On their way across all 50 states, participants on the Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run carried their torch through Tigard on June 20.
“We wanted to hit all 50 states, so you got to wiggle around a bit,” Peace Run Executive Director Salil Wilson told Tigard Life outside of Natural Grocers on Pacific Highway. “I’ve been participating since ‘87.”
This year’s Road USA Peace Run started in New York City on April 16 and will conclude back in the Big Apple on Aug. 15. After that, runners will fly to Anchorage, Alaska, on Aug 31 and then finish off with a run across Hawaii on Sept. 8.
Wilson participated in the original Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run in 1987 and has since watched the movement grow into a marathon that spans “160 nations and territories,” according to the Peace Run website.
“The Peace Run does not seek to raise money or highlight any political cause,” reads a page on the website. “Our simple goal is to create a feeling of goodwill among peoples of all nations.”
Wilson, who is originally from Australia, was running in a group of four on June 20. Wilson, along with fellow runners Pujari Schaeffer from San Diego and Attila Tarko and Puroga Theobald from Hungary, ran from Otis, Oregon, to Tigard, planning to spend the night in Lake Oswego before carrying the torch through Portland on June 21.
Wilson explained that the group will evolve as the run continues, saying he planned on handing the torch off to a new batch of runners in Minneapolis.
“These guys are running to Minneapolis,” Wilson said about Tarko and Theobald. “I’m probably going to stop in Minneapolis too.”
The 2026 route is being run by both a men’s team and a women’s team. The two teams are running near-identical routes (occasionally differing in starting times), and the women’s team also passed through Tigard on June 20.
Harita Davies, originally from New Zealand, told Tigard Life that her first run was in 1996, and she was immediately inspired by the effort.
“We’re doing it this year especially in honor of the 250th anniversary of America,” Davies said. “And we kind of see the run as a prayer in action for just bringing out all the goodness and the spirit of unification and all of us coming together and trying to be the best versions of ourselves.”
Davies emphasized her admiration for the run’s broader impact, mentioning a recent run-in with Ringo Starr in San Jose.
“A few days ago, Ringo Starr even held our torch!” Davies said. “Every day we meet wonderful people, and it gives you such a positive outlook on the world.”
Wilson also highlighted some of the memorable connections he made with famous figures during the Peace Run, but explained that he was equally inspired by his interactions with almost everyone he met along the way.
“It’s just a really positive reaction. People love to hear about peace and people value it, and we don’t always get a chance to think about it or reflect on it or express it in our lives day to day,” Wilson said. “I presented the torch to Pope Francis in Rome. That was like pretty significant, but also a little boy at a school, you know, you hand him the torch, and he says ‘why can’t it be like this all the time?’”
More information about this year’s Peace Run is available at www.peacerun.org.
