The Rotary Club of China Lake is excited to plant our first Peace Pole on May 18, 2026. We began working on this project at the beginning of 2025, first focusing on finding the best location for a Peace Pole in our community.
I became the club’s Peacebuilder mid-year during the 2023–2024 Rotary year when Mary Lundstrom asked for a volunteer to step into the position. Our District Governor wanted every club to have a Peacebuilder representative for the year.
I was then asked to continue serving as the club’s Peacebuilder Chair during the 2024–2025 Rotary year. During that time, I participated in the Relay for Peace, presented the Peace Baton to the City, and began learning more about my role in building peace within our community.
I had heard a great deal about Peace Poles and how our District hoped every club would eventually have one. When I first spoke to our club about the idea, there were many skeptics who felt it was not important for our club to place one.
I began researching the purpose behind Peace Poles, how the movement began, and what the poles symbolize. I wanted to educate our board members on the meaning and importance of placing a Peace Pole, so I prepared a presentation for a board meeting.
After the presentation, one of our members approached me about presenting the idea to the Cerro Coso Community College Board Members to see if they would be interested in partnering with the club. The proposal was presented and accepted by the college at the end of the 2024–2025 Rotary year.
Heading into 2025–2026, we had secured a location for the pole, but we still needed to determine what type of pole would best fit our Ridgecrest environment. During our search for ideas, I was given the opportunity to meet Mr. Skip Gorman, a fabricator who has designed and donated many art pieces to our community.
In August 2025, we met for the first time to discuss the Peace Pole, and I shared examples of different poles from around the world. Mr. Gorman appreciated the ideas I provided and was excited to help us create a Peace Pole for the college. He stated that he would have it completed by December 2025, and he did exactly that.
We then began working with the college to select a location on campus for the pole. In January 2026, we met with Sean Hancock, President of the College. He showed us several possible locations, but we chose the site near the Learning Center, where Sean envisioned a labyrinth with the Peace Pole serving as its centerpiece.
We met several more times with Sean and his staff to finalize plans and prepare for the Peace Pole dedication ceremony. The Peace Pole will be dedicated on May 18, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. The pole is being installed this week, and we have planned a wonderful ceremony to present the art piece designed and created by Mr. Skip Gorman to promote peace within our community.
As part of the ceremony, Mr. Gorman will welcome attendees, and he has requested that we play “The Olive Branch” by Judith Durham. We will also distribute olive branches to visitors while sharing the inspiration behind the Peace Pole, concluding the ceremony by placing our Locks of Peace on the pole.
