The Landrum Bolling Peace Fund

Dr. Landrum Bolling (right) receives an honorary Doctorate of Law degree from Notre Dame President Father John Jenkins. Photo: courtesy of The University of Notre Dame

Dr. Landrum Bolling, Mercy Corps Director-at-Large, has dedicated much of his life to building peace and helping people suffering from conflict and war. Over the past 50 years, Dr. Bolling has intensively pursued the resolution of religious conflict between Muslim, Jewish and Christian people, playing a vital role in the Middle East, Balkans and elsewhere.

To honor Dr. Bolling's lifetime of achievement, Mercy Corps has created a permanent fund to support initiatives that will further his ideals and vision far into the future.

Mercy Corps' goal is to raise $5 million for the Landrum Bolling Peace Fund. The Fund will be used to support three core concepts:

• Developing future generations of innovative peacebuilders and humanitarian leaders by providing motivated Earlham College students the opportunity to become directly involved in real-world experiences where they can gain a greater understanding of human need in transitional and conflict-torn societies
• Building more peaceful and just communities through civil society initiatives worldwide
• Responding to ethnic and religious conflicts through humanitarian action

Dr. Landrum Bolling began his career as a war correspondent covering the liberation of Sarajevo from the Nazis. He served as President of Earlham College and President of the Lilly Endowment. Five U.S. presidential administrations have consulted Dr. Bolling on issues in the Middle East and other troubled regions.

The Carter White House called on Dr. Bolling to serve as a back-channel link to Yasser Arafat and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), helping set the stage for the Camp David peace accords.

More recently, Dr. Bolling helped the Clinton administration reach high-level Serbian officials during the Kosovo conflict, leading one observer to credit Dr. Bolling with shortening the war by a month.

"Landrum's brand of quiet diplomacy and reconciliation at the most basic level of human relationships is an inspiration to anyone committed to peace. There is a moniker reserved for this rare breed and in my mind, Landrum is truly a warrior for peace," said Mark O. Hatfield, former United States Senator, Oregon.

"I have always been impressed by Landrum's youthful enthusiasm for the never-ending efforts that are needed to bring under control the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and eventually to nurture a successfully peaceful outcome," said Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski, National Security Adviser in the Carter Administration.

To contribute to the fund:

By Mail:

Mercy Corps
Landrum Bolling Peace Fund
Dept. W
PO Box 2669
Portland, OR 97208

By Phone:

1-800-292-3355 ext. 250