Mattie’s Foundation Needs You

Dear Friend of Mattie’s Foundation,

“Peace is possible!

It begins with a choice – our choice.”

This quote by my son, Mattie, summarizes the mission of the Mattie J.T. Stepanek Foundation. Since 2005, our volunteer-based not-for-profit has worked to create programs and activities that support people of diverse ages and abilities, faiths and nationalities, in understanding Mattie’s message of hope and peace, and in choosing peace as a deliberate action.

Right now, our world desperately needs hope, and peace.

Mattie had a way of explaining peace so that it was not only believable, but also desirable and achievable. He moved “peace” from an abstract concept to an embraceable reality – something that we can each choose for ourselves, for our communities, and for our world.

Across the years, we have created numerous programs and activities that support children and adults in understanding the message Mattie shared, and in making choices that lead to peace as an attitude, a way of speaking, and a way of being. These programs and activities have inspired and involved people who live in countries on six continents!

Today, we need your help to continue.

Our Foundation relies on the generous support of friends like you. Especially during times of economic challenges, a mission of peace is one that is most needed, and yet one that in great need of financial support.

Here are several ways you can help (all gifts are tax deductible):

• For a gift of $1,000 you become a Peace Champion and sponsor two schools or youth groups in our new Peace Certification Program.
• For a gift of $500 you become a Peace Messenger and sponsor one school or youth group in becoming Peace Certified.
• For a gift of $200 you sponsor a personalized brick in Mattie’s Park & Peace Garden.
• For a gift of $100 you become a VIP Peace Club Member.
• For a gift of $50  you and your family join our Peace Certification Program.
• For a gift of $25 you become a Peace Club General Member.
• For a gift of $18 you sponsor a teen in our Peace Club Teen program.

Like Mattie, we believe that “peace is possible, and peace is for all people.” We want to further Mattie’s message and mission of peace for our world through our programs and activities.

Please explore the many programs on our website, and support our effort by sponsoring one of our programs, or by making a tax-deductible donation to Mattie’s Foundation.

You may contribute online through our website (www.MattieOnline.com), or mail a donation payable to the Mattie J.T. Stepanek Foundation.

Peace begins with a choice – our choice.

Please choose to support our mission of peace.

Thank you,

Jeni Stepanek, Ph.D.

Executive Director

Mattie J.T. Stepanek Foundation

402 King Farm Boulevard, #125

Rockville, MD 20850

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Summer 2013 Kindness Campaign

Join us in a free international outreach activity!

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What does kindness look like? What does it sound like? Where is kindness evident in our homes and neighborhoods? How does kindness feel — in our hands, and in our world?

Join Mattie’s Foundation in celebrating a Kindness Campaign during Summer 2013 – a free outreach activity for people of all ages and in all places. Reflect on kindness, then respond and reach out and inspire others with your peace post.

Send us your photographs, your peace thoughts, your poetry, your artwork – your reflections on peace and kindness. Throughout the summer months, we will add your peace posts to our website campaign, as you help inspire others, and Make Peace the News.

“Kindness brings us together in the good times.

Kindness keeps us together in the tough times.

Kindness is essential for peace,

and peace is for all people.”

 – Mattie J.T. Stepanek    

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Send  your submissions to HeartsongBooks@gmail.com.

Photos and artwork may be sent as scanned attachments,

or sent as camera or cell phone photos.

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Click here to view your photos, artwork,

poetry, and peace posts!

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Free Presentation on Hope and Peace 

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“Our Dash in Time: Reflections on Dreams and Being” is the title of a presentation being offered by Jeni Stepanek, Ph.D., on Wednesday, May 8 at 7:30 pm in Rockville, Maryland. Sponsored by St. Raphael’s Catholic Church, the lecture is part of their lecture series and will be held at the church (1513 Dunster Road).

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Stepanek, an award-winning speaker and New York Times Bestselling author, is the mother of four children who died as result of a rare neuromuscular disease. She was diagnosed with the adult-onset form of the disease after the four children were born, and today relies on a wheelchair and ventilator for mobility and breathing. Her youngest child is the late poet and peace activist, Mattie J.T. Stepanek who was a frequent guest on talk shows like Oprah, Larry King, and Good Morning America.

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For more than two decades, Stepanek has been offering inspirational and informational speeches on  topics ranging from healthcare, education, and family/professional collaboration to disability, bereavement, and spirituality. The author of “Messenger: The Legacy of Mattie J.T. Stepanek and Heartsongs,” Stepanek’s upcoming speech will explore lessons she has learned from her son, Mattie, and also insights about how she has learned to celebrate life by making deliberate choices to balance burdens and blessings.

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Stepanek currently works as a Research Associate in Special Education at the University of Maryland and serves as the Executive Director of the Mattie J.T. Stepanek Foundation. During January, she accepted the 1oth Annual Mattie J.T. Stepanek Peacemaker Award from the We Are Family Foundation, and during March she spent a week mentoring international youth from 18 countries who gathered to learn more about tending to basic human needs as a tool for peace in our world.

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Stepanek’s presentation at St. Raphael’s is one of her most popular and highly requested presentations. The event is open to the public, and people of all faiths are welcome to attend.

