A big thank you to Coulee House Inn and Suites for accommodating half of out team on the banks of the Coulee Dam!
Much gratitude also to Columbia River Inn for taking great care of the rest of our team, also looking over the magnificent Dam!
And it was time to run. Putu from Indonesia was eager to get started!!
Boijayanti is loving the fresh air and beautiful scenery out west!
Before she headed back to Seattle, Stota had a last bit of fun with us- a few cow girl shots!
A big thank you to Stota and Daulot for their great coordination of Western Washington. They took care of every detail of the last few days and it was so wonderful to have their enthusiastic presence on the team!
Stota running her last mile for peace
The ever young Daulot always runs with great energy!
Billy Burgers in Wilbur is a favourite stop- Arpan kindly gave them the shirts to remember it!
We stopped for icecream at the end of the day and were delighted to meet Pat Shemorry, Melissa and Jadyn (pictured left to right).
Pat is involved in a wonderful organisation called "Alternatives to Violence" and we were most inspired by what they do, plus his sincerity and dedication.
We made it to Spokane and headed straight to Summer Parkways for and 1 1/2 run with local runners and cyclists. This photo was taken as some very large grey clouds were gathering above us...
As soon as we started running the rain descended!
We reached our destination, the rain slowly stopped falling, and we were thrilled to meet with Sister Madonna, pictured centre with the torch.
Sister Madonna is an incredible inspiration! At the age of 87, she has the energy and vitality of someone lass than half her age. She has been a practising Nun from a young age, and in her late forties was inspired to train for a triathlon. She completed her first triathlon in her early fifties, and since then went on to compete in over 325 triathlons of all distances! She is also a senior Olympian and the world record holder for the oldest woman to finish an Ironman Triathlon at age 82.
Sister Madonna received our World Harmony Run Award when she joined the opening ceremony of the run in New York back in 2008. She has very clear memories of that time which she shared with us, as well as some beautiful words of encouragement. She said that the fact that the Peace Run has continued for 31 years is proof that humanity really wants peace. We were honored to offer her our Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run Torch Bearer Award for her continuling inspiration and service to the world.
Pictured with Sister Madonna is Katherine Widing who is an organiser for Summer Parkways, and super enthusiastically organised every detail of The Peace Run's involvement in the event. Katherine planned out the run route and orchestrated combining the run with meeting Sister Madonna. We are very grateful to her als!
There were many brave souls who came out to take part in Summer Parkways despite the torrential rain, and also wanted to hold the torch!
Thank you so much Katherine for your exceptional enthusiasm and goodness- you are definitely an honorary Peace Run member for life!
