Center for Living Peace Turned 2!!!

Can you believe it’s been two years since we first opened our doors? We can’t! What an amazing two years it has been– here are some highlights from over the years…

Taiko drums at our grand opening in May of 2010!

Our peace tree from the grand opening… So strange seeing it so bare!

Chuck Jones Center for Creativity hold a workshop at our grand opening in 2010

Have you seen chalk mandala mural by artist Melanie Stimmell? It’s hard to believe it’s been 2 years since she created it for us.

Read for the Record in 2010

Buzz Lightyear visited us on Halloween in 2010!

Artful Eating with OCMA

Artful Eating with OCMA!

Team Kids Youth Council Servathon!

Good Happens Veggie Grill vegan carrot cake from our 1st birthday celebration!

Rocking out at New Earth Drumming to celebrate our 1st birthday!

Storytime with Cynthia Callard!

Human peace sign at 2011 International Day Peace!

Insights from Africa with Eugene Cooke!

Homemade Cleaning Products with The Ecology Center!

C-Jam with Anibue from UCI!

Peace in Motion Café movie nights!

Here are some highlights from our 2nd Birthday! So hard to believe that it’s been 2 years since we first opened our doors!

New Earth Drumming!

Sneaky Sea Snacks with Algalita!

Can you believe the things found in birds tummies? Thanks for sharing this with us, Algalita!

Abstract drawing with OCMA!

Smiling Monkey Yoga!

Smiling Monkey Yoga!

Kids made cards for a Card Quilt for people in need

Card Quilts!

Fun with the Chuck Jones Center

A visit from Teddy the tortoise, courtesy of Inside the Outdoors!

Buckwheat the Bunny, courtesy of Inside the Outdoors!

Seedlings with The Ecology Center!

Kids’ Qigong with Ryan Lee!

Fun in Kids’ Qigong!

Miniotics Dance Crew!

Kelly kickin’ it with Miniotics Dance Crew

Enjoying a birthday cupcake!

Look at our Peace Tree now!!! 2 years of wishes for peace!

A special thanks to our photographers, Ashley Strong & Megan Hartley. Thanks for celebrating with us! It’s been a wonderful 2 years!  Can’t wait to see what the future brings!

Good Happens.

Peace Grl Out.

See For Yourself

See for yourself:  after just 2 months, the Center for Living Peace is a place where people are coming to make good happen.

Have you visited our Center?  How did you feel in this space?

Permalink: http://centerforlivingpeace.wordpress.com/2010/07/10/see-for-yourself

190 lbs of Generosity

The results are in!  Our Grand Opening Weekend service project – a community food drive – collected 190lbs of food for Orange County’s hungry.  We teamed up with volunteers from Team Kids and the Second Harvest Food Bank to encourage visitors to our University Town Center to donate.

Did you know…..

1 in 6 Orange County residents are at risk of hunger. Our unemployment rate still lingering above 12% and that does not include the underemployed, those individuals whose unemployment benefits have run out, or those that have been discouraged from job seeking. Due to the high cost of living in Orange County, an income slightly above the federal poverty level would still be insufficient in helping maintain economic stability and food security, which is especially important in old age when medical costs can be overwhelming. More than a third of those at-risk of hunger in Orange County are children. Children account for 35% of the 615,000 individuals in Orange County that have to worry about going to bed hungry.

Find more info about Hunger in the OC here.

Thank you to everyone who donated, volunteered and spread the word.  It is exciting to be a part of, and a part of giving back to, this wonderful community.

Good Happens.

Peace Grl Out.

Permalink: http://centerforlivingpeace.wordpress.com/2010/07/07/190-lbs-of-generosity

Mayor Kang supports ‘living peace’

Mayor Sukhee Kang shared his enthusiasm for the Center for Living Peace in his recent newsletter!  He showed his support for our activities and visited with fellow supporters at our Grand Opening Party, May 15th.

Thank you Mayor Kang!

Good Happens.

Peace Grl Out.

If You Build It, They Will Come…

…especially if it involves cupcakes and lemonade!  Our Grand Opening Weekend was a great success, thank you to all who came out and participated in the weekend of free events and demonstrated many ways to “live peace.”  Take a look:

Children and adults alike had the chance to work with artist Natasha Shoro at her Expressive Arts table in the Center’s world cafe area.

Families also enjoyed perusing the library in this space.

The lobby’s koi pond, made from a Burmese fire bowl, was the most popular of all the unique furnishings in the Center.

Acclaimed street muralist Melanie Stimmell worked throughout the weekend on the mural begun at our Grand Opening Party.  Melanie also led workshops in chalk art for all ages.

Melanie’s finished chalk mural will be permanently hung in the Center.

The first of all the free workshops of the weekend was led by Terry LePage of Open Door Communication.  This Nonviolent Communication class, focusing on how to communicate more effectively and compassionately with others, set the perfect tone for the weekend and beyond.

Craig Causon of The Chuck Jones Center for Creativity and Julie Hudash of Team Kids teamed up to present a service inspired story and art activity in our South Wing.  Children made masterpieces from recycled and trashed materials.

Breaking ground in the Center’s North Wing, The Ecology Center guided families and kids in creating their own terrariums.

Richard Reoch, International Human Rights Advocate and former Media Chief of Nobel Prize Winning Amnesty International, led a discussion on Making Peace Possible followed by an introduction to meditation.

Girls danced, drew, and worked with the impermanence of sand as a medium in Justine Amodeo’s class, Tapping the Body’s Wisdom.

Smiling Monkey Yoga, a children’s program designed specifically for The Center for Living Peace by Patrice Simon and Amy McConnell, made a fun debut teaching yoga and breathing techniques using play and imagination.

The Orange County Museum of Art helped visitors harness the power of the sun to create whimsical solar portraits from collected objects.

Putting our mission into action and making good happen, volunteers from Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County and Team Kids collected over 2 barrels of donations for the hungry.

It was a wonderful weekend had by all!  Missed out?  Visit our events calendar for ongoing programs and workshops.

Good Happens.

Peace Grl Out.

A Night to Remember

Our Grand Opening Party was truly a night to remember!  The first guests welcomed into our beautiful, new space enjoyed watching artist Melanie Stimmell begin a mural that will be permanently hung in the Center.

Il Fornaio provided extraordinary fare in celebration of our opening.

UCI’s Jodaiko Japanese Drum Ensemble kicked off the party with a powerful performance.

Everyone contributed a unique definition of “living peace” to add to the Center’s living tree, making for a diverse and striking display.

I’ll leave you with a few of these thoughts about “living peace.”  What would your contribution to our tree be?

Good Happens.

Peace Grl Out.

It’s Official! The Center for Living Peace is open and Making Good Happen!

Center for Living Peace Officially Opens

Thanks to all those people who came out for the celebration!

Good Happens.

Peace Grl Out.