![United in Peace: Ursuline marks International Day of Peace]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1758317712/ursulinerochelle/awafv8voqj7kyts9leew/IMG_4024.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1758317712/ursulinerochelle/awafv8voqj7kyts9leew/IMG_4024.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1758317712/ursulinerochelle/awafv8voqj7kyts9leew/IMG_4024.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1758317712/ursulinerochelle/awafv8voqj7kyts9leew/IMG_4024.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_5/v1758317712/ursulinerochelle/awafv8voqj7kyts9leew/IMG_4024.jpg","width":1600},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_6/v1758317712/ursulinerochelle/awafv8voqj7kyts9leew/IMG_4024.jpg","width":2200}])
Sunlight streamed across campus on Friday, September 19, as Ursuline students gathered at the Peace Pole during Flex Time for a moment of prayer and reflection. The annual event, held on Friday in anticipation of the International Day of Peace on September 21, has been a fall tradition at Ursuline for decades.
The celebration blends prayer with a vibrant student art installation, Pinwheels for Peace, reflecting the school's commitment to harmony, compassion, and global awareness. Each year, students lift their voices in prayer while colorful paper pinwheels emblazoned with messages of hope and peace gently spin in the September breeze.
The United Nations created the International Day of Peace in 1981, during a period of global tension, as an annual call for unity and nonviolence. Communities worldwide have embraced the day ever since.
This year, Ms. Samantha Marrero, campus ministry coordinator and Religious Studies teacher, organized the event, inviting the school community to “bring a friend, bring your heart, bring the Spirit, and let us live out our call to be instruments of peace.” Her words set the tone for the prayer service, reminding students that peace is more than an aspiration. It’s a personal responsibility that begins with care and respect for one another.
"Standing together around the Peace Pole shows students that peace isn’t just something we read about in social studies or religion class. It’s something we are called to live every day, with and for each other."
- Dr. David Gelpi P'09, director of mission and formation
Faculty and staff also joined in the observance, emphasizing the importance of living in peace as a community. “Standing together around the Peace Pole shows students that peace isn’t just something we read about in social studies or religion class,” said Dr. David Gelpi, director of mission and formation. "It’s something we are called to live every day, with and for each other."
Ursuline's annual observance reminds the school community that lasting peace begins within and grows stronger when we choose to build it together.
- News
