Cyl Honors Organizations Who Promote Peace

By Kwegyirba Croffie
It's Relevant
January 22, 2014

http://norwalk.itsrelevant.com/content/16952/cyl-honors-organizations-who-promote-peace

[with video]

Brien McMahon High School's Center for Youth Leadership honored organizations in Fairfield County who promote peace and stand against injustice during their 2014 Awards Ceremony on Tuesday evening.

The Peace Project's 10th Annual Dove Award was given to the Lower Fairfield County Regional Action Council & Post 53 Darien Emergency Medical Services.

Kaela Teele, a member of the Center for Youth Leadership said, "The Dove Award is presented to the person or organization that has done the most in the past year to promote peace, understanding and social justice and/or provide teens with leadership and activism opportunities."

Ingrid Gillespie, Director of the Lower Fairfield County Regional Action Council said, "That handful of teens has really inspired many and now we have groups in all of our communities - New Canaan, Darien, Greenwich, and Stamford - who are really focused on substance abuse prevention and mental health issues.

"It [Post 53 Darien EMS] was founded in 1970 by a parent of a student in high school as a boy scout project to provide teens in the Town with the ability to learn about the effects of drug and alcohol abuse through providing emergency medical treament," said Nick Cohen, President of Post 53 Darien Emergency Medical Services.

The Senators Community Foundation's 12th Annual Candy Necklace Award was given to the Saint Joseph Parenting Center & the Connecticut Chapter of the Survivors' Network of Those Abused by Priests.

Emma Curtin, a member of the Center for Youth Leadership described the Candy Necklace Award. "The Candy Necklace Award honors the person or organization in the past year to prevent child abuse and/or address the effects of child abuse." 

Measi O'Rourke, Executive Director of the St. Joseph Parenting Center said, "To have youth recognize what we do, which is to try to protect youth is just so important to us. It's very important the fact that we constantly say we do a lot for children and I think the Center for Youth Leadership realizes all the things they do for children."

Beth McCabe, Co-Director of the Connecticut Chapter of the Survivors' Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP) said, "For us, it's nice to be acknowledged but I think that they need to understand the impact they're having and getting the word out on child sexual abuse, specifically in human trafficking and all the other issues they are dealing with; but to learn to be socially active, to make changes, legislative changes that really impact people's lives."