Pacem in Terris Peace and Freedom Award to honor Chad Pregracke
An East Moline native is being honored for his environmental work with a peace and freedom award from a local interfaith group.
Chad Pregracke will receive the Pacem in Terris Peace and Freedom Award from Bishop Dennis Walsh, bishop of the Diocese of Davenport, on December 3 at 7 p.m. at St. Ambrose University, 518 W. Locust Street in Davenport. The event is free and the public is welcome to attend. The Quad City Pacem in Terris Coalition, an interfaith group, nominated Pregracke to be the first recipient in the award's 60-year-history to receive it for work on environmental justice and care for creation. The award honors Pope John XXIII and commemorates his 1963 encyclical letter, Pacem in Terris (Peace on Earth), which called on people to secure peace among nations. Martin Luther King, Jr.; Dorothy Day; St. Teresa of Kolkata; Archbishop Desmond Tutu; Venerable Thích Nhat Hanh and the Dalai Lama are among the previous recipients.
Chad Pregracke, head and founder of Living Lands and Waters.
Pregracke started Living Lands & Waters in 1998. He, his staff and thousands of volunteers host river cleanups, watershed conservation initiatives, workshops, tree plantings and other conservation efforts. Since the first cleanup, they have removed 13.44 million pounds of trash from rivers in American, planted over two million trees and taught 28,000 students about caring for the environment.
'Care for our common home (the earth), so much a part of Chad's life work, is related closely to peace and justice,' said Deacon Kent Ferris, Social Action director for the Diocese of Davenport, which oversees the award. 'Chad's work helps us see what is possible in undoing the damage humankind has done. The momentum towards being in a right relationship with God, neighbor and the created world is a beautiful, powerful thing.'
'It's a super honor to be recognized. I don't expect it and don't seek it out,' Pregracke said. 'I know my name will be on it, but I accept it on behalf of all the people who made it happen – literally 132,000 people (all of the volunteers over 26 years).'
'I think his impact is huge,' said Kathy Wine, founder of River Action Inc., based in Davenport. 'I think his energy brought a lot of attention to water quality. He opened eyes when he brought out a barge filled with all of the things pulled out of the river.'
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