Community members are invited to join Tusculum University faculty, staff and students for an upcoming dedication of a Rotary International Peace Pole on campus.
The ceremony will take place Tuesday, Sept. 23, at 1 p.m. in front of the Scott M. Niswonger Commons, where the peace pole will be installed. State Rep. David Hawk, R-Greeneville; Alan Corley, the City of Tusculum’s mayor; members of the Rotary Club of Greeneville; and a group of children from Doak Elementary School will participate.
In addition, the event will feature some of Tusculum’s international students speaking in their native languages. Tusculum has students from 38 countries and experienced an increase of about 40 international students this semester compared to a year ago.
“We welcome the opportunity to promote peace by housing this pole in a prominent place on campus,” said Dr. Scott Hummel, the university’s president and a Rotary Club member. “The placement of peace poles has become a wonderful form of outreach by the Rotary Club, and we are pleased we are able to join hands in this endeavor. We are also excited to highlight our international students and the way they enrich the Tusculum family and the surrounding community.”
A peace pole is a monument that displays the message “May Peace Prevail on Earth.” The pole has eight languages – English, Spanish, Mandarin, Swahili, Bengali, Ukrainian, Arabic and Hebrew. The languages on the pole advance Rotary’s goal of building a culture of peace throughout the world.
At the ceremony, numerous international students will read the message in their own language. Dr. Hummel said these additional languages will add to the chorus proclaiming peace.
More than 250,000 peace poles exist in the world and are located in every country.
The late Masahisa Goi of Japan drafted the message about peace prevailing on earth after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II. He was the founder of May Peace Prevail on Earth International.
“We hope people who know about the pole and see it will be inspired to lead a life that highlights the value of peace,” said Brandon Farmer, president of the Rotary Club of Greeneville. “Our club is enthused to partner with Tusculum to spread this essential message, which is applicable in all corners of the world. We encourage everyone to attend this ceremony and give voice to the importance of peace.”
Additional information about the club is available at https://www.facebook.com/GreeneRotary. To learn more about the university, please visit www.tusculum.edu.
