Peace Train Canada

  Two Parksville/Qualicum Beach residents are on their way to Ottawa aboard the Peace Train as part of a national effort to encourage the government to take on a peacekeeping role in global affairs. From the Alberni Valley News.

  Norma Emerson: “These are my people”   Why did Norma Emerson want to the part of the Nov. 15-22 Peace Train? “Because of the state the world is in, and I want to contribute to making a difference,” said the 75-year-old from Qualicum Beach, B.C. The retired teacher, who is part of Knox United Church in Parkesville, hopes the energy being put into the train can “be contagious across Canada” and convince the Canadian government to devote more resources to peace. “With pressure to spend more on militarization, weapons production corporations would thrive but housing, healthcare, education and mitigating climate change damage suffers,” she said. Esther Haack: Hoping Canada can once again be a peacemaker in the world  Esther Haack joined the Peace Train because she strongly believes that situations can’t like in Ukraine and the Middle East “can’t be resolved by continuing on the path of war and hatred. My hope is that Canada can once again become or have a peacemaking and n...

Like for other Peace Train riders, Cat Steven’s ‘Peace Train’ song is very familiar for James Toews, a pastor and boomer from Nanaimo, B.C. It hit the airwaves in 1971, another challenging time in world affairs. Despite that, James remembers it as a time when there was also a “deep and persistent hope that a new age was dawning. The song ‘Peace Train’ spoke to that.” Now James hopes another Peace Train—not a song, this time, but the Nov. 15-22 Peace Train from Vancouver to Ottawa—will spark another round of hope for a better world. There are many challenges today, James said, but that also means “it’s time for a new ‘Peace Train’ to create a world that should not accept war as the norm, a world where Canada can reclaim its place as one of the world’s peace keeper nations.” The goal of the Peace Train is to ask the Canadian government to establish a Centre of Excellence for Peace and Justice focused on research, education, and training in conflict resolution, diplomacy, and pe...

  For Helen Grace Smith of Port Alberni, B.C., participating in the Nov. 15-22 Peace Train is a way of “taking a small action that is rooted in compassion.” Smith, 67, is enjoying her comfortable new life as a retiree following a career as a speech language pathologist. At the same time, she is aware that millions of people around the world are suffering due to conflict and war in places like Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan. “For many people insecurity, hunger, disease, and death are daily realities,” she says. “I feel a need to pay attention, to be aware.” For her, going to Ottawa on the Peace Train to ask the government to establish and fund a Centre of Excellence for Peace and Justice focused on research, education, and training in conflict resolution, diplomacy, and peace operations is a way to pay attention and be aware. “Our collective action is a small one,” she acknowledges, noting other groups such as Project Ploughshares have been working at this agenda for a long time....

  For Deborah Walker, minister of connection and social justice at  Shaughnessy Heights United Church in Vancouver,  participating in the Peace Train is a way to show that the church is involved in things people care about. This includes things like addressing issues like global hunger and poverty. But “peace is an overarching issue” since war is a major reason why people are poor and hungry as they are driven from their homes, work and farms, she said. War also impacts women through rape and sexual violence. “There is a gender dimension to war,” she said.   As a minister, “it’s important for people to see the church is trying to do something about this issue,” she shared. “It’s important for us to be seen.” By participating in the Peace Train, “I’m saying the church has something to say about peace.” Speaking personally, Walker also wanted to be part the Peace Train in order to participate in “the deep yearning” for peace. The goal of the Peace ...

For Diane and John Mayba of Port Alberni, B.C., being a part of the Peace Train is a way “to turn our hopes and desire for peace into a concrete plan of action.” Diane, 71, and John, 72, hope the Peace Train will resonate with many other people across Canada so that “together we can bring a powerful voice for peace to Ottawa.” The retired couple believe that war “is the ultimate injustice” that is too often seen as “a solution instead of the catastrophic failure that it really is. We believe that the only real path to lasting peace is for every country to participate in mutually assuring the security, freedom, equality and well-being of all.” They also believe that Canada has an important role to play in building that true global security system, and that the Canadian government can work towards that goal by agreeing to the Peace Train’s request to establish and fund a Centre of Excellence for Peace and Justice to promote peaceful and diplomatic ways of dealing with conflict. T...

    As soon as Kristi Lewis of Cobble Hill, B.C. heard about the Peace Train, she knew she wanted to be part of it. “These are my people,” she said of those who spoke about the Nov. 15-22 cross-country trip to ask the federal government to establish a Centre of Excellence for Peace and Justice focused on research, education, and training in conflict resolution, diplomacy, and peace operations. “I value their endeavors with regards to the peace train and trust their commitment to the cause. I know it is for all the right reasons, that we are seeking to re-institute a peace center in Canada that puts peace back on the map. Not choosing sides. Standing up for peace. Period.” Kristi admits she is “as heartbroken as everyone by the news every day. But I simply want to do more than nothing. Despondency does not get us anywhere. I believe we must engage grief in order to move through it, and that loving community aids us in the process.” While on the train, Kristi, 44, pl...