[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 114 (Friday, July 30, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1509]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING KIM EBERT-COLELLA FOR RECEIVING THE 2010 GREATER TACOMA PEACE 
                                 PRIZE

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ADAM SMITH

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 30, 2010

  Mr. SMITH of Washington. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Kim 
Ebert-Colella for promoting peace and understanding in her local and 
global communities.
  On the evening of May 22, Ms. Ebert-Colella received the 2010 Greater 
Tacoma Peace Prize at Pacific Lutheran University for her life long 
commitment toward peace and the wellbeing of others.
  The Tacoma News Tribune has called Ms. Ebert-Colella a ``walking, 
working proof of what kindness can mean.'' Following the Catholic 
teachings of social justice, Ms. Ebert-Colella joined the Jesuit 
Volunteer Corps after graduating from the College of St. Benedict. Over 
the next few years, she served in the L'Arche communities working with 
developmentally disabled people. When she turned 30, Ms. Ebert-Colella 
decided to volunteer at the L'Arche home in Calcutta where she worked 
directly under Mother Teresa. After her return to the United States, 
she worked as a youth minister at St. Nicholas Catholic Church in Gig 
Harbor, married Niko Colella, and had their son, Sam Colella, who 
attends Bryant Montessori School.
  Ms. Ebert-Colella followed her son to Bryant Montessori where she is 
a volunteer adviser for the school's Peace Committee, which encourages 
philanthropy and awareness of indigent areas of the world, and provides 
students a chance to work toward peace in their daily lives while they 
revitalize their local communities.
  Under Ms. Ebert-Colella's leadership, students from Bryant Montessori 
School choose an annual theme to implement projects dedicated to peace. 
For example, during the 2009-2010 school year, students decided to 
focus on water. Under Ebert-Colella's oversight, students raised money 
to buy four rain barrels to collect water to use on the school's 
garden. They also have a goal of raising $6,000 to give a clean water 
system to Las Maratos, a small town in Bolivia.
  Ms. Ebert-Colella motivates students to complete philanthropic 
projects and fundraisers, which have since become known as peace 
projects. Through these peace projects, Ms. Ebert-Colella emphasizes 
the importance of working toward peace while living peacefully in one's 
everyday life. The Peace Committee also instituted a kindness campaign 
at the Bryant Montessori School in which the students report and 
recognize other students for doing kind and selfless acts.
  Ms. Ebert-Colella has led several other philanthropic projects such 
as designating the school as an international peace site and organizing 
a Disco for Peace dance, which raised over $9,000 to build a school in 
Pakistan.
  The Greater Tacoma Peace Prize was created as a gift the from the 
Norwegian-American community to the people of the region in 2005 on the 
100th year anniversary of Norway's peaceful separation from Sweden. The 
prize is award to an individual, group, or organization each year to 
recognize, honor, and encourage peace building, education, and 
awareness in the Tacoma community and beyond. Ms. Ebert-Colella has 
made an impression on several people in the region by working for good 
and touching the lives of numerous families and individuals.
  Madam Speaker, I ask that my colleagues in the House of 
Representatives please join me in congratulating Kim Ebert-Colella and 
her outstanding work to promote peaceful understandings throughout the 
Tacoma community and throughout the world.

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