and high schools.
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| Six Billion Paths to Peace T-shirts and Casady Pinwheels Give Away at 2013 Pinwheels for Peace Festival at OCU |
History of UN Association of Oklahoma Pinwheels for Peace
on Peace Day
In 2007, Sadie Mast, a peace activist and Mennonite, wanted children to celebrate and experience the International Day of Peace in Oklahoma City. Sadie called her friend Gail Sloop, an OKCPS Art teacher and peace activist, late in June, 2007 and started a celebration for children on the International Day of Peace, September 21 connecting to the Pinwheels for Peace Project.
Pinwheels for Peace is an art project started in 2005 by two Art teachers, Ann Ayers and Ellen McMillan, from Monarch High School in Coconut Creek, Florida, as a way for their students to express their feelings. http://www.pinwheelsforpeace.com/pinwheelsforpeace/home.html
The 1st meetings for the Pinwheels for Peace OKC festival were at Ingres's Kitchen in August, 2007. Bill Bryant, from the United Nations Association OKC Chapter took the first notes. Founding members included:
- Sadie Mast - Mennonites
- Bill Bryant - OK United Nations
- Nathaniel Batchelder - Peace House
- Rex Friend - Quakers
- Sue Tarr - Jane Goodall
- Lakshimi Ramgopal - Peace Pilgrim
- Joan Korenblit - Respect Diversity Foundation
- Linda Esser - Cast for the World and Art Educators
- Steve McLinn - Music
- Gail Sloop- Art Educators
- Susan Bruce, Carmen Clay - Pinwheels from Casady School
The 1st Pinwheels for Peace Oklahoma City Festival was held Friday, September 21 at the Gold Dome in Oklahoma City. Linda Esser worked diligently to ensure the festival's continued growth and success with her students from Putnam City North High School. Sadly, Linda passed away in January of 2011. However, her legacy of honoring all people and her passion for peace has continued to impact our city. The location of the OKC Pinwheels for Peace Festival changed from year to year. From the Gold Dome it move to the Myriad Gardens, a local park, UCO campus and the beautiful OCU campus co-hosted by the Wimberley School of Religion in 2013 and at OCU's Grand Hall in 2014 co-hosted by Sadie Mast. The United Nations Association of Oklahoma observances of the day continued at OCU until 2016, when it connected to the Turkish Festival at the Myriad Gardens. In 2017, the UN Observance of Peace Day took place at the steps of the Oklahoma State Capitol.Pinwheels for Peace celebrated by Six Billion Paths to Peace T-shirts
Paths to Peace initiative. The foundation sent 3 trainers to help teens learn about Six Billion Paths to Peace http://sef.org/media-resources/resources/ and their paradigm of service http://sef.org/about-sef/our-paradigm-of-service/.
The San Francisco based trainers came for a day to Casady school and empowered YAC 2009 (Youth and Adult Advisory and Action Council in 2008) to have its first YAC Summer Invitational in June 2009.
http://serviceapathtopeace.blogspot.com/2010_10_01_archive.html.
The first part of the video below made by the Shinnyo-en Foundation after their third visit to Oklahoma City on the occasion of the celebration of International Day of Peace 2011 was the inspiration for the creation of Youth LEADOKC. The second part of the video was filmed at the Casady campus during the Foundation's visit to help raise awareness and celebrate the International Day of Peace and Peace through service.
From 2010-2013, on 9/21 International Day of Peace, the Shinnyo-en Foundation has provided Six Billion Paths to Peace T-shirts for the entire Primary Division, first division to be intentionally committed to "Global Peace starts in the classroom" under the leadership of LD Director, Jane Sharp. Other divisions have received t-shirts as requested for their intentional yearly celebrations of 9/21.
