SOS Children nominated for 2011 Nobel Peace Prize

Chris Davis, Pincher Creek Voice

Tana Silverland, earlier this year, east of Brocket on her
awareness-raising journey around Canada for SOS Children's Villages
Chris Davis photo

"SOS Children - a charity where deeds speak louder than words" - The Dalai Lama

     SOS Children International is an aid organization founded in 1949 that has been building communities for children worldwide who have nobody else to turn to. They currently run 518 SOS Children’s Villages and 392 Youth Homes, caring directly for more than 78,000 children in 125 countries, providing them with a home, a family, and a mother.  Their Family Strengthening Programmes support the unity of more than one million families, helping them stay together in their communities.
     In their nearly sixty years of operation they have been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize 16 times, but have never won it.  They are up for that award again this year.  A record 241 candidates have been nominated this year.  The winners of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize will be announced on Friday, October 7, 2011. The award comes with a 1.5 million-dollar prize fund.


SOS Children International was the recipient of the 2002 Hilton Humanitarian Prize, which included one million dollars towards furhtering their work. In 2005 SOS was awarded the "Woman of the Year" social commitment prize by the Women’s World Forum, in recognition of the care nearly 6,000 SOS mothers provide for children.

UK native Tana Silverland has been on a recumbent-bicycle tour of Canada since June 2010 promoting this wonderful organization.  Pincher Creek was one of her stops this spring, where she was hosted by the local Rotary Club.  She's somewhere out beyond Espanola, Ontario at this point, with no end to her inspired journey in sight yet.

Links:
www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk
tanasilverland.wordpress.com