Trot in peace activist’s memory set for Father’s Day
by Luke Z. Fenchel, published on June 13, 2012 in the Ithaca Times
Peter DeMott, who passed away three years ago this spring, had a motto: A day without sweat is a day to regret.
He meant this both figuratively and literally. A tireless advocate for peace, DeMott joined the Catholic Worker movement and began to work nonviolently for justice by, in his words, “addressing some of the root causes of poverty, unemployment, and homelessness.”
DeMott was also a runner, and following his tragic death in 2009, friends and family formed a non-profit to raise money in his memory. This Sunday, June 17, the third annual Peter DeMott Peace Trot will welcome more than 300 folks to walk, run, jog or stroller for a 5K fund raiser in his honor.
In addition, on Friday, June 15, Amy Puryear will be organizing a benefit concert featuring three like-minded acts. Dubbing it the Peter DeMott Peace Rock, the show will bring together her act the Double E, as well as the Grady Girls and the Evil City Stringband. Donations will be accepted for the 7 p.m. show at the Finger Lakes Wine Center, at 237 S. Cayuga Street, Ithaca.
Ellen Grady, DeMott’s widow, explained the history of the trot.
“He was an avid runner, his friends wanted to do a run,” she said. “And at first I didn’t want to do anything, and so we didn’t do it the first year after he died, but we did the next year and we’ve been doing it since.”
A co-organizer, Oona Grady, noted that last year drew together approximately 300 people, more than a hundred more than the previous year.
“It is a great thing to do for his kids and his community because Peter was so much about life and about living,” Ellen Grady noted. “His whole life was dedicated to peace and justice and grounded in that tradition. So this peace trot helps support this effort.
“Our friend Amy Puryear called us up and said that she wanted to do something as well. And she dubbed it the Peace Trot Peace Rock. It has expanded, and that is really fun and really exciting,” she added. “[DeMott] believed in physical activity, and we thought it was funny to add the dancing element as well.”
Peter DeMott, who passed away three years ago this spring, had a motto: A day without sweat is a day to regret.
He meant this both figuratively and literally. A tireless advocate for peace, DeMott joined the Catholic Worker movement and began to work nonviolently for justice by, in his words, “addressing some of the root causes of poverty, unemployment, and homelessness.”
DeMott was also a runner, and following his tragic death in 2009, friends and family formed a non-profit to raise money in his memory. This Sunday, June 17, the third annual Peter DeMott Peace Trot will welcome more than 300 folks to walk, run, jog or stroller for a 5K fund raiser in his honor.
In addition, on Friday, June 15, Amy Puryear will be organizing a benefit concert featuring three like-minded acts. Dubbing it the Peter DeMott Peace Rock, the show will bring together her act the Double E, as well as the Grady Girls and the Evil City Stringband. Donations will be accepted for the 7 p.m. show at the Finger Lakes Wine Center, at 237 S. Cayuga Street, Ithaca.
Ellen Grady, DeMott’s widow, explained the history of the trot.
“He was an avid runner, his friends wanted to do a run,” she said. “And at first I didn’t want to do anything, and so we didn’t do it the first year after he died, but we did the next year and we’ve been doing it since.”
A co-organizer, Oona Grady, noted that last year drew together approximately 300 people, more than a hundred more than the previous year.
“It is a great thing to do for his kids and his community because Peter was so much about life and about living,” Ellen Grady noted. “His whole life was dedicated to peace and justice and grounded in that tradition. So this peace trot helps support this effort.
“Our friend Amy Puryear called us up and said that she wanted to do something as well. And she dubbed it the Peace Trot Peace Rock. It has expanded, and that is really fun and really exciting,” she added. “[DeMott] believed in physical activity, and we thought it was funny to add the dancing element as well.”
