North Bay teens lauded by Powell
Dawn Yun
The Chronicle
06/11/2004
When a tall, distinguished man came up behind
Kyleigh Kuhn and put his hand on her shoulder, she was momentarily
startled -- and star-struck. The man was Secretary of State
Colin Powell.
"He said, 'Am I in the right place?' "
Kuhn recalled with a laugh. "I see him on TV all the time,
and I was really honored to meet him. He cracked jokes. He was
personable. I was relieved that there was a sense of humor."
Kuhn, 17, her brother, Tucker Kuhn, 19, and six
other students from North Bay schools were in Washington on
May 20 to be honored for the work they have done with Pennies
for Peace -- Making Change Work, a nonprofit devoted to removing
land mines in Afghanistan.
The charity was begun last year by Kuhn, her mother,
Heidi Kuhn, and KGO- TV news anchor Cheryl Jennings. Heidi Kuhn
is the director of Roots for Peace, a nonprofit in San Rafael
that raises money for de-mining lands around the world.
Kyleigh Kuhn had been to the State Department
once before with her mother but not to the Treaty Room. She
said she was impressed by its history.
"When you walk in, the walls are lined with
pictures of previous (secretaries of state) ," she said.
"So it's neat to see all the different portraits. The room
is a really cool teal color and it's in a colonial style. It's
not like the rest of the State Department, which is modern.
This is very regal, there's a strong tradition there."
She said Powell's time with them was tightly scheduled.
He was introduced by an assistant, then Kuhn gave a five-minute
presentation outlining Pennies for Peace's achievements, including
raising $70,000 for de-mining in Afghanistan and for building
soccer fields.
"He said he hoped that we didn't give them
7 million pennies in bulk," Kuhn said .
Kuhn also read a proclamation from San Rafael
Mayor Albert Boros that thanked Powell for recognizing the work
of Pennies for Peace. Then Kuhn and her mother presented Powell
with a pair of silver cufflinks that have a shiny penny embedded
in them.
"He laughed," Kuhn said. "He said
they were to remind him of the value of a penny. He was surprised
by the cufflinks and said he liked them a lot. His aides thought
they were funny and cute, and they asked us for the story behind
them so he could tell others about them when he wore them."
Powell posed for a photo with the youths and dropped
pennies into a collection canister.
"He said it was his own donation," Kuhn
said. "He said before he came he had met with President
Bush. I wish he would have shared what he spoke with Bush about."
The other students honored were: Amir Maher of
Terra Linda High School in San Rafael; Rebecca Maher of Gallinas
School in San Rafael; Tori Ulrich of The Branson School in Ross;
Elizabeth O'Malley and Kelly McGaw of San Domenico School in
San Anselmo; and Shaylin Hoye of North Bay Christian Academy
in Novato. The students were instrumental in raising significant
funds for Pennies, said Heidi Kuhn. Also in attendance was Susan
Brennan, assistant to the head of The Branson School.
Brennan said she was impressed with Powell. "I
found him to be warm, receptive and approachable," she
said. "He spoke from his heart. He was very open and giving.
He was very engaging, and that was a nice surprise. He's dealing
with so much and being busy with what's going on with the rest
of the world. When I mentioned this to one of his assistants,
he said, 'This is what he lives for.' It was really one of the
most special days of my life."
For Ulrich, 18, a senior, the highlight of the
trip was meeting Said Tayeb Jawad, Afghanistan's ambassador
to the United States.
"That was my favorite part because he was
able to say what it was like to live there," she said.
"He said it was a great place to live before the war, and
they're trying to get back to that. He said he was excited that
we were helping them. He said it was a big change to have people
from the United States helping them so students can walk from
classroom to classroom without worrying about being blown up.
It's not something we think about, the fact that we can walk
to school without getting blown up."
The students also met with Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Petaluma),
who had heard about their efforts to raise money for Pennies
for Peace.
"And she told us about how she was trying
to get the United States to pass legislation to ban land mines,"
Ulrich said.
The students were later interviewed by Voice of
America and asked what they wanted to say to the children of
Afghanistan.
"I told them we worked so hard and that children
in the United States really do care about them and will continue
to care about them and will rally supporters for their well-being
in Afghanistan," said Kuhn .
The $70,000, which was collected last fall primarily
by children who placed donation canisters in schools and banks,
was matched by an anonymous donor in Southern California.
Another Pennies for Peace drive is planned for
the fall, Kuhn said. The charity is talking with UNICEF to help
roll it out nationally and, in the future, internationally.
"I would like to be able to raise a million
dollars," Kuhn said. "The United States made a promise
to rebuild, and you can't put together the economy and infrastructure
until the land mines are removed. You can't build on explosives.
"When we started this, I hoped to raise maybe
$10,000," she said. "I couldn't have asked for more.
Marin has really grabbed hold of this and supported it. I thank
Marin."
