March:April 2017 FCM Newsletter

group member
dignity datyon, oh
John and Bev Titus recently spoke to the Living Beatitudes Community after the worship service. They
are the parents of Alicia Nicole Titus who tragically died at the hands of terrorists on September 11,
2001, while working as a flight attendant on UAL 175. They described the horror of that day and the
days that followed with talks of war from government leaders and the media "feeding frenzy" which
hounded them afterwards. John described the daily routine of awakening after a fitful sleep, praying,
meditating, crying and writing in his journal which eventually became a book: Losing Alicia: A
Father's Journey After 9/11. Bev was paralyzed by the grief initially but soon realized she had to be
Alicia's voice for peace and justice in our world.
Immediately after Alicia's death, John and Bev began speaking out against the pending wars, writing
articles for newspapers, attending public forums, researching issues related to 9/11, the causes, why it
wasn't prevented, government policies related to the attack, Islam and the Muslim faith. All the while
calling for the perpetrators to be brought in front of an international court of law for the whole world to
see what the face of justice looked like. "War on Afghanistan would only result in more civilian
casualties like Alicia; while the war in Iraq had nothing to do with the attacks of 9/11 and would only
destabilize the Middle East", John stated. In the following winter they were introduced to an
organization of other 9/11 families, September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows, who were
speaking out on the same issues. Through "Peaceful Tomorrows", John and Bev began speaking at
conferences, public forums, Universities, churches at every opportunity around the United States,
Canada and Italy for the national peace alliance, Alleati per la Pace. Other PT members were going to
Afghanistan, Iraq and anyplace where there were victims of violence to show support and to call
attention to the perpetual "cycle of violence" that our country was caught up in.
In 2002, the John and Bev, along with a minister friend Betsy Coffman and friends from the
Swedenborgian Church collaborated with Urbana University to initiate the Alicia Titus Memorial
Peace Fund. The purpose of the Fund is to carry out the legacy and spirit of Alicia's life by sponsoring
programs for the University and community that promote and support a culture of peace. Since its
onset, Alicia's Fund has raised over $90,000, endowed a scholarship for an entering freshman woman
who espouses the values of Alicia, and has offered 43 programs on issues of peace and social justice
to the Urbana community. These include an annual event during the "Season for Nonviolence" to
honor the works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi; and, "The Great Kindness
Challenge" as a part of the international program, Kids for Peace. This year, there were over 4500
students from local schools who participated, joining 91 countries in doing over 500 million random
acts of kindness! Also, through Alicia's Fund, a cooperative service volunteer program has been
established with the city of Urbana linking Urbana University students and Urbana High School
students with community members who needed a helping hand. In 2016, Alicia's Peace Fund and the
City of Urbana concerted their efforts to proclaim Urbana as an International City of Peace, becoming
just the 145th International City of Peace. Each year an annual fund raiser, the Alicia Titus Memorial
Peace Run on the Saturday closest to September 11th is offered. It is a day of children's peace
activities, music, food and family fun.
Behind these initiatives is a belief that peace is not just an absence of conflict. It is a state of harmony
which occurs when human beings live together with active respect for one another and as responsible
stewards of our natural environment, seeing all of life as integral to the health and wellbeing of the
whole of creation.
DignityUSA’s 23rd biennial conference will be held in Boston, July 6-9, 2017 at the historic and
fabulously renovated Park Plaza Hotel. We will be exploring how our world and our Church can
be welcoming to and affirming to all. Plenary speakers include activist theologian Rev. Dr. Pamela
Lightsey, the only openly lesbian queer ordained elder in the Methodist Church and Associate Dean
of Boston University’s School of Theology; Catholic lesbian theologian Jamie Manson, Transfaith
activist Rev. Louis Mitchell, and Boston Globe Spotlight editor Walter Robinson. We are also
delighted to host Krzysztof Charamsa, the former Vatican official terminated for coming out as a
gay man in a committed relationship, for his first US appearance.
for additional information contact...Marianne Duddy-Burke Executive Director, DignityUSA
617-669-7810 (Mobile) www.dignityusa.org FB: DignityUSA
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