All Aboard! CNI hosts 20th Anniversary Banquet
Posted November 20, 2009
Nov. 20, 2009
On November 17, the Council for the National Interest’s 20TH anniversary Gala Dinner was held aboard the SS Odyssey in Washington, DC.
The elegant evening event welcomed back the ten individuals who had returned to Washington just one day earlier at the end of CNI’s latest, 17-day-long ‘political pilgrimage’ tour of Israel, Palestine, and their neighboring countries. The dinner also honored CNI co-founder Congressman Paul Findley, who received a lifetime achievement award from MC Ed Peck. The numerous other VIPs present included Mrs. Harriet Fulbright, who took part in the previous CNI political pilgrimage, in May 2009.
Participants from the two CNI pilgrimage tours conducted this year shared their principal findings with the other attendees via PowerPoint, video, photography, and spoken-word presentations. Congressman Findley delivered a stirring speech about the founding of CNI and the challenges the organization has faced over the years.
“This is a moment of reflection for me,” said Findley. “Twenty years ago I wondered if CNI could survive. Now I know it will survive, and I hope it does until Israel ceases to be a criminal state.”
The banquet was designed as a community-building event—and also to raise funds for the CNI Foundation’s continued pursuit of projects to raise public awareness about US policies in the Middle East. You can help sustain our projects by clicking the “donate now” tab at the bottom of the screen.
