Burdick Gym was transformed into an atmosphere of peace on Sunday for the Your D.O.P.E event, hosted by Towson’s Alpha Phi sorority.
Students paid a $5 entrance fee to participate in an afternoon yoga program.
Vendors were set up to promote this idea of peace as well.
Herbal tonics, oils, raw foods, organic samples, yoga mats, yoga pants and T-shirts were all available.
“We’re hoping people will realize to take peace over violence and provide alternatives through yoga,” Nicole Ravettina, president of Alpha Phi, said.
The event’s proceeds will go to The Nicole Schiffman Foundation and The Carol Kestenbaum Foundation.
They were both set up to honor the memory of their lives and promote anti-violence and proactive lifestyles for children and teenagers all over the world.
Many of the officers of Alpha Phi helped in coordinating this event. Some even knew Nicole Schiffman personally, so this event hit a personal note for them.
“We want to gain awareness, help people feel good about themselves, have a good state of mind and not resort to violence.” Jennifer Gold, Alpha Phi officer and a close friend of Shiffman’s, said.
Sid McNairy, yoga instructor for Lifeline Power Yoga, agreed with Gold.
“This is Your Day of Peace Experience [was] created so college kids can have another avenue to release energy,” McNairy said.
Over the last three years, McNairy has traveled to college campuses to promote this atmosphere of peace through his program.
In 1996, he was a football coach at Northern Illinois University where he interacted with college athletes and students and was inspired to take this to the next level.
“We live in a world created and based on fear… It’s all about this fear of the future, but it’s really all about finding that peace in the moment,” McNairy said.
This event aimed to turn the tragedy that took the lives of Nicole Shiffman, who was a sophomore at University of Maryland, and Carol Kestenbaum, a sophomore at Arizona State University, on February 18, 2007, into a positive event of remembrance for everyone.
Rita Kestenbaum, Carol’s mother and founder of The Carol Kestenbaum Foundation, said when her daughter passed, she had to figure out what to do with all the energy within her.
“I wanted to do something good in her name,” Kestenbaum said. “I wanted to keep her beautiful spirit here with us.”
October 26th, 2009
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