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Admission is free, though donations are encouraged.

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For more information,

please review the flyer posted with this article.

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For anyone who is trying to send a form (Peace Network, Peace Club Memberships, Contact Form), there is some technical glitch that has occurred with our website mail process.

How is it affecting us?

Problem:

Registration Forms (Peace Club and Peace Network), Spotlight forms, and Contact Forms are not coming through to us (even though the sender sees a message that says “Sent Successfully”).

Temporary Solution:

Please send an email to MattieOnline.com@gmail.com with the information that should be on the select form. We will handle it from there.

Again, we apologize for this technical problem, and hope to have it resolved soon.

Thank you for your patience, and your support.

Peace, 

The Mattie J.T. Stepanek Foundation

May 12 Deadline for Current Brick Order! 

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Looking for a perfect gift to celebrate Mother’s Day or Father’s Day? Please consider a gift that celebrates your loved one, and also supports peace for our world. Sponsor a personalized gift brick in Mattie’s Park and Peace Garden.

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Click here to download our Brick Order Mail-in Form

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Click here to order through our Peace Shop

(Member Discount prices noted in Peace Shop)

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Mosaic of Gifts Collaboration! 

Looking for a unique gift to celebrate Mother’s Day or Father’s Day? What about an anniversary or birthday present for someone special?

Actually, any day is a good day to become a part of history through a personalized Gift Brick in Mattie’s Peace Garden.

And your tax deductible sponsorship supports Mattie’s Foundation!

Once or twice a year, Mattie’s Foundation places personalized Gift Bricks in the Mattie J.T. Stepanek Park & Peace Garden in Rockville, Maryland.

This activity allows members of Mattie’s Peace Network and Peace Club and other individuals and groups to place personal messages on bricks, while also financially supporting our mission and activities.

This spring, Potomac Valley Brick joined us as a “Foundation Advocate” – which saves us money on brick installation, and maximizes our program development and outreach efforts.

This is great news!

And last week, a member of  Mattie’s Peace Network made a suggestion:

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In the spirit of Mattie’s “mosaic vision of peace,” allow people to “collaborate on a gift brick” sending whatever they can afford, from $15 to $50, or more!

Each time the $199 per brick is reached, all the brick’s donor names will be listed on the website on the Brick Sponsors page. The brick inscription will include a peace message and collaboration date on which the brick achieved sponsorship.

We think this “mosaic plan” is more great news!

The deadline for our next order is May 10. So we invite you to participate in our Spring 2013 brick drive in one of two ways:

• Sponsor a brick as an individual for $199 (Peace Club Members $179 and VIPs $159). Do this through our Peace Shop BRICK ORDER form for individual bricks (click here).

• Sponsor a brick with others as a part of our new “mosaic plan.” Do this by MAKING A DONATION OF $15 OR MORE through our Peace Shop BRICK ORDER form for COLLABORATION GIFT BRICKS (click here).

Remember — MAY 12 is the DEADLINE

for bricks that will be engraved and installed in

Mattie’s Peace Garden this spring! 

Add YOUR name to our Spring 2013 Brick Meter! 

(click on image to enlarge)

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Free Catholic Charities Lecture 

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“Our Dash in Time: Reflections on Dreams and Being” is the title of a presentation being offered by Jeni Stepanek, Ph.D., on Thursday, April 4 at 7 pm in Hyattsville, Maryland. Sponsored by Catholic Charities, the lecture is part of the Health Ministry-Speaker Series being held at St. Mark’s Catholic Church.

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Stepanek, an award-winning speaker and New York Times Bestselling author, is the mother of four children who died as result of a rare neuromuscular disease. She was diagnosed with the adult-onset form of the disease after the four children were born, and today relies on a wheelchair and ventilator for mobility and breathing. Her youngest child is the late poet and peace activist, Mattie J.T. Stepanek who was a frequent guest on talk shows like Oprah, Larry King, and Good Morning America.

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For more than two decades, Stepanek has been offering inspirational and informational speeches on  topics ranging from healthcare, education, and family/professional collaboration to disability, bereavement, and spirituality. The author of “Messenger: The Legacy of Mattie J.T. Stepanek and Heartsongs,” Stepanek’s upcoming speech will explore lessons she has learned from her son, Mattie, and also insights about how she has learned to celebrate life by making deliberate choices to balance burdens and blessings.

-

Stepanek currently works as a Research Associate in Special Education at the University of Maryland and serves as the Executive Director of the Mattie J.T. Stepanek Foundation. During January, she accepted the 1oth Annual Mattie J.T. Stepanek Peacemaker Award from the We Are Family Foundation, and during March she spent a week mentoring international youth from 18 countries who gathered to learn more about tending to basic human needs as a tool for peace in our world.

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Stepanek’s presentation at St. Mark’s is being sponsored by Catholic Charities. The event is open to the public, and people of all faiths are welcome to attend. Admission is free, though donations are encouraged.

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For more information,

please review the flyer posted with this article

or call 301-422-8300.

