PEACE PRIZE AWARDED BY WELLINGTON ROTARY CLUB
The Wellington Rotary Club has its Annual Peace Initiative which involves local schools, organizations and businesses in the promotion of peace and understanding, not only within the community but throughout the world. The local club has been a leader in the promotion of the Peace Initiative within Rotary International. Prizes are awarded to students, boy and girl scouts and community members who sponsor peace, multicultural understanding and conflict resolution. The separate annual Peace Award is always reserved for a person who, in the opinion of the club, has most greatly contributed to these noble goals.
The recipient is usually notified ahead of time and is presented with a plaque on U.N. World Peace Day as the person most epitomizing the peace initiative. This year the person chosen was not informed ahead of time as a surprise was necessary. This year, for the first time, a member of the Rotary Club was presented with the award at the ceremony.
Dr. Wes Boughner, a long time Wellington resident and past president of the Rotary Club, was deemed the Peace Award winner for 2010. Wes is the guiding light behind the Rotary Peace Initiative. He works tirelessly, but not quietly, on this project and has achieved much with the program that started back in 2002 with the first International Peace Program when he helped arrange for twelve Russian bankers to come to Wellington to learn our banking system. He helped promote the Rotary Peace Toast program where clubs around the world are toasted at Rotary gatherings. The International Humanitarian project and the Peace Pole initiative have all seen Wes at the center of the planning and implementation. Wes’ late wife was also a leader in establishing the Peace Pole project. Upon her sad death Wes vowed to continue on and has grown the Peace Initiative to what we see today including the Rotary Peace Park on Royal Fern Drive in Wellington. Peace Poles are on display at the park and other areas in Wellington.
Wellington is also a designated Peace Community and helps lead the way in the establishment of other Peace Initiatives around Florida and the United States.
The Rotary Club could not be prouder of the work of one of its own in the arena of the promotion of World Peace,
Dr. Wes Boughner is definitely a most worthy recipient of the Rotary Club’s Peace Award, as Person of the Year.
Larry Kemp
Wellington Rotary
larry.kemp@comcast.net