Moms' apple pies find a new purpose

Peace message brought to Frelinghuysen's office in Morristown

BY MICHAEL DAIGLE, DAILY RECORD, May 13, 2006

	BOB KARP / DAILY RECORD Susan Waldman, left, of Randolph, shares a laugh with Laurie Pettine and daughter Gracie of Morristown as women from Morris Mothering NOW and the Morris County Chapter of the National Organization for Women visit U.S. Rep. Rodney P. Frelinghuysen's Morristown office.  (Not mentioned in the article, Mavra Stark, is in the background at the right.)

MORRISTOWN -- A small group of Morris County mothers on Friday presented the staff at Rep. Rodney P. Frelinghuysen's local office with pies as a symbol of the effort to slice 2 percent out of the federal budget pie for a federal Department of Peace.

"The federal budget is presented as a pie chart, so we use pies as a symbol,"said Laura Kraus of Boonton, who drew such a chart.

The pies -- coconut custard, sweet potato and apple, which were given later to a food pantry --came with a serious message.

"I do not want my new grandchild to face a world of violence and war," said Jo Sippie-Gore of Kinnelon.

The group was drawn from supporters of the Peace Alliance, Morris County Chapter of the National Organization for Women, and a subgroup, Morris Mothering NOW.

Shift from conflict

Kraus said the campaign's goals are centered around the idea that there must be a "shift away from conflict."  It is not a campaign to weaken the defense of the country, but to show that there is a way to focus more federal dollars on matters that relate to peace, home and family.

"We want to reduce violence of all types -- in the home, schools, gang violence," she said.

Laurie Pettine of Morristown said the effort to create a Department of Peace also focuses on the need for more recognition of the value of the work done by caregivers and women who choose to stay home and care for their children.

"There is a definite economic value to the work of caregivers,"she said.  The concerns relate to family leave time, adequate sick time and placing family values at the forefront.  "It is an election issue," she said.

The Morristown group was a part of a national effort on Friday to bring the message about the Department of Peace to members of Congress and to focus attention on economic issues that face caregivers.

Frelinghuysen view

Frelinghuysen, R-Harding, who was in Washington on Friday, said, "Caregivers and stay-at-home parents provide an invaluable service to their families, businesses and other aspects of life.  I have great respect for them, and I appreciate the information they delivered to my office."

He also said, "I agree that the goals of a Department of Peace are laudable.  However, I believe we can achieve the goals of freedom and peace by abiding by the Department of State's existing mission statement to 'strengthen traditional alliances and build new relationships to achieve a peace that brings security.'"

Sippie-Gore said the group came to Frelinghuysen's office to remind him that he seems to be drifting away from the moderate positions he once was known for and now supports more conservative issues.

Tricia Idrobo, statewide organizer of the campaign, said visits were made to at least six New Jersey congressional offices.  Her group met with several members of Sen. Robert Menendez's staff.  During that meeting, she said, the senator dropped by and indicated that he would consider becoming a co-sponsor of the Senate version of the bill. Idrobo said the issue is bipartisan.

A House bill was filed during each of the last three congressional sessions by U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, and a Senate version was filed last year by U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton of Minnesota, both Democrats.  The House version has 63 co-sponsors and the Senate version two.

How it would work

The Department of Peace legislation calls for a budget equal to 2 percent of the defense budget.  The department head would advise the president, the secretaries of defense and state and others to root out the causes of violence and promote practical ways to dismantle violence while it is in a formative state.

The department also would support the military by providing cultural, ethnic and psychologically insightful information, education and technology.

The bill also calls for the creation of a U.S. Peace Academy, a sister institution to the U.S. Military Academy.

Sippie-Gore said the pie presentation was timed to take place before Mother's Day to recall the original intent of the holiday.

The idea for Mother's Day is traced back to 1870 when Julia Ward Howe, a leader of the women's rights movement, sought to create a "Mother's Day of Peace" following the Franco-Prussian War as a call to mothers everywhere to seek an end to war.

Michael Daigle can be reached at (973) 267-7947 or mdaigle@gannett.com.