Former Ambassador and Nobel Peace Prize Nominee Tony Hall to Keynote 50th Anniversary Minnesota Prayer Breakfast

ST. PAUL, Minn., March 16 /PRNewswire/ -- The Minnesota Prayer Breakfast Committee announced today that Ambassador Tony P. Hall, former U.S. Ambassador to Rome and three-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee, will be the keynote speaker at the 50th Anniversary Minnesota Prayer Breakfast at 7 a.m., Wednesday, April 28, 2010, at Saint Paul's RiverCentre.

Music for this historic Minnesota Prayer Breakfast will be performed by Sounds of Blackness, a Grammy award winning group.  Also performing will be renowned vocalist T. Mychael Rambo and the Minnesota Teen Challenge Choir.

Ambassador Tony Hall is one of America's leading advocates for hunger relief and improved human rights conditions around the world.  Although from different political parties, Ambassador Hall was nominated by President George W. Bush in February 2002 to serve as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations World Food Programs headquartered in Rome.  Ambassador Hall was sworn in by former Secretary of State Colin Powell in September 2002.

Before entering the diplomatic corps, Ambassador Hall served 24 years in the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio.  In Congress, Ambassador Hall was a founding member and chairman of the House Select Committee on Hunger.  He also was the founder and former chairman of the Congressional Hunger Center.  In response to the 1993 abolishment of the House Select Committee on Hunger, Ambassador Hall fasted 22 days to draw international attention to the needs of hungry people in the U.S. and around the world.

In Mr. Hall's efforts to witness the plight of the poor and hungry first-hand, he has visited numerous poverty-stricken and war-torn regions of the world.  Ambassador Hall has spent time in more than 100 countries ranging from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe and was the first member of Congress to visit Ethiopia during the great famine of 1984-85.  He has visited North Korea six times since 1995, and was one of the first Western officials to see the famine.

In 2000, Tony Hall became the first member of Congress to visit Iraq to investigate the humanitarian crisis.

Ambassador Hall was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1998, 1999 and 2001 for his humanitarian and hunger fighting work.  He is married and is the father of two children.

ABOUT THE MINNESOTA PRAYER BREAKFAST

The Minnesota Prayer Breakfast is once again expected to draw 2,000 Minnesotans from every walk of life and culture.  Hundreds of community, business, educational and political leaders will attend, including the Governor of Minnesota, state legislators, mayors and other public officials.

The theme for this year's 50th Anniversary Minnesota Prayer Breakfast is "Unity" and the event is open to the public.

Chairs for the 50th Anniversary 2010 Minnesota Prayer Breakfast are Jim and Kathryn Ramstad.  More information on Tickets and Sponsorships is available by calling NWC Ticketing at 651-631-5151, or by visiting the Minnesota Prayer Breakfast website at www.minnesotaprayer.org.  Table sponsorships of varying amounts are available, with individual tickets available for $20 each.  Early ticket purchase is encouraged as a sellout is once again anticipated.  Tickets will not be available at the event.  

SOURCE Minnesota Prayer Breakfast Committee