The Rotary Club of Independence (RCI), under the leadership of President Cindy Isabel, completed its 2019-2020 Kimbrough Challenge District Grant Project at the end of August 2020. RCI’s renovated an existing 15,500 sq ft structure to meet the growing needs of the Peace Pathways’ Peace Pavilion. The Peace Pavilion has been promoting and educating adults and children about peace and conflict resolution for the past 23 years. The current Peace Pavilion operates in 2,400 sq ft area. Thousands of youth groups, schoolchildren, families and individual visitors pass through the Peace Pavilion every year.
In order to expand the Peace Pavilion’s mission and reach more people, Peace Pathways purchased the larger, existing structure located just west of the historic Independence Square, and began the process of renovating the building into the new Peace Museum.
Rotarians provided sweat equity in the form of prepping and paining exhibit rooms and hallways, removing old window blinds, removing old carpeting and replacing it with new carpet tiles and replacing the decking on a handicapped accessible ramp.
Trough the Kimbrough Challenge, RCI funded a portion of the materials for the capital renovation of the facility. RCU purchased supplies for painting and flooring in the interior of the building and decking materials to replace rotted wood on the handicapped ramp.
Workdays began in August 2019 and continued through early November, where Rotarians provided “sweat equity” taping, prepping and painting classroom walls and the Museum’s hallways, and tearing carpet tile and replacing it with new materials. The handicapped accessible ramp was scheduled for demo in the spring until COVID took its toll on the timeline. Rotarians demo’ed just the decking of the ramp in early August; and the ramp received fresh decking by the end of August 2020.
The Peace Museum offers a comprehensive approach to promoting peace and conflict resolution and meeting the Rotary Foundation Peace and Conflict Resolution area of focus.
Peace Pathways believes that peacemaking begins with children and adults who incorporate skills such as self-care, communication, conflict resolution, and integration of diversity into their daily lives and families. Peace Pathways creates pathways for peace to be experienced in relationships and in community through peace education, advocacy, and community collaboration. The Peace Museum is the main program of Peace Pathways and teaches these principles through lessons and activities. Four types of peace form the curricular foundation – Peace for Me, Peace for Us, Peace for Everyone and Peace for the Planet.
Additionally, the Peace Museum will be an asset to the community, combining out themes of peace already located in the area. The Museum is located just two blocks from the historic Independence Square, which is a tourism mecca for visitors show want to walk the streets that President Harry Truman walked and visit his post-Presidential term home. The Square also represents the confluence of the Oregon, Santa Fe and California trails that led to the western frontier. Also located within walking of the new Peace Museum is the United Nations Peacekeepers Plaza, the Community of Christ Temple which is dedicated to peace and the Harry S Truman Presidential Library is a short car ride away.
RCI is proud of its partnership with Peace Pathways and its new Peace Museum as we work together to create a generation of peacemakers.