NYPD COMMISSIONER RAYMOND W. KELLY TO DONATE MORE THAN 800 ILLICIT WEAPONS FOR THE NEW YORK PEACE ANGEL SCULPTURE

Weapons Shredded At Recycling Facility Will Be Melted Down To Create Art Work

JERSEY CITY (June 7, 2011) - Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly, New York Police Department in a historic and unprecedented press conference is donating more than 800 illicit weapons for the creation of the New York Peace Angel to be placed at One Police Plaza.  Lin Evola, founder of the Art of Peace Charitable Trust, is receiving the weapons and will transform them into this iconic symbol of peace. 

The event,hosted by Sims Metal Management at its Claremont Terminal recycling facility in Jersey Citymarks the continuance of an unprecedented collaboration of the New York Police Department (“NYPD”) with the Art of Peace Charitable Trust (“AOPCT”) to bring the message of peace through art to communities around the world.

Lin Evola, founder of the AOPCTbelieves, “We have a very real and achievable goal of interrupting the cycle of violence within our neighborhoods, our nations and our world by supporting the removal of illicit weapons and transforming them into inspirational Peace Angels.­­”

Commissioner Raymond Kelly states, “We commend the Trust’s inspiring efforts through artistic expression to help end the scourge of senseless violence most commonly manifested through illegal guns on the streets of our cities.”

The first New York Peace Angel will be provided by the Art of Peace Charitable Trust to be placed in the lobby of New York Police Department Headquarters at One Police Plaza in downtown Manhattan.  It will stand close to five feet tall and will be made from a mix of melted-down street weapons (confiscated by law enforcement) and non-radioactive nuclear missile casings.  Subsequently, the Art of Peace Charitable Trust will pursue the process of siting the larger New York Peace Angel sculptures at appropriate sites.

Bob Kelman, President – Commercial & Business Development for Sims Metal Management – North America added, “Sims Metal Management partners with law enforcement agencies on the local, state and federal level to ensure the safe and secure destruction of weapons as part of our efforts to make the communities in which we locate safer. We’re pleased to be here today and to be able to use our metal shredder for this noble purpose.”

About the Art of Peace Charitable Trust
The Art of Peace Charitable Trust (www.aopct.org) evolved from the Peace Angels Project, which was founded in 1992.  AOPCT is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to serving the public interest by interrupting the cycle of violence and actualizing change through peace building endeavors through art, youth leadership programs, job training and career placements.  Each Peace Angel will stand as a highly visible symbol of success, proof of how local government can encourage its people to embrace their responsibility to become involved in the healing and rebuilding of their communities. 

In addition to the hearty endorsement by many New York officials, the Art of Peace Charitable Trust has from the beginning received endorsements from international figures such as former President Bill Clinton, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, Mr. Sergio Duarte (United Nations Chief of Disarmament Affairs), and many other prominent individuals worldwide.

For more information on the Art of Peace Charitable Trust and the New York Peace Angel please click on the following link: http://goo.gl/I5O57.We can also be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/aopct and Twitter at http://twitter.com/aopct.