Who we are, what we do, and why...
Who we are...
Millions of children and families throughout the world suffer the devastating effects of war, natural disasters, poverty, abuse and abandonment. Without external assistance, these victim populations have little hope of improving their life situation. Mir Pace's executive team works together toward developing initiatives that help to reduce vulnerability, alleviate human suffering, and restore the self-sufficiency and livelihoods of disaster-affected populations, while inspiring others, particularly high school-aged youth, to serve humanity through selfless action. Mir Pace has provided life-changing volunteer experiences for teens from across the United States since 2003.
Board of Directors:
Eileen Weisslinger, Chair and Co-Founder
Terry Mullen, Co-Founder
Annette Quinn, President
John Fortin, Member
Mary Sacchitella, Member
Ana Bullum Shawl, Member and Bosnia-Herzegovina Liaison
What we do...
Mir Pace introduces teen volunteers to poverty and its tragic effects on populations worldwide and strives to help them discover the profound and positive impact they can make in service to others. Our proudest achievement has been to ignite a spirit of volunteerism that is now being carried on into their adult lives.
We target populations throughout the world who have been forgotten and left behind by international, state, and local agencies, and who are incapable of improving their life situation without external assistance. Since its establishment in 2003, Mir Pace has assisted the people of the Bolivar Peninsula (TX), Bosnia and Herzegovina, El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru, and Tanzania, E. Africa.
Why?
It's important to first understand "poverty." Poverty is not simply economic. Poverty is hunger, the lack of shelter, being sick and without access to medical care, losing a child to treatable illnesses, not having access to education, not knowing how to read, not having a job, not knowing how you will survive from one day to the next. Simply put, "poverty" is being unloved, unwanted, uncared for, and forgotten by everyone. Nearly half the world's population lives in poverty -- that's 2.8 billion people living on less than two dollars a day. Some facts to keep in mind:
Mir Pace is a call to action -- for the young, the old, the poor and the wealthy alike -- a call to change the world so that many more people may have enough to eat, adequate shelter, access to education and health care, protection from violence, and a voice in what happens in their lives and in their communities because they have been empowered by knowing that there are some people in this world who truly care.
Millions of children and families throughout the world suffer the devastating effects of war, natural disasters, poverty, abuse and abandonment. Without external assistance, these victim populations have little hope of improving their life situation. Mir Pace's executive team works together toward developing initiatives that help to reduce vulnerability, alleviate human suffering, and restore the self-sufficiency and livelihoods of disaster-affected populations, while inspiring others, particularly high school-aged youth, to serve humanity through selfless action. Mir Pace has provided life-changing volunteer experiences for teens from across the United States since 2003.
Board of Directors:
Eileen Weisslinger, Chair and Co-Founder
Terry Mullen, Co-Founder
Annette Quinn, President
John Fortin, Member
Mary Sacchitella, Member
Ana Bullum Shawl, Member and Bosnia-Herzegovina Liaison
What we do...
Mir Pace introduces teen volunteers to poverty and its tragic effects on populations worldwide and strives to help them discover the profound and positive impact they can make in service to others. Our proudest achievement has been to ignite a spirit of volunteerism that is now being carried on into their adult lives.
We target populations throughout the world who have been forgotten and left behind by international, state, and local agencies, and who are incapable of improving their life situation without external assistance. Since its establishment in 2003, Mir Pace has assisted the people of the Bolivar Peninsula (TX), Bosnia and Herzegovina, El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru, and Tanzania, E. Africa.
Why?
It's important to first understand "poverty." Poverty is not simply economic. Poverty is hunger, the lack of shelter, being sick and without access to medical care, losing a child to treatable illnesses, not having access to education, not knowing how to read, not having a job, not knowing how you will survive from one day to the next. Simply put, "poverty" is being unloved, unwanted, uncared for, and forgotten by everyone. Nearly half the world's population lives in poverty -- that's 2.8 billion people living on less than two dollars a day. Some facts to keep in mind:
- Each year over 8 million people die because they are simply too poor to stay alive.
- More than 800 million people go hungry every day.
- 6 million children die every year before reaching their fifth birthday as a result of malnutrition.
- The gross domestic product of the poorest 48 nations is less than the wealth of the world's three richest people.
Mir Pace is a call to action -- for the young, the old, the poor and the wealthy alike -- a call to change the world so that many more people may have enough to eat, adequate shelter, access to education and health care, protection from violence, and a voice in what happens in their lives and in their communities because they have been empowered by knowing that there are some people in this world who truly care.
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“The advancement of the poor constitutes a great opportunity for the moral,
cultural and even economic growth of all humanity. Let us look at the poor
not as a problem, but as people who can become the principal builders
of a new and more human future for everyone.”
~Pope John Paul II~
“The advancement of the poor constitutes a great opportunity for the moral,
cultural and even economic growth of all humanity. Let us look at the poor
not as a problem, but as people who can become the principal builders
of a new and more human future for everyone.”
~Pope John Paul II~
