Team A – After a nice sleep in the Gladstone Caravan Park and a good breakfast, we headed out for our first school of the day ...
... St. James school in Jamestown.
We had about 100 kids that were really well prepared for us.
They had been monitoring the progress of the Peace Run team online. They welcomed us to their school by reading out few kind words and sang for us a nice school peace song, then presented us with cutouts of their hands with world peace messages.
These kids are tomorrow's leaders for peace and harmony.
These bright kids gave us a lot of inspiration to keep doing what we do, by giving us their hopes and prayers for a better, more loving world.
Artwork for peace was everywhere.
After we watched the Peace Run video together and after more singing and some games ...
... everyone had a chance to hold the Peace Torch and pray for peace in their own way ...
... and finally we all ran together around the school ground for few laps before we headed out on the road again.
The children's artwork is accompanying us in our van.
Team B – With another peaceful night's sleep in our tents behind us, we set off toward Jamestown, then toward Clare, clocking our miles to the first running point.
At 30 km from Clare we started running.
Coming into Clare, we were welcomed by an eager group of students who were waiting to run the next 1.5 km in to Clare Primary School. Each student was voted by their peers to join the run. Rohan the PE teacher accompanied us. They were carrying a banner that the school had made with Peace written on it, which had many handprints from the kids.
As we ran down the main street with the torch, flags and a big Peace Banner we saw lots of smiling faces.
They then led the Peace Run team into the school grounds and to be greeted by the whole school of 250 children.
The school captains welcomed us.
The two school captains, Mackenzie Johnson and Alyssa Pawelski accepted the Certificate of Appreciation.
At the end of the function, the School Captains then presented us with their banner. Everyone then lined the school sports court to hold the torch before we took off for a short run around the grounds.
It was a wonderful start to our day.
Our next appointment was in Balaklava – this was a little off route, however after meeting the CEO of Wakefield Regional Council, Cate Atkinson at the local Government Conference in Canberra in June, we were so inspired by her enthusiasm and oneness for the Peace Run that we would have run 200 km off route to come to her Council area! The Wakefield Regional Council in Balaklava gave us a warm reception with refreshments of drinks and delicious sandwiches – giving the team time to meet with some of the council members and talk to the local reporter.
At noon, with Cate the CEO decked out in her new Peace Run outfit, the team was lead through the streets of Balaklava to the sports park next to Balaklava Primary School.
Here we were greeted by not one but four schools – Balaklava Primary, Balaklava Community Childcare Centre, Owen Primary School and Port Wakefield Primary.
To begin with, everyone stood up as the Balaklava Primary School Choir sang the Australian National Anthem – including the second paragraph!!
They then sang an Aboriginal Song called Ngarra Burra Ferra.
Each of the schools had spent time to make something for the Peace Run and in doing so demonstrated how important Peace is in their lives.
One school had made a big banner with ‘It’s cool to be kind’ printed on it. Each word was a handprint cutout all the children of that school.
Another school presented us with Peace Paintings.
The Community Centre had made us bracelets, which they came and gave us individually.
Each and every item offered touched our hearts in their own unique and special way and have been lovingly packed into our support vehicles to travel with us on our journey.
At the conclusion three schools all lined the oval to hold the torch and talk to any of the Peace Runners they wished ...
... before a mad dash around the oval to let off that extra energy we all received from meeting everyone here today.
This was the end of our official appointments and what a wonderful end it was.
Balaklava is such a special place. As we slowly made our way back to our support vehicles we stopped to talk to the students who were now on their break ...
... we meet Lucky the rainbow teddy and some possible new peace runners in years to come.
Team B – By now, Team B were back on the road, running through the wheatfields towards Tarlee.
At Tarlee Primary School, we were warmly welcomed by eager students and teachers, who invited us to their classroom for the ceremony. We watched the Peace Run video which they loved, and some were ready to put on their running shoes and start running to Canberra.
They had prepared many questions for us that we answerd diligantly.
To our great surprise the kids presented to us a beautiful book they had filled with poems for peace that they had written for the team. Also one student gave us a drawing of the Peace Torch and a runner running along the road.
Then it was outside to hold the Torch.
After we had done some running and passed the torch on their beautiful oval ...
... we headed out on the road again while the kids cheered us from their school grounds.
Team A – after a nice lunch on the lawn ...
... we were back on the road.
Our running was through undulating farming country offering views of gentle hills and golden yellow fields, some sparsely populated by sheep or cows, some growing crops such as wheat.
Really nice happily running along ...
... we were accompanied by much rustling by the roadside as, presumably, many different little (or not so little?) creatures were surprised by our passing footsteps!
All three teams slowly trickled into our accommodation and wow! After two weeks in the outback we were like little fish out of water. Mandy, the owner of Lyndoch Hill, gave the whole team free accommodation in her beautiful establishment. It is like we had walked into a dream.
Mandy also arranged for a delious meal for us in her restaurant with four choices of main course, drinks, and lots of salad and veges all picked from the gardens in the hotel. We all didn’t quite know what to do with ourselves with such wonderful staff serving us, no dishes to do and food that just kept coming. A runner's dream come true!
Alana, Erica and Mel then came out and held the Torch on behalf of Lyndoch Hill. Thank you so very much for your kindness and oneness for the Peace Run.
After dinner we all went back to one of the rooms where Padmanandana, our organiser from Adelaide, briefed us on the next days events as we arrive in the Big Smoke of Adelaide.
