PeaceJam - Brett Engle

It’s 6 am and I’m in the bathroom of my 5 star hotel room, furiously tucking my best button up shirt into my brown Dockers, when I realize that I haven’t put any deodorant on. I quickly pull my shirt out of my pants and apply the deodorant because today is not a day to stink. I have 30 minutes before I need to go down the hall but I still feel like I’m late despite being showered and dressed. I’m going over a checklist in my head to make sure I haven’t forgotten anything because I am about to go meet His Holiness the Dalai Lama at his room and escort him to the police entourage. I am his host for the next 2 days, making sure that every detail goes off without a hitch. I can’t believe that I’m here, I can’t believe that I have this opportunity, and I’m determined not to mess it up. I’m only 22 years old yet here I am; the point person for The Dalai Lama’s visit to Denver CO.

That was 2 years ago. I was at PeaceJam’s 10 year anniversary where 10 Nobel Peace Laureates came together with 3,000 youth for a weekend conference. It was the largest gathering of Nobel Peace Laureates in US history and there I was right in the thick of it. I’d been chosen to take on this role because I’d met the Dalai Lama many times over the years through PeaceJam, and I am someone he knows and feels comfortable with.

This year on September 11-13th, we’re doing another PeaceJam International Youth Conference, this time in Los Angeles with 7 Nobel Peace Laureates. 3,000 Jammers from around the world are flying, driving, and busing in to take on The Global Call to Action, a plan to address the 10 core issues which the Nobel’s feel threaten the world over this next decade, by implementing 1 BILLION service projects.

I’m lucky because my mom is the Co-Founder of PeaceJam, and when it was founded 12 years ago I was 12 years old (and the youngest kid at the conference). PeaceJam brings youth from all over the world together with Nobel Peace Laureates who then pass on the skills, spirit, and wisdom that they embody. The youth participate in a yearlong educational program which culminates in a 2 day conference where they meet the Nobel whom they’ve studied all year. The energy in the room is electric when the Nobel first arrives, the anticipation and excitement palpable. The youth have prepared plans for service projects which they present to the Nobel during the weekend, and then they return to their community and implement those projects. Every year the cycle repeats with a new Nobel. It is because of this amazing educational program that I got the opportunity to meet these world leaders as well as thousands of young people like myself who are inspired by to work towards making our world a better place.

I would like to share one of the many messages that we get on our PeaceJam Facebook account. Messages like this give us the encouragement to keep working towards making the change we desperately need.

My name is TAK, and I was a PJ mentor down in Oregon State University for 3 years (Jody Williams, Rigoberta Menchu Tum, and Betty Williams). I am the Asian (Japanese) dude who was studying Brewing Science, and the guy who shared my history of abusive family (literally sleeping in a dog house) during the ceremony of inspiration. After that, you told me that you were proud of me sharing that story. I never shared my history, the scars on my body and soul with that many people in my entire life. My life was colored by violence and rage, and I didn’t know what to do. I got a bit shy, and I kinda looked away.

Now, I just wanna tell you “Thank you” Thank you so much for telling me that. In my whole life, nobody was proud of me. Especially my family. They just wanted to get rid of me, and that is one of the reasons that I moved to the U.S. right after my high school.

Ivan helped me out, too. The first year of PJ at OSU, right after the ceremony of inspiration, I went outside to cry and smoke a cigarette to calm my mind. He came outside and said “You are one of them, too, huh?” All I could do was to answer “Yes” and cry.

Peace Jam saved my life. I thought I would never be understood by anybody else. I thought there will be no help whatsoever in the entire world. After living in Japan, France, and the U.S., I didn’t see the help anywhere. I didn’t feel alright anywhere. Peace Jam changed my entire life from that point. I am still in contact with a couple of Peace Jammers, and supporting them because I know what they are going through. I know how lonely they could feel in this chaotic world.

I now talked to my family, and am trying to “fix” the gap between everybody. It’s actually going way better than I thought. Both of my parents are coming to the U.S. for the first time in 8 years. I am proud of my effort, but without Peace Jam, I couldn’t have done this.
Once again, thank you so much for everything. Without you guys, I simply couldn’t exist in this world anymore. Thank you.

Now all my energy is focused on preparing for the Global Call to Action conference in LA, which is the launch to the largest youth movement for change in history, where people like TAK are taking up the call. And you can too.

I’ll be there. This year I get to be a host again, but this time I will be taking care of President Jose Ramos-Horta of East Timor. Hopefully I won’t be as nervous this go around, but one thing I’ve realized over the 12 years I’ve been doing this – it’s always hard to keep the butterflies away when I’m with these amazing leaders. But that’s all part of the fun. I hope to see you there, feeling the butterflies too.

Click here to learn more about the Global Call to Action Conference in Los Angeles and register.