The Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run, an international torch relay, will be coming to Centralia on Monday, June 22.
An estimated 50,000 children in over 1,000 cities and towns along the route are expected to participate when the Peace Run visits schools, youth organizations and local events, according to a news release from event organizers.
The team will cover 95 miles on June 22, running from Napavine to Des Moines on state Route. 507, passing the Peace Torch along the way. Runners will offer educational presentations that promote self-esteem and the oneness of humanity.
For nearly 40 years, the Peace Run has traversed over 160 nations throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia as a symbol of humanity’s aspiration for a more peaceful world, according to the news release.
A team of runners left New York City on April 16 and will pass the torch along the over 10,000-mile route. The continuous relay will run through all 50 states in honor of the 250th Anniversary of America during the four-month journey before arriving back in New York in August.
The team will run in Alaska and Hawaii in September. The European Peace Run will begin in Helsinki, Finland, and will make presentations in 13 countries.
Since the inaugural run in 1987, more than seven million people have participated, the release stated. Commendations have come from many world figures including Pope Francis, President Nelson Mandela, President Mikhail Gorbachev, Saint Mother Teresa, Olympians, state governors, city mayors and celebrities across the world.
“By carrying the torch, you will be bridging cultural and social barriers, and all the boundaries that separate nation from nation,” Carl Lewis, a nine-time Olympic gold medalist, said in the release. “You will be the living proof of the ancient vision of having a beautiful and harmonious world.”
The Peace Run was inspired by Sri Chinmoy to give citizens a dynamic way to express their own hopes and dreams for a more harmonious world. An athlete, philosopher, artist, musician and poet, Sri Chinmoy dedicated his life to advancing the ideals of world harmony, the release stated.
Learn more at https://www.peacerun.org/us/.
