Kathy Kelly
7 p.m.
376-3077
Church of the Open Arms
3131 N. Pennsylvania
In 2003, Kathy Kelly found herself an eyewitness to history as she and her companions sat through the "shock and awe" bombing campaign in Baghdad.
On Tuesday, Church of the Open Arms, 3131 N. Pennsylvania, will open its doors to Kelly, a peace activist who is fresh off a trip to Islamabad, Pakistan.
A three-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee, she will give a speech titled "A Better World: Our Urgent Mandate." Her talk on peacemaking is a good fit for the church, said Rev. Kathy McCallie, senior pastor.
"Our church's mission includes working for alternatives to violence, working to try and find nonviolent solutions to conflict and to try to live in more peaceful ways in the world together and with the environment," McCallie said.
Peacemaking long has played a part in Kelly's life. In 1988, she was sentenced to one year in federal prison for planting corn on nuclear missile silo sites. From 1996 until the invasion of Iraq, she and the group she co-founded, Voices in the Wilderness, helped to form and lead 70 delegations in defying economic sanctions by bringing medicine to Iraqi children and families.
McCallie said the church first met Kelly years ago when she was doing a cross-country speaking tour. So, naturally, they were excited to snag her when she came through the area again. The topics of her speech will likely include her experiences in combat zones in both Gulf Wars, as well as her efforts with Voices for Creative Nonviolence, a "campaign to end U.S. military and economic warfare," according to its website.
Her presentation starts at 7 p.m. For more information, call 376-3077. "Nicole Hill
