Dottie Indyke, Executive Director

For 35 years Dottie's work has focused on nonprofit management, media, and the arts. Most recently she was president of her own communications firm, specializing in marketing, public relations, and planning for nonprofits. For a decade she was a freelance journalist and art critic for national, regional, and local publications. Dottie was founder and director of Children's Radio Theatre, a children's radio production company whose programs were broadcast on 150 National Public Radio stations across the country and were the recipient of numerous honors, including a Peabody Award and National Education Association Award. She was vice-president of programming for the National Cable Television Association and the volunteer coordinator for the Smithsonian's Festival of American Folklife. She is a Board member of the Santa Fe Community Foundation and has served as a trustee of the University of Georgia's George Foster Peabody Awards, AID & Comfort of New Mexico, and Fine Arts for Children and Teens, among others. Dottie was the first president of Creativity for Peace.

Nancy Clayman, Director of Operations, Middle East

Nancy was born and raised in the United States, but has lived in Israel for most of the last 35 years. After three decades in the hi-tech industry supervising international activities and departments spread across the globe she chose to use her managerial expertise to transition into more meaningful work. As a mother of two daughters and grandmother to four (and counting), Nancy has a vested interest in working for peace. In her free time, when not working on a Sudoku, she sails, cooks, hikes, and walks the dog.

Silvia Margia, Director, Young Leader Program

Silvi was born and raised in Dimona, a Jewish city in southern Israel, where she established strong relationships with Jewish Israelis. After high school she moved further north and deeply connected to her own Palestinian culture, of which she is very proud. She feels her mission today is to be a bridge between Palestinians and Israelis. She says, "I believe that the existence of one part should not be a threat to the existence of the other part. The existence of the parts together enriches and empowers all." Silvi has been a social worker for 17 years. She studied at the Leslie University extension in Natania in the departments of women's studies and art. Most of her professional and volunteer work is with Palestinian and Israeli women and teenage girls based on her belief that the strengthening of women's voices will speed the peace process world-wide.

Frances Salles, Director, Resource Development

Frances grew up in England in a family dedicated to volunteerism and peace and social justice. She has worked with many nonprofits, including Rape Crisis, Women's Refuges, Age Concern, and the Council for Voluntary Services, as a volunteer, board member, consultant, and employee.

Jessi Cross, Director, Art Program

Jessi, LPAT, ATR, is a registered art therapist and was Creativity for Peace's assistant art director in 2010. Her experience includes art therapy and counseling for Catholic Charities' Center for Refugee Resettlement, Juntos Youth Summit, and TeamBuilders Counseling Services. She currently works with resettled refugee youth in Albuquerque and runs a private practice. Jessi also provides supervision and consultation to student art therapists and new clinicians in the field.

Anael Harpaz, Camper Support Coordinator

Anael grew up in South Africa during Apartheid. After finishing high school she and her family moved to Israel. She learned Hebrew, studied to be a kindergarten teacher, served in the army, and married a pilot in the Israeli air force. Anael raised three wonderful children. The death of her fourth infant sparked a long spiritual journey that continues to this day. In the early 1990s, during the first Intifada in the Palestinian town of Nablus, she encountered the suffering of the 'other' for the first time. It has taken years of spiritual seeking, studying many healing modalities, and becoming a spiritual healer before she found her life's work at Creativity for Peace. She is part of two Arab/Jewish women's groups, Beyond Words and Woman of Vision, and participates in many interfaith gatherings. Anael is a poet and has published a collection of poetry, "From Pieces to Peace."

Miriam Abed ElDayyem, Program Coordinator, Middle East

Miriam is a social activist, facilitator, and project manager. Born in Jerusalem, she has been living in Jaffa for the last few years. She completed a Bachelors degree at Birzeit University followed by a Masters in the Sociology of Education at Hebrew University. Miriam feels rewarded by helping people to improve their lives.

Elisa Keir, Assistant to the Executive Director

Elisa was born in Alaska, has been a multi-media artist since she was 5 years old, and has worked with nonprofits for 10 years as a finance manager and bookkeeper. Previously she owned and managed a music store in Chicago. She has worked with Creativity for Peace since 2006 and believes her enthusiasm and dedication help nurture change and understanding.

Itaf Awad, Camp House Mother

Itaf is a resident of Daburia, Israel, who holds an MA in political science from Haifa University. She managed the office of Daburia's mayor for 26 years, and served as consultant on women's affairs. She is a licensed facilitator in Marshall Rosenberg's non-violent communication method and a member of the steering committee of the NGO Circles of Listening, where she is a facilitator. Itaf also facilitates women empowerment and body and soul workshops.

Tal Shai, Dialogue Co-Facilitator

Tal Shai is an author, intuitive prosperity coach, psychotherapist and facilitator of evolutionary peace-building processes. She holds a Masters degree in counseling and spiritual psychology (USA) and has worked extensively on conflict resolution with Palestinians and Israelis. She is a college lecturer, works with clients in her private practice in Israel, and serves an international audience through her online workshops, products, and services.

Rachel Kaufman, Co-Founder

Rachel has 40 years experience as psychotherapist, educator, and social activist. She co-founded Creativity for Peace in 2003 out of a realization that it only takes one person to change history. She has a Masters Degree in Educational Psychology and a second Masters in Counseling Psychology and has worked as a teacher of special education and a clinical and school associate psychologist. In 1987, Rachel and husband Rick Phillips created the Deva Foundation with the philosophy that expansion of self-awareness can aid people in reaching their full potential. She has trained over 100 facilitators from 11 countries in this transpersonal psychology work. Rachel has conducted workshops and lectures throughout the world. She began traveling to Israel and Palestine in 1973 and has worked with Palestinian and Israeli peace groups, conducted video histories of Holocaust survivors for Steven Spielberg's "Shoah" project, and co-produced and wrote a documentary on the Holocaust that is used in American high schools and universities. A native New Mexican, she is the mother of two grown sons.

Debra Sugerman, Co-Founder

After a year of reflection about how to help the world one teenager at a time, Debra collaborated with Rachel to develop Creativity for Peace. Debra is a filmmaker and an artist who believes that peace begins within each of us and that growth and change are never easy. Her documentary, "Dear Mr. President," created with five young women from the first Creativity for Peace camp, is available for screening and purchase. For updates on her work, please visit www.LiquidSugarFilms.com.