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Rick Polhamus is a
member of Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) and has worked in the
Middle East over much of the past 9 years. He has training and
experience in violence reduction, conflict resolution and
transformation, negotiation, and mediation.
Polhamus has lived
and worked in many places with CPT including extended stays in South
Dakota, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Palestine/Israel, and Iraq. He has
served on CPT's steering committee and has been the CPT
representative to the World Council of Churches. He coordinated CPT-Iraq's
"Adopt-A-Detainee' campaign dealing with abuses of Iraqi detainees.
He has also worked with CPT's "Violence Is Not Child's Play"
campaign and participated in many other CPT activities. In addition
to being part of CPT in Palestine/Israel, he has led many
international delegations that were exploring the issues of the
conflict there.
When home in the
U.S., he is often traveling to speak at conferences, universities,
churches, synagogues and mosques about his experiences in addition
to topics such as: Theology of Nonviolence and Peacemaking; Living
in a Global Community; Humor in Peacemaking; Living a Theology of
Love; Conflict Transformation and Resolution, Undoing Racism.
In his home
community, he is church board chair of the Pleasant Hill (Ohio)
Church of the Brethren and also serves as a deacon and youth leader.
He has served as witness commission chair, Annual Conference
delegate and in many other capacities.
He also works for
the Church of the Brethren on a national level as a member of the
Youth Peace Retreat Leadership Team of On Earth Peace and leads
conflict transformation trainings and mediates congregational
conflict for the Ministry of Reconciliation. He has represented CPT
at many Church of the Brethren events including leading several
insight sessions and being a featured speaker at their Annual
Conference. He has also worked ecumenically with many other
denominations and has led interfaith dialogues. He has participated
in many Disaster Response projects and worked on Habitat For
Humanity homes.
While working for
peace and justice and doing community service have always been an
important part of Polhamus’ life, he has also earned income training
and racing harness horses; as a cabinet builder, and as a general
rehabilitation practitioner in a traumatic brain injury unit.
He is 55 years old
but has been known to read at a 59 year old level.
Rick lives with his
wife, Margie, on a small farm in Miami County, Ohio. |