It is with great pleasure that the Play for Peace Board of Directors announces that it has awarded Richard Rutschman with the Play for Peace Founders Award in consideration of his extraordinary leadership and contributions to Play for Peace. His dedication, commitment, and unyielding devotion to the organization have served as a pillar in the founding of the Play for Peace community. "Richard is a true pacifist who is an advocate of social justice," said Craig Dobkin. "His wisdom has been a blessing to our PFP Community." Richard has organized and hosted weekend PFP Camps, training workshops, and activities for the past 20 years. In the camps and workshops, students learned all about the PFP Model, participated in PFP activities, learned to be PFP Youth Facilitators, and learned other meaningful skills.
As a Faculty member at Northeastern Illinois University, he hosted the annual Team Conference. He wrote grants as a Senior Member of the Chicago Teachers Center for 20 years, all dealing with youth leadership and engagement. He always found a place to add PFP to his projects and work. From the Association for Experiential Education, he received the Michael Stratton Award for contributing to the field of experiential education. He is a gourmet cook, often hosting dinners for volunteers and team members as well as bringing healthy snacks for the teens he works with. His energy and his ability to make the impossible possible is accomplished by his high grit level. We will present the Founders Award to Richard at the Play for Peace World Peace Day Celebration Glow Run on Friday, September 22, at the Bartlett Nature Center. We look forward to celebrating Richard's incredible involvement with everyone then!
