Message from the President, Nicolla Hewitt
The second session of camp has begun, and it couldn’t come at a more critical moment. With the regions in the Middle East at the forefront of headline news each day, it is clear that the greater mission of Seeds of Peace is more vital than ever. As the new Seeds of Peace President, I embrace this opportunity to make a difference in areas of the world where the need for peace and a strong generation of young leaders is so urgent. As we welcome the campers for the first session, we are reminded of the founding principles of this organization: to empower leaders of the next generation.
In addition to the excitement surrounding camp, we also have two other new additions to our staff here at Seeds of Peace. We welcome Tammy Sun as our Executive Vice President, and Richard Berman as Chairman of the Board. As the three of us enter the Seeds of Peace family we are all eager to work together to broaden the scope of Seeds of Peace’s already impressive global impact. One of our primary tasks ahead is to create even more ways to integrate and engage our network of Seeds alumni into the programs and events that take place worldwide.
I would like to close this newsletter by thanking all who have supported Seeds of Peace in the past. It is because of donors like you that we are able to achieve success and I look forward to working together with you to build an even stronger foundation from which to grow.
Reflections of Hope Award
This year Seeds of Peace became the most recent recipient of the Reflections of Hope Award given by the Oklahoma City National Memorial Foundation. It is an award that honors a group whose extraordinary work has significantly impacted a community, state or nation. It also exemplifies that hope not only survives but also thrives in the wake of political violence. The Reflections of Hope Award was created by the Oklahoma City National Memorial Foundation to recognize those who find and, by their actions, exemplify hope in the midst of tragedy, respond selflessly and give of themselves to improve the lives of others. We are honored to receive this award.
New members of the Seeds of Peace family
Nicolla Hewitt, the new President of Seeds of Peace, was a network news producer for 18 years working for ABC, CBS and NBC News before joining the Seeds of Peace team. As President of Seeds of Peace she brings a unique insight and understanding to the job, having covered stories of conflict, and stories of peace. In her capacity as a journalist, Nicolla has interviewed numerous world leaders, witnessed history, covered wars, peace treaties, and Presidential Inaugurations. Her coverage has taken her to all parts of the world, with a particular emphasis on the Middle East.
Tammy Sun joins us as Executive Vice President. Previously, she was Communications Director for the Democratic Leadership Council, spokesperson for Sen. Joe Lieberman’s 2006 general election, Deputy Communications Director for President Clinton in New York and Staff Assistant to Vice President Al Gore in the White House.
Seeds of Peace also welcomes Richard Berman, the President of Manhattanville College since 1995, as the new Chairman of the Board. As President of Manhattanville College, Richard is often accredited with turning the college around. He has successfully helped Manhattanville College to balance its books, stop selling its land, improve the acceptance rate and pay back their debts on time.
Programs and special events
On Friday, July 6, 2007 24 Peer Support Seeds (second-year campers) made the trip from camp to spend the day in New York City. The day consisted of a visit with Riyad Mansor, the Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations, a tour of President Clinton’s office, and an ice-cream roundtable discussion at the private residence of Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.
While our focus is most often geared towards camp, there are also several follow up programs started by graduate seeds that aim to reach out to their home communities. Recently several of our Egyptian Seeds held a charity day in memory of Omar Sherein, a Seed who was killed in a car accident earlier this year, which raised money for an orphanage in a poor neighborhood of Cairo. In addition to the great efforts being made by former Seeds, the Young Leadership Committee (YLC) has also been making strides coming up with new fundraising ideas.
Another new program instituted last year is a camp in Gaza which brings together 100 kids each week during the summer to talk about Seeds of Peace values. “In Your Shoes” and “PEACEing it Together” are two binational programs currently running that address the idea of conflict resolution through a peaceful means.