City of Peace Annual Awards - City of Columbia Heights

To create an annual award that identifies and honors individuals, companies, organizations, and cities across Minnesota that exemplify the promotion of peace by creating and administering the means to enhance the lives of others by offering fair, ethical, and generous practices to all people, no matter their race, culture, or creed so we can all live together in peace in our communities.

Founded on the premise in Columbia, Heights, MN, by citizens, city officials, and civil servants after the September 11, 2001 terrorists attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and Pentagon in Washington, DC, that “Peace is something that has to be encouraged continuously in order to ensure a community of open arms to diversity for all who wish to buy into this vision of living together in peace, no matter their race, culture, or creed; most importantly during times of great testing and hardship”

After the September 11, 2001 terrorists attack on the World Trade Center in New York, and the Pentagon, in Washington, DC, Columbia Heights Mayor Gary Peterson aspired to bring the feeling of peace back to Columbia Heights.  

With the assistance of Sal Di Leo, a marketing consultant,  they created a movement for peace in Columbia Heights MN that would span many years.

They engaged a group of Columbia Heights citizens, city officials, and civil servants and set out on a mission to “bring back the feeling of peace in their community, while the whole world displayed fear and insecurity”.

Since 2004, the Columbia Heights Activity Fund, a 501c3, has taken on and managed this project by recruiting the help of many citizens of Columbia Heights and has built a series of three monuments as lasting reminders of the importance of peace and to help promote peace in their community. The three projects were the “Clock Tower Of Peace” in 2006, the “Police & Fire Tribute Of Peace” in 2010, and the “Heritage Tower Of Peace” in 2013.

Via these three endeavors a message went out to all citizens of Columbia Heights and the world, that Columbia Heights, MN aspired to become “The City Of Peace” and that anyone, from anywhere, no matter their race, culture, or creed is encouraged to come and live in Columbia Heights and join in this great endeavor and live in peace.