Community members from all walks of life came together to enjoy food, music, and religious reflection in honor of Santa Maria’s 12th annual Peace Week, Oct. 13 through 18.
Hosted by the People for Nonviolence Committee of Marian Medical Center, Peace Week offers a series of free public events aimed at bringing the communities of Santa Maria, Orcutt, and Guadalupe together in peace and unity.
The goal of the weeklong event is to encourage people to be “instruments of peace individually, as a community, as country, and globally,” event coordinator Sister Janet Corcoran said. “It’s about building up the human family.”
Corcoran said that Peace Week events are designed to promote a simple mantra: “Violence breeds violence; love generates love.”
The week started with an opening ceremony and community breakfast the morning of Oct. 13 at the Veterans’ Memorial Community Center in Santa Maria.
While munching on muffins and fruit, attendees were greeted by Santa Maria City Councilmember and event emcee Alice Patino and introduced to keynote speaker Santa Barbara County Superior Court Judge Rogelio Flores.
In his speech, Flores used anecdotes from his life in and out of the courtroom to illustrate the importance of breeding and nurturing peace. He strongly expressed his support for building the new North County jail, but stressed that it should be the county’s last jail. The way to stop crime, he said, is not through imprisonment, but rehabilitation and prevention.
Also at the breakfast, U.S. Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara) presented Chuck and Margie Halsell of Santa Maria with the seventh annual Community Peace Builder Award. The People For Nonviolence Committee selected the Halsells for their role in creating and running Senior Living Resources, a local residential living facility.
The event closed with a musical performance by the Tommie Kunst Junior High School choir, a reading of local children’s essays on peace, and a celebratory releasing of doves.
On Oct. 14, celebrations turned more spiritual at a musical reflective peace service where members of all different religions and denominations mediated on the belief that “Peace Starts at Home.”
Marian Medical Center employee and event co-organizer Joanne West described that reflective service as “a coming together of all religions and philosophies.”
“It’s very inclusive and it promotes unity between the different beliefs,” West said.
On Oct. 15, community members had a chance to participate in Peace Week’s first-ever involvement with the Santa Maria Valley Restorative Justice Task Force’s countywide symposium on restoring justice to the area.
Over a free lunch at the Santa Maria Elks Lodge, community members, including task force member Judge Flores, discussed ways to rehabilitate young offenders, reduce repeat offenses, and promote community safety.
On Oct. 16, Peace Week will go green with “Respect for Mother Earth Day.” Locals are invited to participate in a morning tree planting ceremony at Jim May Park, 809 Stanford Ave., in Santa Maria. The tree planting ceremony will be followed by a short program at 12:30 p.m. focusing on respecting and renewing of the Earth.
Peace Week draws to a close on Oct. 18 with “Respect for and Celebrating Cultural Diversity Day.” From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Boys and Girls Club of Santa Maria Valley will host a neighborhood fiesta, featuring children’s games, a classic car show, informational booths, face painting, and a salsa-tasting contest.
Later in the day, Fighting Back Santa Maria Valley will host “Free 4 the Weekend” from 7 to 11 p.m. at Saturn of Santa Maria, 2175 S. Bradley Road. The event is for seventh- and eighth-grade students who pledge to stay drug and alcohol free. (For more information about this event, see Community Corner on page 6.)
For more information about remaining Peace Week events, call 739-3106.
Contact Staff Writer Amy Asman at aasman@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Oct 16-23, 2008.