Brandywine Peace CommunityIt's so very hard to realize, let alone to say, that Tom O'Rourke has died. It's hard to imagine local peace efforts without him. I still see him on the other end of the banner in front of Lockheed Martin protesting nuclear weapons and "Star Wars," or in front of the Liberty Bell protesting the sanctions against Iraq, or getting arrested in front of the Philadelphia DA's office protesting the death penalty. I still hear him on the other end of the phone reminding me that I still hadn't sent the Brandywine Peace Community calendar listings for the Catholic Peace Fellowship newsletter, which he so ably prepared for so long as the director of the local Catholic Peace Fellowship. I can still see him across the meeting table, talking over the chores of our peace work: plans around the Hiroshima - Nagasaki commemoration, the visit of a Hiroshima survivor. There's Tom volunteering to do yet something else with a matter-of-fact "sure, I can do that." Bob Smith |