Michelle Burba
630-571-5466 ext. 372
Kristopher Kempski
630-571-5466 ext. 371

For Immediate Release        

13-year-old Boy Creates Grand Prize Image in Lions International Peace Poster Contest

OAK BROOK, IL USA, February 10, 2006 – Cleverson da Silva Rosa, a 13-year-old boy from Brazil, is the grand prize winner of the 18th annual Lions International Peace Poster Contest. His poster was one of more than 350,000 entries created by children ages 11, 12 and 13, representing 75 countries and was chosen for its originality, artistic merit and portrayal of the contest theme, "Peace Without Borders."

Da Silva Rosa will be presented with an award and US$2,500 during Lions Day with the United Nations on March 10. The president of the sponsoring Lions club (Cidade Gaucha Lions Club) and da Silva Rosa’s father and brother will accompany him to the award ceremony.

"I was staring at a dark sky and imagined seeing our planet from a distance,” said da Silva Rosa. “Suddenly, I could see a white dove shining with light and bringing good news to Earth.  All the heads of state and people from all over the world decided to live in peace. In that moment, the world was filled with light, peace and love.”

"The Peace Poster program is a wonderful way to work with the youth in our community and provides a means for them to visually express their views of peace,” said Dorival Alvim Anderson, president of the Cidade Gaucha Lions Club that sponsored the contest at da Silva Rosa’s school. “We are proud to share Cleverson’s poster with people around the world."
 
In addition to the grand prize winner, 23 merit award winners have been announced, including Gina Lee of New York and Wade Angeli of Virginia who are also scheduled to attend Lions Day with the United Nations. This year’s other merit award winners are from Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Lebanon, Puerto Rico, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey and the United States (Arkansas and California).

Lions Clubs International President Ashok Mehta said, “The Peace Poster Contest represents a unique way for our members to reach out to the children in their communities and provides an outlet for these future leaders to express their visions of peace.”

The 24 finalist peace posters will be exhibited during the year at children’s museums and various locations throughout the United States. The display will kick off in June at the 89th annual Lions Clubs International Convention in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. The posters are also featured at www.lionsclubs.org.

Lions Clubs International is the world’s largest service club organization with nearly 1.35 million members in approximately 44,600 clubs in 197 countries and geographical areas around the world. Since 1917, Lions clubs have aided the blind and visually impaired and made a strong commitment to community service and serving youth throughout the world. Lions Clubs International created the Peace Poster Contest to foster a spirit of peace and international understanding in young people worldwide.