The official motto of Chicago is Urbs in Horto--Latin for "City in a Garden." All day we experienced this duality.
We had an early appointment with the helicopter crew of at WGN Morning News. They filmed us running along Lake Michigan and shared information about the Peace Run with their viewers.
Our team is delighted to welcome Raquel from Portugal who will be with us for the next two weeks.
A man named Infinite George stopped to hold the torch on the beach. With a name like that, the sky is the limit!
Which way do we go?
Next we enjoyed a hearty vegetarian breakfast.
And we're off to our first ceremony of the day...
Always meeting peace-lovers all along the way... This is Joe Plaza.
We ran through a neighborhood teeming with "Orgullo Boricua," a motto of Puerto Rican pride.
This man and his female colleague are nurses tending to encampments of unhoused Chicagoans. We admire and respect their humanitarian work.
Patty Carrillo is one of those people who knows how to get things done! Pictured here with Lunthita, Patty is the force behind numerous community initiatives including our next stop: Garden of the Roses.
Many neighbors came to the garden ceremony and enthusiastically joined in on the World Harmony Run song.
Pradhan, a Chicago resident who has managed large-scale peace projects, speaks to the crowd.
In our continuing adventure of collecting soil from all 50 states, we took a sample from the Peace Tree planted in Patty's Garden of Roses.
There are two plaques at the Peace Tree: one with an aphorism by Sri Chinmoy in English and one featuring the Spanish translation.
Sukantika, hard-working owner of The Peace Garden food truck, takes a moment with the torch.
We passed the torch as each person made a silent or spoken wish for a more peaceful world.
After the ceremony, Eli (at right) asked us to visit the Peace Tree planted four years ago in front of her house. We were happy to oblige. Eli's friend Claudia holds the torch.
The tree has grown alot since we planted it four years ago!
A little bit of local charm
Our next ceremony was in Chinatown with Project: VISION, an organization dedicated to helping youth reach their full potential. Here Chi Ho hoists the Peace Torch.
Maduvati holds the Peace Torch with Chi--a gesture that reflects their cooperative effort to bring this event to fruition.
Hand over heart... peace over restlessness.
Chi showed several pieces of artwork created by the youth group.
And then it was time to RUN!
Project: VISION members relayed the torch while running a lap around the park.
A little too young for the relay run, but this child was eager to hold the torch anyway.
Peace by proxy... Here Sandy accepts the Torch Bearer Award on behalf of Karen, Director of the organization.
It was a beautiful Chicago day inside and out.
Bryant and Julian from Bibipop Restaurant delivered and partially sponsored a delicious meal for our last evening in Chicago. Many thanks!
