July 13 Compassionate Living Tip from Interfaith Paths to Peace
Interfaith Paths to Peace names Christopher 2X its Louisville Peacemaker of the Year for 2012
Louisville Peace Activist Christopher 2X
Named 2012 "Louisville Peacemaker of the Year"
By Interfaith Paths to Peace
Christopher 2X (Center) with Interfaith Paths to Peace Executive Director Terry Taylor (left) and IPP Board President Hugh Ella Robinson (right)
Interfaith Paths to Peace (IPP), a Louisville-based interfaith peacemaking organization has awarded it's 2012 "Louisville Peacemaker of the Year Award" to Christopher 2x, an accomplished Louisville peacemaker and social entrepreneur. The Peacemaker of the Year is presented by IPP and Ms. Carolyn King in the name of her son, the late Richard Hunt Smith. (A brief biography of Mr. Smith appears below.).
The award was presented at IPP's third annual "My Recipe for Peace" dinner which was held at The Temple (Congregation Adath Israel Brith Sholom) on Thursday night, July 12, 2012. In making the presentation, Terry Taylor, Executive Director of Interfaith Paths to Peace, cited the
work of Christopher 2x in dealing with violent crime in the streets,
his service to the families of both victims and perpetrators, and his
efforts to bring the families of victims and perpetrators together to
heal the emotional and spiritual wounds they share.
About Christopher 2x
Christopher 2X is head of the Fight
Crimes Against Children Partnership, a group that
advocates for fighting crimes against young people and raising awareness
around
child safety issues. He works closely with community groups, law
enforcement and religious leaders to address the problem of violence in
the streets of Louisville, to heal the emotional and spiritual wounds
suffered by those affected by violence, and to find ways to reduce and
eliminate violence in our community.
A Few Words about
Richard Hunt Smith for Whom the Award is Named
Richard
attended Guilford College where he majored in English and minored in
music. Following his graduation he was drawn to the field of education
and more particularly to working with children. Richard taught at Cone
Elementary School in Greensboro, North Carolina, where most of the
students he served were African Americans who faced enormous economic
challenges. He empowered these youngsters by his example. Together they
shared kindness, mutual respect, and joy.
Richard died
in 2009 at the age of 31 after a brief but intense life devoted to
peacemaking. His life serves as a powerful model of what each of us can
accomplish when we strive to be fully human. Richard made it his life’s
work to expand the flow of love in the world by reaching out to others,
striving always to help those less fortunate than him. He did not judge
anyone; nor did he exclude any from the wide circle of his care. His
peacemaking efforts reached individuals of many races and religions,
both in his native land and in countries as far away as India. His
loving kindness deeply touched members of his own family. That same
loving kindness eased the pain of the ordinary and often forgotten men,
women and children whose lives are difficult and who often just need a
friend.
About Interfaith Paths to Peace
Interfaith
Paths to Peace (IPP) is a nonprofit organization based in Louisville, Kentucky.
IPP works to make our community, the nation, and the world more peaceful
by bringing people of different religions together through programs and events
that promote inter-religious understanding. IPP now delivers more interfaith
events and opportunities than any other group in the Midwest and perhaps in the
US.
Here
is a link to more information about Interfaith Paths to Peace:
http://paths2peace.org/main/summary
Text of Terry Taylor's Remarks in Presenting the Award to Mr. 2X on July 12.
It is now time for us to present a very special award to
someone in our community.
It is called the Louisville Peacemaker of the Year award, and
honors the individual or organization that Interfaith Paths to Peace believes
has made the greatest contribution to peacemaking in our community—especially
peacemaking in an interfaith context.
The award bears the name of the late Richard Hunt Smith, a
young man who devoted his sadly shortened life to bringing peace to the people
around him. Richard was a special kind of “first responder.” He was a person who
offered solace to the men, women and children he encountered in his day-to-day
life who were emotionally and spiritually wounded by their tragic
circumstances.
Tonight we honor a Louisville citizen who is also a special
kind of first responder.
Almost every day we turn on the news and see images of sites
in our city where violence has ended a life. In these pictures we often see and
hear from first responders—police and emt’s who are dealing with the physical and
criminal aftermath of a shooting, a stabbing or some other act of deadly force.
But when we see those stories on TV we almost always see
another kind of first responder.
This first responder doesn’t deal with the medical needs of
the individual or individuals who have suffered violence. He isn’t there to
investigate a crime or make arrests.
Instead, this first responder deals with the emotional and
spiritual needs of the families of both the victim and the perpetrator.
No matter where in the city a deadly crime has occurred, he
is there, offering healing words.
He is there offering solace without regard to the race,
religion, or culture of those he serves.
He often persuades alleged perpetrators to turn themselves
in to authorities to face the process of justice.
He takes direct action with young people to encourage them
to solve their problems non-violently.
And perhaps most movingly, in the wake of deadly violence, he
works to bring together the families of the victims and the families of the
perpetrators in an effort to mend broken hearts and to make sense out of situations
that are seemingly senseless.
Ladies and gentlemen please join Interfaith Paths to Peace
in recognizing our 2012 Richard Hunt Smith Louisville Peacemaker of the
Year…Christopher 2X
