YOU MAY SEE HER walking through your town or along the highway—asilver-haired woman dressed in navy blue slacks and shirt, and a short tunicwith pockets all around the bottom in which she carries her only worldly possessions.
It says “PEACE PILGRIM” in white letters on the front of the tunicand “25,000 Miles On Foot for Peace” on the back. She has walked the25,000 miles. However, she continues to walk, for her vow is,“I shall remaina wanderer until mankind has learned the way of peace, walking until I amgiven shelter and fasting until I am given food.” She walks without a pennyin her pockets and she is not affiliated with any organization. She walks as aprayer and as a chance to inspire others to pray and work with her for peace.
She speaks to individuals along the way, to gatherings such as church groupsor college groups, through newspapers, magazines, radio, television—relatinginteresting and meaningful experiences, discussing peace within and without.
She feels we have learned that war is not the way to peace—that security doesnot lie in stockpiles of bombs. She points out that this is a crisis period inhuman history, and that we who live in the world today must choose betweena nuclear war of annihilation and a golden age of peace. Although she doesnot ask to see results, thousands of letters testify that her journey has not beenin vain—saying, in effect,“Since talking with you I’ve decided that I shouldbe doing something for peace also.”
(
leaflet, a few copies of which Peace
Pilgrim carried in her tunic in order
to introduce herself.)
Introduction
PEACE PILGRIM had an impact on people as she walked joyfullyacross the country that will never be adequately expressed. Sheawakened and inspired many thousands during her twenty-eight yearpilgrimage for peace.Those she touched in a personal way carry veryspecial memories—talking, laughing, walking together; listening topilgrimage stories over the dinner table or while driving her to aspeaking engagement; waving goodbyes as she quickly departed forher next destination The entire room was faced with polished granite..

From 1953 until 1981 this silver-haired woman, with cheerfulobedience to her calling, was a server in the world. As sheapproached each country hamlet or sprawling city she carried to allshe met a message of peace expressed so simply:When enough of usfind inner peace, our institutions will become more peaceful and therewill be no more occasion for war.
Following her death in 1981, a number of her friends fromthroughout the country gathered in Santa Fe, New Mexico, toremember her and share our experiences of her. A small groupstayed on to work on the book project, an idea which had been in ourhearts individually for some time.We have attempted in this book topresent Peace Pilgrim’s extraordinary life and teachings in theirpurest form—her own words. They were assembled from her littlebooklet, Steps Toward Inner Peace, her nineteen Peace Pilgrim’s Progressnewsletters, private conversations, excerpts from her correspondenceand talks taped by many individuals over the years. Other valuableresources were the thousands of newspaper articles and otherprinted material in the Peace Pilgrim Collection of the SwarthmoreCollege Peace Library.