Dr. Ann V. Graber, resident of St. Louis, Missouri, has recently been officially appointed to serve on the Statue of Responsibility Foundation’s Board of Trustees. Prior to this appointment, Dr. Graber has been serving the needs of the Foundation as a member of the Religion Steering Committee.

Graber, who was born in Croatia, brings a deep conviction born of personal experience — for the need of responsibility to balance liberty in maintaining freedom. She suffered under Nazi and Communist rule. Her father was killed after putting his family on a train bound for Austria. Graber will continue to assist the Foundation in ways unique to her professional training and life experiences. Ann Graber holds a Ph.D. in Pastoral Psychology and is the author of the book, Viktor Frankl’s Logotherapy: Method of Choice in Ecumenical Pastoral Psychology. Ten years ago she initiated the Distance Learning outreach and has served as the Director of Distance Learning for the Viktor Frankl Institute of Logotherapy in the U.S.

Speaking on her recent appointment, Graber said, “In 2005 it will be fifty years since I came to these shores as an immigrant in my teens. In my earliest childhood I learned about Nazism, later we fled from Communism. By forsaking our land of origin, we became “stateless persons” and were consigned to a refugee camp. America offered hope! The Statue of Liberty figured prominently as a symbol of freedom that kept hope alive in my heart. In retrospect, it appears that life has prepared me through many trials and tribulations to take part in this visionary undertaking – to build a Statue of Responsibility to balance the Statue of Liberty in order to safeguard freedom.”

Speaking of Graber’s decision to accept this appointment, Daniel Bolz, Foundation President & CEO, said, “Dr. Graber is a passionate and articulate ‘Friend of Freedom’. Her energy to see Dr. Frankl’s idea become reality is most welcomed and highly respected. She has professional colleagues in well over 15 countries around the world who are already volunteering to assist the Foundation. We are confident Dr. Graber will play a key role in our success to build the monument.”

More about the Foundation

The Statue of Responsibility Foundation is committed to seeing the idea of Dr. Viktor E. Frankl become a reality. In the 1960’s, Frankl said, “Freedom is not the last word. Freedom is only part of the story and half of the truth. The positive aspect of freedom is responsibleness. That is why I recommend that the Statue of Liberty on the East Coast be supplemented by a Statue of Responsibility on the West Coast.” The Statue of Responsibility Foundation, a 501-c-3, non-profit corporation, has a two-fold mission: First, to raise the funding necessary to construct the monument. Second, and more long-term in nature, is to establish an educational scholarship fund. Scholarships will be given to applicants who have financial need and who can demonstrate how they have applied the principle of responsibility in their life – and how they plan to carry out responsibility following their university graduation.

Readers may find out more about the Statue of Responsibility Foundation, and see the design of the monument, by viewing their web site at www.sorfoundation.org.

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