Washington, DC, USA - “Be at home!” was H.E. Ambassador Nathaniel Barnes’ greeting as each guest entered the ambassadorial residence as the sun set on September 23. With his wife, Dawn Barnes, at his side, Ambassador Barnes proceeded to host this special gathering of peacemakers and friends of Liberia, commemorating the UN International Day of Peace.

I would like to share with the Ambassadors for Peace network one project called the American-Islamic Friendship Project (AIFP). This project seeks to build better relations between the people of America and the Muslim world by collecting messages of peace and friendship from Americans to people in the Muslim world and from people in the Muslim world to Americans.

This summer young American Ambassadors for Peace traveled to Gambia for the third time with the service group “Side by Side”, inspiring greater participation of Gambian youth in service and establishing lifelong friendships. Beverly Berndt, a teacher and administrator at New Hope Academy in Landover Hills, Maryland , created “The Gambia Project” out of her love of the African nation of The Gambia. Since 1998, she has been traveling each summer with groups of American youth, to visit, organize service projects and educational programs.