- Our work has received great recognition in the media — we’ve been featured in Elle Magazine, TimeOut New York, and New York Newsday. Our social network following is growing and growing, with more than 2000 Twitter followers and 16,000 views of our blog.
- We’ve been through some life changing events among our team – including the passing of our dear colleague Renee Wilson, and the birth of our first Peace Baby, Felix – son of our Director of Operations, Elena Sapora. Elena’s role with us will also change come 2013; she’ll continue to conduct our mediation trainings, but will spend the rest of her time raising Felix to be the peacebuilder he is destined to be. And, welcome to new Case Manager Carrie McCann, who’s filling Renee’s formidable shoes
- Over the year, more than 100 people have gone through our Basic Mediation Training – proudly joining the ranks of New York’s largest civilian peacebuilding force.
- We’ve presented our work at all kinds of venues – from grade schools, to city agencies, to national conferences, to the United Nations.
- Our free PeaceTalks have brought together hundreds of people from all walks of life for everything from book launches, to film screenings, to meetings with renowned global peacebuilders, to workshops on theater skills.
All in all, not bad for our first full year. And yet there’s so much more we need to do. Mediation is still underutilized, with far too many people spending too much time, money, and emotion on going to court. Or worse – resorting to violence.
So, we aim to get in the middle of even more disputes. Helping 10,000 people a year is a great thing – making us one of the largest mediation centers worldwide. But it’s just a start. We want to give far more people a chance to be heard, an opportunity to heal their relationships and move forward, and a mechanism to avoid the high cost of court or tragic price of violence.
We want to launch the careers of more peacebuilding professionals, and make mediation the legitimate field it deserves to be. And we aim to be an even greater center for learning and networking, to help build mediation into a true movement.
To do this, we need your help. I’d like to ask you to consider donating to New York Peace Institute. We’re able to do amazing things on a modest budget thanks to the dedication of our volunteers, the commitment of our staff and board, and the generosity of our donors. We want to continue to offer our services free of charge to as many people as possible, and we need your support. Here are a few illustrative examples of how your (tax-deductible!) contribution might help:
- $50 covers the expenses of one of our free PeaceTalks
- $150 covers the cost of an interpreter for a mediation session
- $200 covers the cost of a community mediation session
- $400 covers the cost of a Community Conferencing session, a restorative justice process that brings community members together to share and heal together
- $1000 covers the replacement cost of a computer workstation
- $2000 give a scholarship to a person in need to become a New York Peace Institute mediator
- $5000 enables us to print enough brochures to get the word out far and wide
To donate, just click here or send a check made out to New York Peace Institute to the address below. And donating is not the only way to help. Many of you have connected us to community-based organizations, city agencies, council members, faith-based organizations, and other entities that could benefit from our services. Others follow us on our social networking platforms, helping us get the word out. Some of you have made inroads to mass media, giving us great publicity. And of course, we couldn’t do any of it without the 200-plus mediators who give their time, creativity, and empathy to help our clients.
Whether you donate, volunteer, make connections, or support us in spirit, we are grateful for your commitment to standing shoulder to shoulder with us as we build peace in New York City and beyond. Thank you all for an incredible year.
Yours in partnership, solidarity, and peace,
Brad
BRAD HECKMAN
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
NEW YORK PEACE INSTITUTE
346 BROADWAY SUITE 400W
NEW YORK NY, 10013
T: 212.5771740 x. 11
F: 212.577.1748
BHECKMAN@NYPEACE.ORG
WWW.NYPEACE.ORG
BLOG: THEHECKLIST.WORDPRESS.COM
TWITTER: @NEWYORKPEACE
LET US GET IN THE MIDDLE
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