Some of the team started the day with a peaceful moment at the beach in Marina.
"In sunrise-silence our waking mind becomes the lover of peace."-Sri Chinmoy
We were greeted by a lively group at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Santa Cruz County.
Sweta introduced the Peace Run with her usual heartfelt enthusiasm.
Mananya comes from a State where they had a big tea party!
Time to run.....
We had a great time sharing the message of the Peace Run and running with the kids.
We were very happy to be joined at the boys and girls club by Pratigya, whose parents Nayak and Nandita are longtime Peace Runners and help co-ordinate events in Seattle.
We enjoyed yet more beautiful Californian coastline to run along.
We ran to Año Nuevo State Park, where we were met by Chris. He was keen to tell us more about the park and hear about our 50 State run to honour America's 250th anniversary.
We met with a lovely group outside the Marine Education Center to share our common aspirations for living together in Peace. Many of them were volunteers in the State Park who had come along as they were inspired by the message of the Peace Run.
We passed the Torch around and heard about the work many of the volunteers do in the park. Many of them also spoke about how working outside at the park helps them feel more peaceful.
Kathryn from South Africa was moved to hear that Nelson Mandela had held the Peace Torch.
Thank You so much for such a heartfelt meeting in a stunning setting.
We are super grateful to Costanoa restaurant in Pescadero for providing us with lunch. Special thanks to Alex for delivering the food to us so that we could eat it in such a perfect place.
The veggie burger and fries were top notch and will keep us running!
We were joined at San Jose Civic Center by Kinkani, our co-ordinator for San Francisco area and her husband Dean (on ether end in the photo!) We were so happy she could join us and are grateful for her hard work in putting together a wide variety of meetings.
We were truly thrilled to have the opportunity to meet with Ringo Starr before his concert at the San Jose Civic Center, where he was performing with his All Star Band. Salil introduced the Peace Run and invited Ringo to hold the Peace Torch.
Just as the Peace Run has a motto, 'Peace begins with me', Ringo also has a motto, or call to action, 'Peace and Love.'
We had the chance to sing one of Sri Chinmoy's songs, A New World of Peace.
We were honoured to be able to present Ringo Starr with the Sri Chinmoy Torch Bearer Award for creating music with a unifying spirit and for establishing the Lotus Foundation, a charitable organisation that funds and promotes social welfare projects globally. Ringo is a lifelong peace advocate who has inspired so many people around the globe not only with his music but also his message of unity, peace and love.
We were especially grateful that Ringo took the time from his busy schedule on tour to meet with the Peace Run and receive the Torch Bearer Award.
We recorded a video of Ringo inviting all Peace Runners around the globe to join in his Peace and Love initiative. He invites everyone to join him on his birthday, July 7th at noon in saying Peace and Love. His aim is to 'create a wave of Peace and Love across the planet.' Another example of how small peaceful actions can create a ripple effect and make a real difference in the world.
Our gratitude again to Kinkani for arranging for the team to be given complimentary tickets for the concert. We enjoyed the energy and camaraderie that Ringo and his band exuded.
We also welcomed Stacy to the team for a day. Stacy is an art teacher at Finney Elementary School in San Diego. Finney have been a regular and favourite school to visit for the Peace Run for many years. Stacy was also inspired to travel to Rome a few years ago to personally deliver her students artwork and help the Peace Run set up a display at the Colloseum.
