Walk for Peace & Picnic

This year, our International Day of Peace begins with a journey.

We gather at Wat Buddharangsi Buddhist Temple, where the resident monks will welcome us for a guided meditation, inviting us to pause, breathe, and set an intention for peace.

From there, we won't simply talk about peace.

We'll walk it.

Together, led by the monks, we'll enjoy a peaceful community walk from the temple to Patch of Heaven Sanctuary, where our Day of Peace experience continues beneath the trees.

More than five decades ago, the United Nations established the International Day of Peace as a reminder that for one day each year, humanity could choose another way.

Today, we believe that invitation is just as important.

Perhaps now more than ever.

At Patch, we'll gather for a peaceful picnic, share fresh cacao tea, experience a restorative Sound Bath, and paint a recycled wooden Peace Medallion with our personal wish for peace.

Each medallion becomes part of the only Peace Tree in Florida, where hundreds of messages of hope, compassion, and kindness now hang as a living reminder that peace grows one person, one intention, and one act at a time.

At the close of our gathering, you are welcome to continue wandering the peaceful forest paths at Patch or take our complimentary shuttle back to Wat Buddharangsi Buddhist Temple.

Peace is not simply something we hope for.

It is something we practice.

One mindful step at a time.

During our Day of Peace, you'll experience:

• Guided meditation with the Buddhist monks at Wat Buddharangsi Buddhist Temple
• A peaceful community walk from the temple to Patch of Heaven Sanctuary
• Welcome gathering and reflection on International Day of Peace
• Restorative Sound Bath experience
• Peace Medallion painting
• Healthy picnic bites and fresh cacao tea
• Peace Tree dedication
• Time to wander the forest trails at Patch or return to the temple via complimentary shuttle

The United Nations has been honoring one day per year for the last 55 years dedicated to peace. Started by Mahatma Ghandi as an invitation to put down all weapons of violence for just 24 hours, the day is meant to have humans pause our destructive patterns and choose more wisely.

We have celebrated A Day of Peace since 2022 with a picnic and painting project. Everyone who came participated in a Pocket of Peace Meditation and painted a 4” peace medallion made of recycled logs with their wishes for peace.

We are getting creative by inviting you to help us create the only Peace Tree here in South Florida at our 20-acre nature & forest preserve. We will gather and have a picnic amidst the tranquil beauty of our sanctuary while contributing to a symbol of peace that will stand as a beacon of hope and unity for our community.

So why not consider a day to pause, come learn some practices of Peace and join us for something that will last both in our Peace Tree Dedication as well as within your heart.

Gandhi himself said, "there is no way to Peace. Peace is the way".

Be an outlier.

Make a date with yourself.

Meet and learn with others how to plant seeds of Peace on Earth.

It begins within. Now is the time.