St. Anne students commemorate peace and partnerships

Grade 8 students from St. Anne Inquiry School gathered at the Rotary Park Peace Plaza with members of the Saskatoon Nutana Rotary Club for an annual event celebrating peace, partnership, and community engagement. 

Peggy Clark, co-president of the Rotary Club, and Rotarian Asit Sarkar spoke on the strong ties between the Rotary Club and the school division, and explained the significance of the Peace Plaza and various aspects of peace represented by various Nobel Peace Prize laureates recognized with commemorative bricks. Louise Rochon and Joe Dierker sponsored this year’s brick commemorating 2018 Nobel Peace Prize recipients Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad.

St. Anne principal Kris Hanson shared  greetings from the students and staff, and stated how important the event is for students to be active members in the community and learn public speaking.

Diane Boyko, Board Chair for Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools Board of Education highlighted the value of educational partnerships in fostering peace and understanding.

Andrea Lafond, CEO of the Meewasin Valley Authority, also delivered remarks on the value of the ongoing partnerships and student engagement.

Students presented on of the significance of Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad, who received the Nobel Peace Prize "for their efforts to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war and armed conflict”.  Dr. Mukwege is a doctor who established Panzi Hospital in Congo, where he and his staff have treated the injuries of thousands of women victims of sexual violence during ongoing civil wars. Nadia is a minority Yazidi originally from Iraq. She was captured by the Islamic State, tortured and repeatedly sexually assaulted. After her escape, she has been a vocal advocate against human trafficking and sexual violence in war and conflict.