The First Annual Peter DeMott Trot
by Patrick O'Neill, Father's Day June 20, 2010
When Ithaca peace activist Peter DeMott died suddenly on Feb. 19, 2009, the community and the nation lost one of its greatest advocates for peace and justice. Peter, who died at age 62 after a fall while working in a tree, also left behind his wife, Ellen Grady, and the couple's four daughters, Marie, Kate, Nora and Saoirse.
Although Peter never ran competitively, he was an avid distance runner, who maintained a bruising pace that would have been considered fast for a person 40 years his junior. To honor Peter's memory, his friends from throughout Ithaca and beyond will gather on Father's Day, June 20, on the Cornell University campus for the first annual "Peter De Mott Peace Trot," a non-competitive 5K race that will also serve as a fundraiser for the ministry of the Ithaca Catholic Worker.
Peter was a committed Catholic peace activist who spent time in prison for numerous anti-war protests. A Vietnam veteran, Peter lived and worked with the late Philip Berrigan and Elizabeth McAlister at Baltimore's Jonah House as part of the Atlantic Life Communities before settling in Ithaca with his family.
Ithacans may remember Peter as the person who worked in high trees to supplement his family's income or they might have seen him running along the road on his early morning jaunts; his pace, like his spirit, always steady and strong. Peter tended his garden,
chopped wood for the stove and chauffeured his girls to piano lessons. Others joined Peter in his many direct actions in opposition to war. His final arrest came at the Pentagon on Dec. 28, 2008, a charge Peter never faced because he died before his court date.
The inaugural "Peter DeMott Peace Trot" will begin at 1pm at the '64 Grove, Cornell Plantations, Ithaca, NY. Registration opens at 11am. Those wishing to register in advance may do so by downloading the form at www.myspace.com/peterdemottpeacetrot. Contributions may be sent to 411 South Plain Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 or online at the above address. T-shirts to honor Peter's memory will be available for all competitors. The overall winners in the men's and women's divisions will receive a carpenter's hammer to be used to disarm any weapon of war or for construction purposes. Other adults and kids will also receive age-group "Peter DeMott Disarmament Awards."
For more information on the Peter De Mott Peace Trot, call: (607)-277-6932, email: demottgrady6@gmail.com, or see the website: www.myspace.com/peterdemottpeacetrot
When Ithaca peace activist Peter DeMott died suddenly on Feb. 19, 2009, the community and the nation lost one of its greatest advocates for peace and justice. Peter, who died at age 62 after a fall while working in a tree, also left behind his wife, Ellen Grady, and the couple's four daughters, Marie, Kate, Nora and Saoirse.
Although Peter never ran competitively, he was an avid distance runner, who maintained a bruising pace that would have been considered fast for a person 40 years his junior. To honor Peter's memory, his friends from throughout Ithaca and beyond will gather on Father's Day, June 20, on the Cornell University campus for the first annual "Peter De Mott Peace Trot," a non-competitive 5K race that will also serve as a fundraiser for the ministry of the Ithaca Catholic Worker.
Peter was a committed Catholic peace activist who spent time in prison for numerous anti-war protests. A Vietnam veteran, Peter lived and worked with the late Philip Berrigan and Elizabeth McAlister at Baltimore's Jonah House as part of the Atlantic Life Communities before settling in Ithaca with his family.
Ithacans may remember Peter as the person who worked in high trees to supplement his family's income or they might have seen him running along the road on his early morning jaunts; his pace, like his spirit, always steady and strong. Peter tended his garden,
chopped wood for the stove and chauffeured his girls to piano lessons. Others joined Peter in his many direct actions in opposition to war. His final arrest came at the Pentagon on Dec. 28, 2008, a charge Peter never faced because he died before his court date.
The inaugural "Peter DeMott Peace Trot" will begin at 1pm at the '64 Grove, Cornell Plantations, Ithaca, NY. Registration opens at 11am. Those wishing to register in advance may do so by downloading the form at www.myspace.com/peterdemottpeacetrot. Contributions may be sent to 411 South Plain Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 or online at the above address. T-shirts to honor Peter's memory will be available for all competitors. The overall winners in the men's and women's divisions will receive a carpenter's hammer to be used to disarm any weapon of war or for construction purposes. Other adults and kids will also receive age-group "Peter DeMott Disarmament Awards."
For more information on the Peter De Mott Peace Trot, call: (607)-277-6932, email: demottgrady6@gmail.com, or see the website: www.myspace.com/peterdemottpeacetrot