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Return to Foundation NEWS page

30 Teens from 5 Continents,

1 Purpose – Just Peace.

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Thirty “Global Teen Leaders” will be traveling to New York City in March from around the world to participate in the 5th Just Peace Summit. Inspired by Mattie J.T. Stepanek, the annual weeklong gathering is the anchor event for the Three Dot Dash Initiative, a program of the We Are Family Foundation.

During the week, teens explore Mattie’s mosaic vision of a peaceful world as presented in his final book, Just Peace: A Message of Hope. The curriculum includes presentations, workshops, activities, and field experiences facilitated by world-renowned speakers who share expertise with the teens. The teens are introduced to tools and technology, and networking and mentoring opportunities, that help them shape peace projects that tend to basic human needs. Mattie’s mom, Jeni Stepanek (aka “Mama Peace”), offers morning sessions and daily conversations about “Mattie’s Message,” and shares components of the Pathways to Peace Program created by the Mattie J.T. Stepanek Foundation.

Nearly 150 teens from six continents have participated in the Just Peace Summit since it began in 2008. The peace projects created by those teens have positively impacted more than 15 million global citizens!

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Click here to learn more about

Three Dot Dash and the Just Peace Summit

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Click here to learn about the partnership

between Mattie’s Foundation and WAFF

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Click here to learn about the collaboration 

between Mattie’s Foundation and 3DD

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Follow #JustPeace on Twitter for updates

from our Global Teens and facilitators

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Micah Brackenhollow Stepanek

March 12, 2002 – February 12, 2013

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Mattie and Jeni Stepanek’s beloved service dog, and faithful friend and companion — “Micah the Peace Puppy” — passed away suddenly on February 12, 2013. He was one month away from turning 11.

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Micah danced every morning to welcome each new day. It didn’t matter if it was raining or sunny, or 4:30 am or the more reasonable 6:30 am — he celebrated life.

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Throughout each day, he served, and he loved, and he was faithful and true. And, yes, he occasionally was mischievous, but even that was endearing from this well-behaved Golden Retriever service dog.

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Mattie and Jeni received Micah as a 10-week-old puppy in training. He was amazingly smart and passed all of his service exams earlier than expected. Micah was Mattie’s service dog during Mattie’s final years of life. In the 8 1/2 years since Mattie’s passing, Micah has been a constant and loyal friend and service companion for Jeni.

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Micah was a very healthy and happy dog. He died suddenly, but peacefully, when a large, undetected and rapid-growing malignant tumor burst and ruptured his spleen.

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Though he is happily now back with his “Daddy” Mattie, he will be greatly missed here on earth, especially by Jeni for whom he was a constant companion.

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Micah — affectionately known as “Peace Puppy” — is being remembered fondly by people all over the world. He was indeed well-loved by many. In 2008, a life-size bronze of Micah with Mattie was dedicated Peace Garden in the Mattie J.T. Stepanek Park in Rockville, Maryland.

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Please visit our tribute page below to read some of the shared memories and messages.

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Click here to read Micah’s Peace Puppy

profile on our Board of Directors page

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Click here to read the beautiful tributes – 

Memories of Micah 

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Video of Mattie, Micah, and Jeni Stepanek

Larry King Live — September 2002

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Peace Club Kids Respond

to Mama Peace Messages

Peace Art from Peace Club Kid, Kaylee D. (Age 9).

Four to six times a year, youth registered in our Peace Club Kids and Peace Club Teens membership programs receive a “Message from Mama Peace” by e-mail. These messages share bits of inspiration from the writings or speeches of Mattie J.T. Stepanek, and suggestions from Mattie’s mom, Jeni, for conversation and activities that support youth as they “reflect, respond, and reach out” with Mattie’s words of hope and peace.

Peace Club Kids & Teens are invited to share poetry and artwork, photographs and peace posts, that are displayed on our Peace Club Kids and Peace Club Teens webpages.

We have received four wonderful pieces of peace art so far this month, from Kaylee D. and Leah D. who live in Germantown, MD, and from Jacob J. and Sammy J. who live in Pittsburgh, PA. It is very exciting to hear back from youth as they learn that peace begins with every thought and word and action, and with every choice we make.

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Click on images to enlarge

Click here to learn more about

Mattie’s Peace Club Memberships

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Click here to visit our

Peace Club Kids Gallery and pages

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Click here to learn more about our

Peace Club Teens and the Teen Peace Journey

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Martin Luther King, Jr.

Day of Service Hero Honoree

Jeni Stepanek, Ph.D. and the Mattie J.T. Stepanek Foundation are being recognized and featured  by the MY HERO organization in honor of the 2013 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service According to the MY HERO team, Jeni and the Foundation “have been chosen as a hero for National Day of Service because of your great work and dedication.”

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MY HERO has been collaborated with Jeni and Mattie on peace endeavors since 1997. Learn more about MY HERO’s work with Mattie’s Foundation by visiting “Our Collaborators” page here…. 

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Click here to visit the MY HERO Organizer page

Click here to visit Jeni’s Hero story page

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Additional MY HERO collaborative links:

Click here to visit MY HERO’s celebration of

The Foundation’s “For Our World Campaign”

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Click here to visit Mattie’s MY HERO Page

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Click here to visit Jeni’s MY HERO Page

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