Yeon Ah Nim is an incredible woman. We could see it not only in her way of loving members but in the way she reached out to and embraced the guests at our event. Simply put, she loves people.

Our event was at the Embassy Suites Hotel in West Little Rock. We had arranged the room for 120 people. Though we did not have a banquet, we did have refreshments and finger food before the main program. We did not know how it would turn out since there were essentially the state leader and myself working full time on the event. Still members worked hard calling their contacts, and every one of the Central Blessed Families brought a good number of guests.

Before 6 p.m. guests began arriving, many guests, in fact. Though we planned for about 120 to 130, in fact nearly 160 people came. The tables were full, and we had to put out chairs along the wall to accommodate everyone. My wife, Emiko, brought 18 guests from her Mt. Fuji restaurant. Roberto, our Hispanic brother, brought 18 from a Hispanic church. Our close Ambassador for Peace, Mrs. Rubye Emerson, who just recently moved back to South Arkansas after having moved to Memphis for the past 3 or 4 years, brought ten community leaders from South Arkansas. They traveled 2 hours to get to the event. The Islamic community (W.D. Muhammad's group) also brought over 10 guests. One Imam brought 2 Christian ministers, one of them the Vice President of the Ministerial Alliance of Lee County in our state.

Our plan was to work through our base of close contacts and have them invite people to come, and that is exactly what happened. We commissioned nearly 30 new Ambassadors for Peace and had 30 women receive Women of Destiny Awards. We heard that Yeon Ah Nim wanted to meet women leaders and so we organized a reception for her at 6 p.m. before the main program at 7.

Twenty-five women leaders of Arkansas came to the reception room and warmly greeted Yeon Ah Nim. They were there for nearly 40 minutes, even after our preprogram was beginning. We had a beautiful preprogram that began at exactly 6:30 p.m. on time. We had musical entertainment from a Christian Methodist Episcopal men's group. A choir from a Hispanic church next added to the spirit. We closed out with a beautiful song from Rev. John Jackson's daughter and friend, who performed wonderfully. Bruce Biggin, UPF coordinator for Arkansas, gave the Ambassador for Peace PowerPoint presentation, and we closed out the preprogram with the burning ceremony and spirit world messages. By this time everyone was in their seat and the room was filled to capacity.

There were a Christian prayer, a Muslim prayer, and a Hindu prayer to start us off. Mrs. Rubye Emerson gave a beautiful presentation of the Ambassadors for Peace initiative and was interrupted often with applause and Amens. We had a beautiful Blessing toast. Rev. John Jackson, who was our MC, gave a beautiful explanation of the Blessing of marriage that Father and Mother have been doing; especially he shared about the great value of cross-cultural marriage using his wife and he as an example. We received a beautiful letter addressed to Yeon Ah Nim from a U.S. Senator warmly welcoming her and encouraging her. We also received a proclamation from the Little Rock and North Little Rock mayors.

Mrs. Jerelyn Duncan, Executive Director of the Arkansas Martin Luther King, Jr. Commission, introduced the video "One Family Under God" with flair and real passion, truly lauding Father and Mother for their work for world peace. Next up was the incomparable Archbishop George Augustus Stallings. He roused and inspired the audience in a way that had them totally prepared for Yeon Ah Nim. He concluded by saying that Yeon Ah Nim was a member of the "Triple A." She was Appointed, Anointed and Approved. As Yeon Ah Nim approached the podium everyone stood to welcome her. She read the speech beautifully and clearly and gave emphasis where needed. She was applauded several times during the speech.

At the conclusion of her speech she was presented flowers by Bishop Harvey and Mrs. Wesson, an ACLC pastor, and a gift was presented from the Welcoming Committee. Next 7 newly appointed Ambassadors for Peace and 7 Women of Destiny came on stage and took a picture with Yeon Ah Nim. They already had their framed certificates with them as we had previous passed them out. Then all of the AFP and Women of Destiny were asked to stand. Next Yeon Ah Nim and 3 women signed the Proclamation. Finally Imam Aquil Hamidullah gave a powerful summary and call to action.

At this point, we were done. It had been a beautiful evening. Yeon Ah Nim stayed afterwards to talk to guests and to take pictures with them and members. After dinner she talked to some of the leaders and sisters who had gathered for dinner with her. After this she continued speaking with the sisters until 3:30 in the morning, pouring out her love and heart to them. She really tried to listen to sisters and understand their situation and give guidance. How much we could see God's unconditional love and concern and True Parents’ unconditional love towards us as she gave so much and attempted to understand everyone's situation well in an effort to give good guidance.

Before she spoke she sang a song to break the ice and make a connection with the audience, to help them feel at ease.

Jerelyn Duncan (Arkansas MLK Commission): She recently attended the ILC and AFP training in DC. During the film she told me: "I have to go to Israel and next I want to go to Korea."

Rubye Emerson: "What a remarkable young woman. I am so proud to be associated with this movement."

Bishop Harvey Wesson (ACLC Pastor): "It was a fantastic event and a fantastic evening. I thoroughly enjoyed it."

Yoko (Ambassador for Peace): "It was a very inspiring event. I was particularly inspired by Archbishop Stallings. His presentation really struck me."

Imam and Mrs. Hamidullah: "It was a beautiful speech. She did a beautiful job. I thank you so much for everything."

Mirei (Mt. Fuji Restaurant Employee): Mirei is not a religious person but is beginning to search for internal meaning and values. At the event Archbishop Stallings said that if you want to see God, look in the mirror. She was so impressed by him. When she went home, she asked her husband - how do I find God? He told her, go look in the mirror. She said that that was exactly what the speaker at the event said. She was amazed by this.