2008 Woodie Awards
Menchu Visits Valley
Nobel Peace Prize Winner Rigoberta Menchu visits the campus with a special message of achievement for students.
Maggie Ownbey and Susan Maltby
Issue date: 10/27/04 Section: News
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Rigoberta Menchu Tum, Nobel Laureate, spoke in Monarch Hall on Monday, Oct. 25 to share her message of achievement through action.
"Each person is born with a special mission to cultivate this spirituality," said Menchu, speaking through interpreter Madeline Rios. "It's important to have that spirituality and know your mission in life."
More than 250 students and faculty attended the lecture and had an opportunity to meet Menchu and have a copy of her book signed.
Deborah Harrington, Stars project Director, helped organize the event and spoke about its the importance bringing everyone together.
"In this room are all these different backgrounds and cultures, but the thing that unites us is education," she said.
"The goal of Stars is to bring the outside world to students so they can experience life beyond our Valley and campus," said Tyree Wieder, President of Valley College.
Menchu won the Nobel peace prize in 1992 for her humanitarian efforts to help indigenous people around the world and promote intercultural peace. According to the website Nobelprize.org, Menchu also worked as the organizer abroad of resistance to oppression in her home country of Guatemala and the struggle for Indian peasant peoples' rights.
The morning began with the strong steady beat of the White Buffalo Singers who sat on stage in a circle offering blessings.
Medicine man Peter Catches, a 38th generation Oglala Lakota raised a spotted eagle feather out over the audience and sang a prayer to bless the event.
"What we aspire here will go out to touch all people," Catches said.
Menchu spoke about the importance of working together, stressing how community starts with your family and how that carries over to work, school and the world.
"War comes from trying to take over and hoard the wealth of people," said Menchu, "that brings so much suffering."
Menchu was born on January 9, 1959 and raised in the Quiche branch of the Mayan culture. As a young girl she witnessed the poverty and brutality that her people suffered.
"Each person is born with a special mission to cultivate this spirituality," said Menchu, speaking through interpreter Madeline Rios. "It's important to have that spirituality and know your mission in life."
More than 250 students and faculty attended the lecture and had an opportunity to meet Menchu and have a copy of her book signed.
Deborah Harrington, Stars project Director, helped organize the event and spoke about its the importance bringing everyone together.
"In this room are all these different backgrounds and cultures, but the thing that unites us is education," she said.
"The goal of Stars is to bring the outside world to students so they can experience life beyond our Valley and campus," said Tyree Wieder, President of Valley College.
Menchu won the Nobel peace prize in 1992 for her humanitarian efforts to help indigenous people around the world and promote intercultural peace. According to the website Nobelprize.org, Menchu also worked as the organizer abroad of resistance to oppression in her home country of Guatemala and the struggle for Indian peasant peoples' rights.
The morning began with the strong steady beat of the White Buffalo Singers who sat on stage in a circle offering blessings.
Medicine man Peter Catches, a 38th generation Oglala Lakota raised a spotted eagle feather out over the audience and sang a prayer to bless the event.
"What we aspire here will go out to touch all people," Catches said.
Menchu spoke about the importance of working together, stressing how community starts with your family and how that carries over to work, school and the world.
"War comes from trying to take over and hoard the wealth of people," said Menchu, "that brings so much suffering."
Menchu was born on January 9, 1959 and raised in the Quiche branch of the Mayan culture. As a young girl she witnessed the poverty and brutality that her people suffered.
