President’s Message
Welcome back, Brandywine Valley. I hope you all had a wonderful summer, whether you traveled with CISV, hosted some of our Villagers or just enjoyed some family time.
I am excited to start the new CISV year. The educational themes for this year are sustainability and human rights, and many of the JB focus this year will be on activities in this area.
To begin the “new year,” I would also like to concentrate on the issue of sustainability, which can be defined in many ways. This year, we need to put a strong focus on the sustainability of our own chapter.
The BV CISV Board will be holding our annual strategic planning session on Oct. 2nd, and our theme will be “Working Together=Recruiting Together.”
To create an ever-stronger chapter, we need to recruit new families; it has been shown that the younger in age children become involved in CISV, the more they LOVE it. We also must recruit for younger programs so we can feed into the older programs. We need EVERY MEMBER of CISV BV to actively help recruit. We will be reaching out to everyone to come support our recruiting process.
There are also many other ways to contribute to our chapter’s success – and board membership is not required! Pease take a few minutes to review here the many ways to support BV as well as all the volunteer opportunities for the upcoming year. Those who have volunteered in the past are happy to discuss with you our more specific needs. If you are interested in learning more about volunteering, please contact Marion Henderson, our volunteer coordinator.We also have a very strong and committed Junior Branch. One of the other ways we feel our chapter will grow is to increase communication with our JB. We encourage all to check out our Website (of which, by the way, we are in the midst of updating, so keep your eyes out), as well as connect through our two Facebook pages ( JB and entire membership) and our new Twitter feed!
– Jodi Knapp, President
Hi, from the JB Board
On behalf of everyone on the Junior Branch board, I want to say welcome into The Year of Sustainable Development and Human Rights!
The JB board is SUPER excited to get started with activities, and we can’t wait to hear about everyone’s summer experiences, abroad and in his or her own backyards! We met for the first time last weekend and created some goals for the entire junior branch this year.
Here are a few of them:
– To create a SAFE and FUN learning environment for all JBers to engage in a dynamic conversation around building peace throughout the year.
– To DISPEL THE MYTH, or challenge the belief that you have to travel in order to be a real CISVer.
– To have ACTIVE participants in our JB, who aren’t just active in our local chapter, but in our greater West Chester and Philadelphia community.
See you all September 7th!
– India Henderson, JB President
Peace One Day, Fun Day and Global Feast for Peace Combined!
This year, BV will celebrate Peace One Day while reaching out to others in the community to learn about CISV. From 3 pm to 5 pm, the JB and adult members of BV will meet at West Goshen Park to participate in kickball, volleyball and other fun activities. We will be inviting all those in the park and beyond to join in on the fun. Check out our flyer and share with friends and family.
In addition, we will be using this day as a recruitment event, so please reach out to any new prospective members, especially families with 10- to 11-year children and invite them to our “Fun Day.” Parents will have the opportunity to meet with board members attending, and children will meet with JB board members, who will introduce BV CISV through interactive activities!
After all the fun, members of BV CISV will sit down for a pot luck meal as a way to incorporate activities surrounding Global Feast for Peace, which is held annually during Peace Week. We have registered BV CISV with the program, thanks to our JB Mosaic Chair Liddy Grossman.
Created by a United Nations Resolution in the 1980s, Global Feast for Peace encourages families, friends, organizations across the world to gather and break bread together.
CISV in Motion: Don’t Miss It!
CISV National will hold its annual National Board Meeting (NBM), the National Youth Board Meeting (NYBM), and the CISV In Motion Conference from October 13th to 16th, in Covington, KY.
In addition to the annual Football Pool, where BV finds out its programs for the coming year, CIM offers attendees a chance to catch up with other chapter representatives, share best practices, and attend sessions on a variety of topics covering conflict resolution, fundraising, public relations, leadership, recruiting and retention, and more!
CIM is open to all adult CISV members, and 10 Junior Branch members can attend. To join the fun and for more information on cost and registration, click here.
LMO: We are Not Alone! Peace Day Philly
Founded by a small group of individuals in 2011 as a grassroots initiative, Peace Day Philly is also inspired by the concept of a global day of peace. The organization encourages others to use Peace One Day as one of local opportunity. For the past three years, the organization has hosted across the region from 24 to 30+ activities and programs focusing on peace education.
This year, participants can join in activities such as Yoga for Peace and Chalk4Peace, as well as enjoy a jazz festival and shopping at the International Peace Day Festival and Market. To learn more about all activities taking place from Sept. 18 to the 24, click here.
The Legacy of Village
A huge thank you goes out to all who helped with our summer Comic Book Village this year. As you know, we could not put on such a large event without the helping hands of all.
We had many food donations left over, much of which expire in the fall of this year. We have decided to donate that food to Safe Harbor.
Comic Book Village
On June 26 , after the delegates’ first homestay, the On June 26 , after the delegates’ first homestay, the Brandywine Valley’s Comic Book Village was united after many months of anticipation at the Lancaster Mennonite School!
Throughout those four weeks, 46 delegates and 23 JCs, leaders, and staff learned together through activities and discussions that you do not have to have superpowers in order to make a difference in the world. Delegates and members of the leader group came from Brazil, Columbia, Denmark, France, Germany, Guatemala, Indonesia, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Thailand and the USA in order to go through their superhero training and build global friendships that will last throughout the years.
Fun activities such as decorating capes with their superhero names and powers began to build lasting friendships. More serious activities such as building a superhero planet that was destroyed and had to be rebuilt helped them understand more complex concepts like peace and justice. Open Day was held on Friday, July 8th , and in addition to our delegations presenting their countries, the Village sang the birthday song to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Brandywine Valley Chapter.
There were also many times when the Village all came together to relax and create memories they will not soon forget, such creating this video.
Thank you again to all who volunteered their time, opened their homes to the delegates and leaders, and used their other resources to help make this Village a success!
– Erika Kotroba, Village Staff
Communication Channels: How to Connect
Please allow Brandywine Valley’s e-mail address: brandywine@cisvusa.org. through your spam filters. In addition, don’t forget to check our chapter’s updated and interactive Website, which houses all information on local, national and international levels.
Finally, members have connected on several Facebook pages that are up and running. Adult members, if you are not connected to the Brandywine Valley CISV group page, email Jodi Knapp. JBers are encouraged to join the CISV Brandywine Valley JB group. Ask a JBer how to get connected!