8/13/2019 Diverse Students Work for Peace

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Students Nate, Ryan, Jon, Jessie, Tori, and Adelaida pose for a photo following a free food garden harvestduring their Food For Thought retreat where the group considered whether there can be peace in theworld if people are malnourished.

COURTESY PHOTO

Diverse students workfor peace in Topsham

by Marianne FarrTOPSHAMA Topsham woman isbridging cultural divides by provid-ing local, and not-so-local, studentswith the tools to become leaders intheir communities.

I call it my passion project,Jacqueline Labate said of herorganization, the Growing PeaceProject, which she launched four

years ago.It is a peacemaking and youthactivist initiative, said Labate indescribing what her organizationtried to do. We seek to empoweryouth to become bridge builders,thereby strengthening communityand growing peace.

With 30 years of experience ineducation, including a stint as a mathteacher at Oxbow High School,Labate has owned an educationconsulting business for the past 20years. Her resume has the knowl-edge, background and connectionsto make the project work.

After the Sept. 11, 2001 terror-ist attacks, Labate felt compelled toput her ideas into action, saying thatshe believed that it was the only waythere could be peace is if peopleunderstood one another.

Each year Labate coordinates ayear-long collaboration betweentwo schools that are significantlydifferent, bringing students to-gether to learn about one anotherand to address social issues. Theexperience culminates at the end ofthe year when students cometogether to participate in a retreatheld during the summer in Vermont.

For the first three years, a schoolin Vermont was matched withanother school elsewhere. Thisyear, a Minneapolis school ispartnering with a school in Houston.

Labate explained that students inVermont do not have a lot ofexperience with diversity and shethought they would benefit frombeing part of an experience thatallowed them to get to know theirpeers with an urban background. Shedecided to gear the program towardmiddle school students becausethey are old enough to be able tothink critically.

The first years collaboration

paired an Essex Junction middleschool class taught by Labatesdaugher-in-law Amanda Eldridge,with a school in New York City.While the Essex Junction studentscame from affluent, white and

suburban families, the New Yorkstudents were mostly urban African-Americans from low-income fami-lies.

Students from each school werematched up to become pen pals sothey could get to know one anotherand identify social justice issuesthey held in common. They identi-

fied a wide range of issues, such asbullying, hunger, homelessness andpollution and then selected one ofthe issues to focus on.

One of the major lessonslearned by both groups was that inspite of their obvious differences,they had much in common.

You may look different and livein a different environment, but wereall the same in lots of ways, Labatesaid. Even the issues they face aresimilar although some issues, suchas homelessness, exist on a fargreater scale in New York.

The main criteria for a school tobecome involved in the program isthat it must have access to technol-ogy applications such as Skype andMoodle so the students are able tointeract with each other for an hourabout once a month.

Each year looks different, de-pending upon a multitude of vari-ables. Initially, Labate thought thatshe and the teachers would definesocial justice issues for the stu-dents. She soon but then immedi-ately realized that because theproject is about empowerment, itwould be essential to have thestudents come up with their ownideas.

Im not interested in a cookiecutter approach, she said. Itsreally exciting to do it this way. Itsmore real and organic.

Every month Labate communi-cates with participating teachersthrough conference calls. Shechecks in and they draft a timeline.She sees her role as being thecoordinator to help get thingsrolling.

We are constantly talking withone another, she said.

The program culminates in asummer retreat hosted by Labate onher land in Topsham. Eight students

are selected from each school tospend four days together fine-tuningtheir action plans and participatingin workshops.

During the retreat, studentsform teams and create communityissue action plans. Throughout thisprocess they develop leadership andpeace-making skills, build relation-ships and, according to Labate,become citizens of conscience andcultivate personal empowerment.

