Morning greets the day on the beautiful Buggs Island Lake, just next to Clarksville, Virginia's only lakeside town.
We are off to the start of our running day on Peace Run, joined by our new teammate Jennifer, she will run the first miles!
Getting ready to run into Clarksville with the Lake Country Road Runners Club. Officer Wendy Wooton holds the Peace Torch.
And we are off and running, lead by our amazing host and new dear friend, Jennifer.
Coco takes the lead.
Clarksville residents come out to hold the Peace Torch.
Jeff Jones, Town Manager of Clarksville greets the runners when they arrive at the Lake Live Stage.
Jeff kindly stood in for Mayor Woerner and read a proclamation prepared for the day.
Team members introduce themselves and their countries of origin. Devashishu is from the land of rain and Harry Potter...
Peace Run Executive Director Salil Wilson introduces the Torch Bearer Award. We have a recipient in the audience.
Christie Garrett Russell, she is truly a Torch Bearer in her self giving life, beautiful spirit and dedicated soul. Her love of humanity and service to women in need is all beauty. And her complete dedication to her spiritual life is a wonderful example for those she mentors.
Thank you Christie. The world is brighter because you are in it.
Lake Country Road Runners, we look forward to seeing you again!
And thank you for your warm welcome, Jeff! It is great to see you again. We know we are always welcome in Clarksville!
Thank you to the Town of Clarksville and all those who came out to greet the Peace Runners!
Waiting to escort us to the next program at Clarksville Health and Rehab
And a huge thank you to Jennifer for everything. We look forward to seeing you again in 2028!
The team heads off to our next program, escorted by Officers Wooton and Flora. Billy Jo from the Lake Country Runners takes the lead.
Billy Jo arranged our next program.
Along the way, we enjoyed a surprise welcome from State Senator Tammy Mulchi who lives along the route. She came out to greet the team and offer a message/prayer for peace.
Arriving at the Clarksville Health and Rehab
Tiffany holds the torch and offers a few words of peace and hope.
Thank you Billy Jo! it was excellent running with you today and wonderful know you. Thank you for arranging this visit. We look forward to seeing you again in 2028.
The men's team gives their final farewell to one of our Peace Run teammates of the day and great new friend Ed. Thank you for joining us!
On our way out of town, Officer Wooton gave us some wonderful vegetables and three baskets of fresh strawberries. Thank you Wendy! We will eat well in the near future!
She gave us this large punnet of strawberries too
Ordinary tasks are fun too!
Hello North Carolina!
Today is teammate Vasudha's last day with the team.
Thank you Vasudha! We will miss you.
Arpan makes some new friends.
A bit of a rest after a day of running.
Our final meeting of the day is with Chapel Hill Durham Homeschoolers Roots & Shoots group. Root and Shoots is an initiative of Jane Goodall's, providing a framework for young people to take positive action in their communities. Their messaging for youth, "You have the power to build a better world today! Get started making a difference in the ways that matter most to you in your community" aligns perfectly with our motto "Peace begins with me!" Harita met the group leader, Leah, and her daughter Rowan at Dr Jane Goodall's Memorial in Washington DC last year. We talked about connecting this year, so we are so happy it really happened!
Feeling peace in our hearts.
We had a really fun run around the park!
Rowan is pictured holding the Certificate of Appreciation we gave them. They said this was their first Certificate they have received!
Leah's enthusiasm made us all smile!
Thank you to Leah, Rowan and the kids and parents of CHDH Roots & Shoots for coming out to meet us, an end to a wonderful day of running and friendship!
