By Mary Hladky
Don’t miss it! Two inspiring activists will receive awards at the PeaceWorks Kansas City Annual Meeting: Alvin Brooks, beloved activist who has devoted his life to improving our community, and Darryl Burton, who was wrongfully imprisoned for 24 years and is a co-founder of Miracle of Innocence. Come hear their compelling stories.
Join us in person—masked or not—at the Annual Meeting on Sunday, March 5, 2-4 pm, at Simpson House, 4509 Walnut, KC MO 64111. Alvin Brooks is this year’s winner of the Charles E. Bebb Peace Merit Award, and Darryl Burton will accept the Kris & Lynn Cheatum Community Peace Award for Miracle of Innocence. Brooks founded the Ad Hoc Group Against Crime, and Burton is a leader in Miracle of Innocence, helping free the innocent and provide care for them when they come home.
Brooks’ 2021 book will be available for sale: Binding Us Together: A Civil Rights Activist Reflects on a Lifetime of Community and Public Service.
PeaceWorks’ Charles E. Bebb Peace Merit Award commemorates the life of Charles E. Bebb, one of three co-founders in 1982 of the KC Nuclear Freeze Coalition, which evolved into PeaceWorks Kansas City. The Kris & Lynn Cheatum Community Peace Award, which honors a local group striving for peace, commemorates Lynn, a co-founder in 1982 of the group that became PeaceWorks, and his wife Kris, a social worker and activist who was called the heart of PeaceWorks.
At the Annual Meeting, we’ll have finger-food (bring your favorite treat if you wish) and the opportunity to visit with other peace and justice activists. Listen to our two inspiring award-winners who will remind us that the work we do is vital to creating a better world for all.
—Mary Hladky is vice chair of PeaceWorks KC. (c) 2023, Mary Hladky, Alvin Brooks, Darryl Burton, Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 4.0 International License.
