A Candlelight Vigil
Prescott Peacebuilders began in a small circle of candlelight on the Prescott Courthouse Plaza on September 21, 2015.
On that day, a group of people gathered to commemorate the United Nations International Day of Peace. The date, September 21st, is recognized by the member nations of the United Nations worldwide as a date to renew our commitment to non-violence and for all nations and people to join together to help those in need.
This particular gathering in 2015 had a dual purpose: to honor a Prescott daughter, Kayla Mueller, who had devoted her life to peace, justice, and love of fellow human beings.
Ten years later, Prescott Peacebuilders celebrates our 10th year of building community, celebrating creative self-expression and connection.
Looking back…
“For many years, some of us women had been meeting on the plaza on Friday afternoons, dressed all in black, silent, openly grieving all the unnecessary suffering that war and violence cause in our world. We had disbanded when Obama was elected. Yet, things were not going as well as we had hoped. So, it was time to speak up.
“I didn't know Mary well. We had met as “women in black.” One day, she had a request. She'd just returned from a workshop in New Mexico on building peace locally, and she had taken on the task of making something happen here in Prescott.
“She asked me to speak at a gathering, “a candlelight vigil." She wanted to have it happen on our plaza on the International Day of Peace, September 21. The year was 2015.
“We passed the word. We gathered that early evening as dusk was coming on. Maybe 20 or so, some I knew, others not. But the sense that we shared a vision, a hope for our future, and that we were together, was palpable.
“With my chance to speak, I shared my hope. That with the recently decoded DNA, we could move forward and accept what the golden rule tells us. That treating others as we would like to be treated makes so much sense! That as we began to understand our evolutionary progress, it would be clear that we are truly all various expressions of one creation.
“That we were stuck in our early mammalian brain of needing an 'us and them' dichotomy. That we need “our” bullies to save us from “their” bullies. That we have all been traumatized – growing up in a violent society in our homes and schools, in our headlines, our shared traumas, napalmed children, falling bodies, kindergarteners at Newtown. Enough!
“That we need to awaken from the nightmare of our weapon-infested motherland. Our planet is suffering blow after blow.
“We had lived differently in the past in our tribes, and we can again, once we recognize there is but one tribe. We need to let go of rancor and our personal enemy list. We can come to grips with the oneness and our freedom of evolution.
Recognize that we clothe the emperor with our own fears. We can change our minds, our lives, and our world. We are not stuck with this reality.
“I reminded folks that there were at least 239 other cities hosting vigils that very night, helping us redirect our future to a sustainable, adventure-filled world.
“Then I asked for our 10 minutes of silence, and invited all to release fear and pain and connect with our larger community.
“Well, we have continued now for ten years, and we continue to believe in our mission.” – Laurel Freeman, Founding member of Prescott Peacebuilders