International peace run passes through Cazenovia

CAZENOVIA — The Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run passed through Cazenovia on Saturday morning, bringing with it a message of hope and harmony.

The Peace Run, which takes place every two years, sends a team of runners on a 10,000 mile journey around North America.

The run started in 1987 and consists of runners passing a torch along the route in a continuous relay.

The North American Peace Run crosses through the United States and three Canadian provinces.

The journey lasts four months with very few rest days. On Saturday alone, the run covered 95 miles.

The Peace Run was founded by Sri Chinmoy, an Indian spiritual leader and advocate for peace who created many grassroots initiatives to spread peace. Runners are proud to share Sri Chinmoy’s ideas around the world.

“I really enjoy and I feel it a real privilege to be able to share the message of peace,” said Harita Davies, a runner and organizer.

Davies has been participating in the run since 1997 in various countries.

She first ran the North American run in 2012. Since then she has helped organize the run, which she says has made her realize that she can make a real statement for peace.

The team is currently made up of 11 runners from 11 different countries who usually each run between six and twelve miles per day.

Though there are a few core runners, the team changes over time, with about 60 runners total over the four months that the race takes place.

Every day is different for team members and runners are involved in all aspects of the race’s mission.

“We all kind of do a bit of everything. We cook the meals, we drive the vehicles, we run. We do the reports for the website and we have a lot of meetings,” said Davies.

Runners often have community outreach events during the day.

“We visit with mayors, or we go to boys and girls clubs, or summer camps, or schools when school is in session or we meet with different community groups. We fit our meetings into the day and into the running,” Davies said.

Participants aim to teach community members that they have the ability to make the world a more peaceful place through their individual actions.

“If we all play our little part, then that makes a world of difference,” Davies said. “Peace starts in the heart of each one of us. No one should feel that they’re too small to make a difference.”

The runners see the inspiration that they give to communities, who often welcome the runners by providing homes to stay in or free hotel rooms.

“The people that we meet along the way give us so much sustenance and so much energy to keep going,” Davies said.

When runners see the impact that they are having on people, they are fueled to keep spreading their peace.

“It’s a message of hope. It’s a message of optimism,” said Davies.

The race is symbolic to runners because it shows that when everyone does their part, our collective goals are much more manageable than we believe.

“If we all take a few steps, those steps add up to a lot. This journey is 10,000 miles but once you break it up into everyone doing their little part, it’s quite achievable,” Davies said.

The race will finish in New York City on Aug. 17.

“We’re kind of on the home stretch now,” Davies said.

There are also smaller runs that take place in between the biennial runs, spreading Sri Chinmoy’s message throughout the year.