2012 Memories: http://casadycommunityservice-learning.blogspot.com/2012/09/upcoming-service-opportunities.html; http://sef.org/shinnyo-en-foundation-partner-orgs-celebrate-2012s-international-day-of-peace-september-21-2012/
2013 Memories: http://sef.org/peace-week-at-casady-school/
PINWHEELS & T-SHIRTS CONNECTED
TO PEACE ONE DAY & WE THE WORLD (11 Days of Global Unity)
In 2011, the Service-Learning program won a Skype session with Jeremy Gilley, creator of PEACE ONE DAY http://peaceoneday.org/welcome. A few YAC members and members of the video production class attended.Jeremy encouraged video production students to use art to promote peace and to help highlight organizations working towards peace. He also spoke about the first global truce effort aiming to take vaccinations and food to war areas of the world. This event connected Pinwheels for Peace and the Six Billion Paths to Peace initiative to the Peace One Day goal of being INTENTIONAL ABOUT raising awareness of the International Day of Peace(9/21) and promoting their yearly global truce focus. From 2013-2015, the global truce focus was Who will you make peace with?
The statistics gathered of the impact of simply raising awareness of our desire for peace with an increasing number of coalitions http://www.peaceoneday.org/coalitions-overview and the statistics gathered by Peace One Day of the difference it makes to be intentional about wanting a PEACE DAY are sourcesof inspiration and empowerment to continue in our effort and quest to change the whisper for peace one day into a global empowering voice. http://www.peaceoneday.org/about/impact by simply balancing an intentional change from I to WE to help build more compassionate, caring communities.
From 2014-2016, Peace One Day's goal was to encourage all parties in the Democratic Republic of Congo to stand together in the name of peace on the 21 of September. Peace One Day hopes to raise the level of awareness of, and respect for Peace Day, so as to generate a significant reduction of violence across the country on the day by 2016 at the latest, and allow much needed humanitarian access to reach people caught in the cross fire. Just as important, however, is the way in which a day of peace could help change the perception of what is possible in the DRC, particularly amongst a younger generation who have known only war.
PEACE STONE SOUP PRESENTATION AT Multicultural Institute at UCO
In the school year 2013-2014, connections to the International Day of Peace at Casady were intentionally made by Drama teacher, Mr. Tim Crofton, who promoted skits for the Middle Division chapel and reflection during the 11 Days of Unity in his classes.
The Lower School, After School Care Program collaborated with the Service-Learning program promoting the 11 days through visual arts. The Upper Division YAC Executive board helped other divisions made pinwheels, distributed t-shirt and promoted service projects throughout the year connecting its mission of youth as entrepreneurs of peace and social change to the themes of the 11 Days of Unity.
A Peace Team composed by Ananya'18, Claire'18, Miranda'18, Cathy'18, Johnny'17 and Turner'17 attended the National Service-Learning Conference in Washington D.C to share the Peace Week 2013 experience and to reflect on team and personal initiatives for Peace Week 2014. Upon their returned, the team implemented a more intentional making of pinwheels which they connected to fundraising to help build a home for foster children at Pepper's Ranch. For the school year 2015-2016, the brainstorming began in May. A new welcome addition is the connection to the expert guidance from Peace Educator, Patti Morgan, who is linking the Peace Week 2015 to her passion as a peace educator and her knowledge of the Global Peace Village Program. Mrs. Morgan connected YAC to the Episcopal Dioceses World Peace Village Kit. The Global Peace Village has been installed at Casady buildings from 2015-2017 as an opening visual to build bridges through our faith similarities while learning about 6 faiths differences.
Peace Week 2013
Peace Week 2014: First year, YAC the service club had a PEACE Team. 11 Days of Global Unity took the name of Peace Week given by Class of 2017 member, Johnny Lee. Peace Week 2014 @ Casady and the OKC community. The week was showcased by Class of 2017 @ the National Service Learning Conference in Washington D. C.
Peace Week 2015 - Facilitated by YAC, Class of 2017
Peace Week 2016 -
Peace Week 2017 - Peace Week 2017 summer planning
Peace Week 2015-2017: Intentional collaboration between Casady Service Learning Office, YAC, Faculty from all divisions, Chapel speakers, administrators and staff. In 2017, parents joined the planning team via Facebook.
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