Korça, Albania - UPF-Korça and Ambassadors for Peace organized a project to raise awareness of the citizens and different institutions about the importance and value of the family on May 16. The Ambassadors for Peace were very inspired about this idea and concluded that one day would not be enough to emphasize the great importance of the family, so they decided to dedicate a whole month on this theme by proclaiming May as the "Month of the Family."
They started to work on the field with families in difficult situations and helped some of them. As a result, one teenager was able to unite with his mother after a long separation period while another young mother and her baby were brought back into the family. Also, in our weekly meetings with youth we included lectures on family values.
The main activity took place on May 16 at the premises of Korça State University, where an open half-day conference on "The Importance and Value of the Family at a Time of Global Crises" was organized.
Thanks to the cooperation with the Rector’s office, we secured the main lecture and conference hall that was recently renovated. The event started at 11 am with the participation of 111 Ambassadors for Peace, local government officials, university teachers, civil society representatives, local religious leaders, and Korça State University students. The event on the International Day of Family attracted the attention of the media, and several local television stations covered it.
The conference was opened by welcoming remarks by Associate Professor Gjergji Mero, the rector of the university. That was followed by a short video presentation on UPF international activities. The main speaker during the first session was UPF chairman Mr. Ali Lacej, who presented the five principles of UPF in a very original way. The last speaker of the session was Mr. Ermir Hoxha, a student at the university, who spoke on "Educating new generations with UPF principles and family values."
The second and last session started after a short break for refreshments and coffee. This session was on the theme "Ambassadors for Peace: Emissaries for Strengthening Family Foundation." The series of speakers was started by Mrs. Klara Cela, a passionate Ambassador for Peace and chair of the Korça Women's Association.
The dean of the Education Faculty, Professor Aleksandra Piluri, spoke on family violence. She was followed by lawyer Marilda Menkshi speaking on the nuclear family. Legal aspects of the family were on the focus of the last speaker, Mrs. Zana Seferi, a lawyer and Ambassador for Peace. All of them were very serious in their presentations, referring a times to quotes from the Peace Messages of UPF Founder Dr. Sun Myung Moon. This gave us much hope and enthusiasm for the future.
The end was marked by the appointment of 16 new Ambassadors for peace. They were called forward by Mr. Sokol Rexhepi and were appointed by Mr. Laçej and Mr. Gani Rroshi, leader of UPF-Albania. The newly appointed Ambassadors for Peace were moved and hesitated to share their feelings but some of them spoke very supportive words and expressed their gratitude and readiness to contribute to building a world of peace.