Malaysia RPCV Don Mosley to receive Pacem in Terris honor for co-founding "Habitat for Humanity"



Mosley was a Peace Corps volunteer in Malaysia and a regional director in South Korea. With a background in history, math, engineering and anthropology, he helped launch Habitat for Humanity during the 1970s. He has been on its international board of directors a total of 10 years, a record length of service that reflects his enthusiasm for building homes for poor people around the world

Malaysia RPCV Don Mosley to receive Pacem in Terris honor for co-founding "Habitat for Humanity"

Habitat official to receive Pacem in Terris honor
By Times staff

The Pacem in Terris Peace and Freedom Coalition announced Thursday that its 2005 award will be given to Don Mosley, a co-founder of the Habitat for Humanity organization.

Mosley was described by the coalition as “a tireless worker on behalf of peace and justice throughout the world.” He helped launch Habitat for Humanity in the 1970s and has been instrumental in establishing and raising funds for housing programs in Africa, Central America and the Middle East, as well as around the United States.

The 2005 Pacem in Terris Peace and Freedom Award will be presented during a 7:30 p.m. Oct. 23 ceremony in the Rogalski Center at St. Ambrose University, Davenport. Pacem in Terris is Latin for “Peace on Earth.”

Mosley was a Peace Corps volunteer in Malaysia and a regional director in South Korea. With a background in history, math, engineering and anthropology, he helped launch Habitat for Humanity during the 1970s. He has been on its international board of directors a total of 10 years, a record length of service that reflects his enthusiasm for building homes for poor people around the world.

In 1984, as national chairman for the Fellowship of Reconciliation, he helped lead a delegation to Nicaragua during the war there between the Sandinistas and the Contras. That experience had a profound impact on him and resulted in him leading many such groups on dozens of trips to conflict zones in Central America, the Middle East and other parts of the world.

He has been to Iraq three times to investigate the suffering of people there, with special attention given to the children. In 2003, he helped to launch the All Our Children campaign by which thousands of people in U.S. churches and mosques have provided medicine for Iraqi children.

Mosley spends much of his time writing and speaking in churches, universities and other settings. He is the author of a book titled “With Our Own Eyes.”

He and his wife, Carolyn, are leaders of the Jubilee Partners community in Georgia, which has hosted about 3,000 refugees from more than 30 countries around the world. The main goal of the Jubilee community is to express Christian beliefs through compassionate service to others.

The Pacem in Terris award is named after a 1963 encyclical letter by Pope John XXIII that called upon all people of good will to secure peace among all nations. Members of the 2005 Pacem in Terris Coalition include the Catholic Diocese of Davenport, Churches United of the Quad-City Area, St. Ambrose University, Augustana College, Pax Christi Quad-Cities, the Congregation of the Humility of Mary and CASI, or the Center for Active Seniors Inc.

Previous recipients of the award include Martin Luther King, Jr. (1965), Dorothy Day (1972), Mother Teresa of Calcutta (1976), Cardinal Joseph Bernardin (1985), Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa (1987), Mairead Corrigan Maguire of Northern Ireland (1990), Maria Julia Hernandez of El Salvador (1991), Cesar Chavez (1992), Bishop Samuel Ruiz of Chiapas (1996), Sister Helen Prejean (1998), Adolfo Perez Esquivel of Argentina (1999) and Lech Walesa of Poland (2001). Six of the award’s recipients have also received the Nobel Peace Prize. They are Dr. King, Mother Teresa, Archbishop Tutu, Maguire, Esquivel and Walesa.

Contact the city desk at (563) 383-2245 or newsroom@qctimes.com.

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