Louis told eTurboNews publisher Juergen Steinmetz, speaking from his retirement home in New York yesterday, that he didn’t want to write an article for the New Year but asked eTurboNews to publish his article, which he circulated in the last IIPT newsletter written by him and Bea Broda a couple of years ago.
Peace Through Tourism became an essential line of thought and action by many in the global travel and tourism industry, also by the World Tourism Network. Under the leadership of Juergen Steinmetz, its founder, and Chairman, as well as Dr. Taleb Rifei, Co-Chair, its president, Dr. Peter Tarlow, and VP Alain St. Ange, and so many trying to make Small and Medium-sized travel and tourism businesses in 133 countries matter by facilitating discussion with governments, tourism leaders, association leaders to cover the wide spectrum of our industry relevant to SMEs.
Amid a newly re-emerging travel and tourism industry and bloody conflicts raging in Ukraine, Gaza, and many other hotspots in the world, the strength of peace through tourism has become so important that many of the leaders in this tourism world, whom many look up to for guidance, don’t know what to say when asked to provide recommendations for our industry to continue its influence on world peace. So for them, it seems to be easier to be silent on this subject and continue to set global trends for so many in tourism regardless.
World Tourism Network asked key leaders, all members and supporters emphasing that there are no correct or incorrect answers. Responses should come from experience and from your heart and gut feelings.
Looking for New Year’s suggestions on how tourism can play a role in maintaining peace? Feel free to participate. The deadline is DEC 28 at midnight Hawaii time or Dec 29 at 11.00 am London time. Email to jt*@wt*.travel or WhatsApp, Viber, or Signal to +1-808-953-4705
So far, we have received many great responses from members of our industry, who have expressed their true concerns and shared their experience and leadership.
So far, the answer from some holding the top positions has been silent, and we encourage those competing for high positions to participate.
When asking retired Louis D’Amore in New York, he said he did not have a specific message for the New Year but wanted us to share the last article he wrote for the International Institute for Peace Through Tourism Newsletter.
REATOR OF THE ONE EARTH – ONE FAMILY PORTRAIT
By Louis D’Amore, Founder and President Emeritus IIPT
At the IIPT Second Global Summit in 1994:’Building a Sustainable World Through Tourism, we had four persons who had traveled around the world: Edgar Mitchell, Lunar Module Pilot of Apollo 14 in 1971, he was the sixth person to walk on the Moon; Soviet Cosmonaut Dr. Georgy Grechko, who set a record at the time for the longest stay in space of more than 3 months aboard the Salyut-6 space station in 1977-78. They traveled around the world every 90 minutes.
IIPT’s “First Ambassador for Peace”, wheelchair athlete Rick Hanson of Vancouver, Canada, who in 26 months, in 1985 – 87, wheeled around the world, 40,000 kilometers in a wheelchair, visiting 34 countries and raising $23 million is support of spinal cord research.
Padre Johnson, who in the 1990s travelled around the world for 13 years, living in 159 nations, using almost every means of transportation available, including a few thousand miles of walking, to capture the faces of the Global Human Family.
But his story begins more than 20 years before that, in 1966 – 68, when he entered the Navy-Marine Chaplain Corps during the Vietnam War. Given his extensive medical background and also his very thriving community and campus ministry as an ordained Lutheran Pastor, he was officially assigned for the first time in American Military History to serve an independent duty position as both Chaplain and field medical officer with a black beret “River Raider” Assault Force One Special Forces Unit in the Mekong Delta Region. He cared for the body and soul of those he served and was branded with the respected name of “Padre.”
For Padre’s many successful lifesaving medical rescue efforts under some of the most mission-impossible combat conditions, during which he was wounded in two separate battles, he was very highly decorated with two Silver Stars, the Legion of Merit with Valor, the Bronze Star, two purple hearts and the Vietnamese Cross. He became one of the most decorated Chaplains in U.S. history.
A year after Padre returned from Vietnam, he was honored as one of the “Ten Outstanding Young Americans”—only the second time in the award’s history, from its beginning in 1938, that this prestigious honor was given to someone representing the military. The award was given to Padre for his many lifesaving medical accomplishments under impossible conditions.
Padre was also a very successful college athlete in football and baseball, during which time he was offered a bonus contract by the Brooklyn Dodgers. He was an emergency room and operating room medical technician during his medical studies. Then, he entered the Lutheran Theological Seminary at the University of Chicago and became an ordained Lutheran Minister before his four years of active military service.
Following his four years in the active military and in Vietnam, he was offered a series of state and national leadership positions in government and human services in Minnesota. There, he created and implemented successful community-based crime and drug abuse prevention as the Director of Development for the Governor’s Crime Commission and later as Director of Community Development for the National Technical Services Foundation.
In the late 1970s, Padre departed from his active Ministry in the Lutheran Church and returned to Wyoming, where his career was launched in Western, wildlife, and portrait art. His “Ghost Riders in the Sky” painting was globally distributed and won the national Western artist award.
At the pinnacle of his nationally recognized and celebrated Western wildlife art career, he received a Gold Medal Award for “the quality of excellence as a sketch and oil paint artist” in Oslo, Norway, where the Nobel Peace Prize is presented. At that celebration, he was strongly encouraged to travel the planet, under foundation sponsorship, to capture the best in human drama through his portrait art talent and in writing his worldview insights.
In the 1990’s Padre completed his 13-year Faces of the Global Family project by actually living with the people as they lived in 159 nations. During and following his global adventure, Padre painted and sketched over 500 portraits including his centerpiece painting of 25 friends, surrounding our incredible earth, representing the then 7 billion people that occupy a space on our amazing planet.
In December 1992, his book, “Journeys with the Global Family,” and his “Faces of the World Art Exhibition,” were celebrated at a successful premiere opening at the United Nations in New York. Another highlight of the overseas premier exhibit and presentation of his book “Faces of the World Art Exhibition” occurred in Beijing, China’s Forbidden City Royal Palace site. This was the first time the Chinese Ministry of Culture invited an American artist to exhibit at the Royal Palace site.
Padre arrived at the Second Global Conference a couple of days early with his art collection to exhibit. I had the opportunity to have lunch with Padre which was quite an experience, full of laughter and engaging conversation about his travels. During the Conference, Padre established a friendship with Georgy Grechko, the Soviet Cosmonaut, who also had an engaging sense of humor.
Following the Conference, Padre graciously allowed IIPT to use his “Faces of the World Centerpiece Painting” as an expression of “One Earth One Family” to promote together with our “IIPT Credo of the Peaceful Traveler.” He also gave us 25 copies of his award-winning book, “Journeys with the Global Family” to present to prominent personalities in subsequent Global Conferences and Summits.
I’ve remained in contact with Padre by phone over the years. In my last conversation with him a couple of months ago, he advised that they are doing a movie about his life and that he is scheduled to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor—the country’s highest military honor.
Bea Broda, editor IIPT Newseletter
