Pioneer Park

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DSCF0609 Pioneer Park cPioneer Park celebrates Bridgetown's early settlers and also contains the Peace Labyrinth. There is plenty of space for picnics and a run around for the kids.

Take Nelson Street off Bridgetown's main street (SW Highway) and the park is on your right hand side as you venture up the hill.

In 2014, the Shire was invited to participate in the Sri Chinmoy Peace-Blossoms Program, promoting world peace, friendship and goodwill.  The Sri Chinmoy Peace-Blossoms Program unveiled a 'peace plaque' during a dedication ceremony declaring Bridgetown as one of over 900 places worldwide dedicated to world friendship and peace.

Sri Chinmoy was a spiritual teacher who devoted his life to the pursuit of harmony and 'oneness' between people and between different cultures. He had dynamically pursued this vision through various mediums including the arts, athletics and humanitarian service.

Since 1986, many significant places, landmarks and natural wonders have been dedicated to peace as part of the Sri Chinmoy Peace-Blossoms Program, offering the opportunity for different communities to share a common quest for peace.  Each Peace-Blossom is established through the support of the governing local, state or national officials, and many are marked with a dedication plaque.

In 1987 Sri Chinmoy founded the Peace Run, also known as the World Harmony run.  The Peace Run seeks to promote international friendship, harmony and understanding via a global relay whereby runners carry a flaming torch covering over 120 nations world-wide.  It is now an annual event with relay runs taking part in all different continents such as Africa, Europe, Americas, Asia and Australasia.  The Sri Chinmoy Peace Run does not seek to raise money or highlight any political cause, but rather strives to create goodwill among people of all nations.

On Friday 26 April 2013, fifteen runners from all parts of the globe including Australia, America, France, Mongolia, Austria, Moldova and New Zealand, commenced a 112 day, 15,500km round journey departing from Canberra.  On Wednesday 5 June, Bridgetown Primary School hosted a ceremony for the runners.  Those attending the ceremony participated in passing the torch from one to another while runners spoke about peace. This was the second time in 27 years it had been held in Australia.

It was during this time in Bridgetown that the runners of the 2013 Peace Run felt an immense sense of goodwill and peace within the community and felt the natural beauty of the area would represent a perfect place to dedicate to world peace.  In November 2002 community members sought approval from Council to construct a 'Peace Labyrinth' at Pioneer Park and after a petition was presented to Council in February 2003, permission was granted.  The Peace Labyrinth was dedicated to the United Nations 'Declaration for a Decade of Peace and Non-violence for the Children of the World' at its official opening in August 2004.

DSCF0612 Peace Labyrinth cTree Edit