The retreat is free for thestudents and the staff is made up ofvolunteers, which include many ofLabates family members. In addi-tion to her husband, RobertMandatta, Labates sons, daughtersand daughters-in-law are instrumen-

tal in making the retreat a success.As a pediatric nurse, her son Noah isthe designated nurse for the retreat.Another son, Daniel, is an EMT andphotographer and takes pictures ofthe event. Her daughter-in-law, LiLing, prepares all of the meals.

The students are encouraged totake workshops to learn to do

something theyve never donebefore. Each year Labates daughter,Angelina, travels from Los Angeles,where she is a dancer, to help withthe retreat and to lead a danceworkshop.

In addition to examining issuesthat affect the students directly, theretreat also focuses on foodinsecurity, asking the question, Canthere be peace in the world if peopleare hungry? The students work in aquarter-acre sized garden providedby Labate and her husband. Thevegetables that are grown are givento families in the surroundingcommunity. The students maintainand harvest the garden, deliverproduce and prepare meals for thosein need.

For the urban kids, spending fourdays in the country is an incredibleexperience, Labate said. The timealso inspires the local students.Some will be returning for theirfourth year this summer and willassume more of a leadership role.

Once they return to theircommunities, the students put theirplans into action. One boy becameinvolved with a national organiza-tion called Stop Hunger Now.Another student started an anti-bullying program at her school andcreated a safe space in the buildingfor students under the threat ofviolence.

I always hoped that it would beempowering and positive, and ampleased that has been that case,Labate said. Its making a differ-ence. We dont have a capacity forhuge and I like the intimacy.

The biggest challenge Labatefaces is financial. Because theprogram is free to the schoolsinvolved, the organization reliescompletely on fundraising. Themain expense is holding the retreat

because in addition to the costs ofthe retreat itself, the organizationalso pays to fly the students toVermont. Grants are currently beingsought to support the projectsactivities.

When I started the GrowingPeace Project, my initial vision wasthat over time we would empower acadre of student activists. Fouryears later, at the 2013 retreat theGrowing Peace initiative had stu-dents returning for their second andthird years, said Labate. Itsexciting to work with these studentsand watch them mature and take onissues that are important to them.

For more information, visit theGrowing Peace Project on Facebookor email write tothegrowingpeaceproject@gmail.com.

Marianne Farr can be reachedat mfarr@jonews.com.

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SLAUGHTERHOUSE WORKSHOPCONCORDOn Feb. 14 from 9 a.m. to 3p.m., the University of New HampshireCooperative Extension will present a riskmanagement workshop entitled Live-stock Producers Working with Slaughter-houses at the Makris Lobster and SteakHouse. It would be useful for smalllivestock producers, backyard farmersand those thinking about developing valueadded meat products. Registration is $15if postmarked before Feb. 7 and $20 afterthat date or at the door. The fee includesrefreshments and lunch. For moreinformation, call Michal Lunak at(603)787-6944.

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Health team offers free cooking classBRADFORDAs part of the initiative to improve health of community members, a group of healthcare professionals will beoffering a free wellness education class.

Supported by federal and state funding as well as the Hannaford Supermarket in Bradford, the local Community Health Teamrecently presented the first Cooking Fresh class. Designed by registered dietician Melanie Loschiavo, the free class willcontinue to meet on the third Tuesday of the month at the Bradford Congregational Church.

The course is all about cooking with fresh ingredients and sharing nutritional tidbits and food preparation tips. In the first class,three types of squash were featured using various recipes. The dishes were prepared by and shared with a group of 10participants.

UPPER VALLEY HEALTH TEAM CLASSPictured from left to right are Laurie Kirkpatrick, Robin Pageand David Ward Wilson, who were among the participants in the inaugural Cooking Fresh class.Designed by registered dietician Melanie Loschiavo, the free class will meet once a month at the BradfordCongregational Church to cook and share recipes for healthy food. In the first class, three types ofsquash were featured.

COURTESY PHOTO

The February class will focus oncruciferous vegetables. In March, thefood topic will be roots and bulbs and theApril class will be about greens.

For more information, call Andrea Z-Covey at (802)222-4637.

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