Granny Brings Message of Peace to Minnetonka

“My passion is working for peace,” Eleanor Wagner said, “and it seemed like a good fit since I’m a grandmother.” 

Wagner is talking about Grandmothers for Peace, a group she joined nearly three years ago. Members meet monthly to hold discussions, host speakers and organize peace-related action.

You may have seen members of Grandmothers for Peace in a recent . Wagner said she tries to bring some sort of action piece to every Grandmothers for Peace meeting she attends, like sending postcards to Congress. The group even wrote to Michelle Obama’s mother at the White House—grandma to grandma—and asked her to encourage her son-in-law to work for peace. 

Both Wagner and the Grandmothers for Peace believe in the interconnectivity of issues and peace as a common solution. 

“We’re having problems with our economy, the environment, unemployment, and we’re paying all this money in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Wagner said.

The money spent on wars could be put to better use getting things on track here, she said. 

Grandmothers for Peace started in the mid-1980s with six women from Edina who wanted to talk more about the nuclear issue and how it would affect their grandchildren, according to member Darlene White. Today, Grandmothers for Peace meets monthly at the , with an average of 20 to 30 attendees at each meeting. 

“We want a world free of war and violence toward children and women,” White said. “We think that is achievable with a change in consciousness.”

Wagner puts it in even simpler terms.

“I just don’t believe in people killing each other,” she said.

At 7 p.m. tonight, Wagner will lead an event on Winslow Myers’ book Living Beyond War: A Citizen’s Guide at St. Luke Presbyterian Church in Minnetonka, as part of St. Luke’s “Prophet People” series. This will mark the third occasion Wagner has held an event on the book, with previous sessions with the Grandmothers for Peace and at Wagner's own church in Minneapolis. 

Living Beyond War is centered on the idea of worldwide conflict resolution without violence. Wagner was originally introduced to it by another member of Grandmothers for Peace, and she said the book opened her eyes to the “feasibility of peace.” 

Of course everybody wants peace, Wagner said, but people tend to think it isn’t really possible, or at least not in their lifetime. Living Beyond War changed all that for Wagner, and tonight she hopes to make others aware of the possibilities for peace as well. The event will begin with a 30-minute video based on the book and continue with a discussion. All who are interested are encouraged to attend tonight’s free event. 

For local residents seeking peace, the group meets the first Wednesday of each month at 1 p.m. at the . There are no fees or membership dues.

“Anyone’s welcome and you don’t have to be a grandmother,” White said. “We even have a couple grandpas."