Daniel Garcia Completes 25,000 Miles for Peace With a Trek from D.C. to NYC on Oct. 17-26
Leesburg, VA – When Daniel Garcia, founder of the Global Walk, took his first steps toward a global commitment to peace 12 years ago, he had no idea how far the road would take him. On Oct. 17-26, the final leg of his journey will lead Garcia home to New York City, where he will culminate a trek the length of the circumference of the globe that has shined a beacon on the cause of peacebuilding and the issues of providing for children.
For this final leg, Garcia will walk with support from and on behalf of the nonprofit group Where Peace Lives. He will begin his walk for peace in Washington, D.C., on Monday, Oct. 17, by joining his close friend Tim Miner, along with hundreds of people from around the world at the U.S. Freedom Walk Festival. Miner created this walk to foster fun, fitness, and international friendships. What’s great about it is that embassies from around the world are opening their doors to the walkers who will then be stepping on “foreign soil” each time they cross the threshold of a different embassy. The walkers will be completing a symbolic trek around the world along with Garcia! As he concludes that walk around the world, Garcia will then begin his walk to New York City to complete his own trek.
“This walk is a celebration of all the people and organizations who have helped me during this 25,000 mile walk,” says Garcia who is an ex-marine and an ordained minister. “I could not have done it alone. I’m grateful to God and to each and every person who has been with me along the way. My message has always been ‘love one another.’”
Garcia’s walk concludes at the Church of St. Paul the Apostle in Manhattan on Sunday, Oct. 26 from 2pm to 4pm. A celebration of peace will welcome Garcia, 63, and those who accompany him to St. Paul the Apostle, at the corner of 59th Street and Columbus Avenue.
“We want to invite children and adults in Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Trenton, Newark and all the other towns along Daniel’s route to join in this walk for peace,” says Donna Clapp, executive director of Where Peace Lives, which trains children and teens in conflict resolution and peace-building through art and media.
“We would also love everyone to come to the event at St. Paul the Apostle, which is celebrating its 150th jubilee year this year. We envision an event at St. Paul the Apostle that captures the love, spirituality, and joy that comes from creating a culture of peace,” says Clapp. “It will be a day filled with song and celebration for adults and children alike. Singer/songwriter, Bruce Foster is coming to sing songs of peace with the choir at St. Paul the Apostle. Last but not least, this is a celebration of Daniel’s completing walking the circumference of the earth—25,000 miles for peace!”
Garcia, who began his trek in San Francisco in 1996, has been sharing stories of faith, redemption, and peaceful coexistence as he has walked his path of peace. The journey has taken him to Australia, where he walked from Perth to Sidney in celebration of the 2000 Summer Olympics; to Europe, where he has made walks through Ireland, Scotland, Belgium and Holland. His journey includes a 26-day journey through the Philippines to raise funds for the Red Cross, and a trek from Jordan to Jerusalem to aid the plight of an 11-year-old boy who needed heart surgery. After Hurricane Katrina devastated the U.S. Gulf Coast in 2005, Garcia walked to New Orleans, to raise money for relief and rebuilding efforts.
Along the way, Garcia has received extensive coverage from the print and electronic media, and presented gifts of peace to presidents and dignitaries such as Pope John Paul II, but he says he is mainly inspired by the many ordinary people who join him and support him during his walks.
“For me, this whole journey has all been a miracle,” says Garcia, a native of New York’s Spanish Harlem community. “At 63, after walking all these miles, to be able to celebrate at the Church of St. Paul the Apostle, it’s the perfect way to end this chapter in my life. I will thank God and thank everyone for all of the help I have received, because there’s no way I could have done this by myself.”
