By Elisa Regulski, Staff Writer
OCU is scheduled host the seventh annual Pinwheels for Peace Festival on Sept. 20.
The events is planned from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Bishop W. Angie Smith Chapel.
The festival, expression of the International Day of Peace, is free and open to the public.
Oklahoma City businesses, elementary schools and college students create colorful pinwheels to cover the entire city.
The handmade pinwheels serve as reminders of childhood peace and innocence.
The festival has grown since it began in 2005 in Coconut Creek, Fla.
More than 3,500 locations around the world will participate in the festival this year.
The festivities will begin with a drum circle at 4 p.m.
Local musicians of all ages will perform, and international groups will share dances from their cultures. Sponsor groups will set up displays and activity tables.
Past festivals have included flash mobs, prayer walks and dragon dances.
OCU’s Native American Society will sell Indian tacos during the festival for $5.
“The multicultural aspect of it is important, because peace doesn’t exist unless we realize it’s not just about us,” said the Rev. Jennifer Long, director of religious life and campus ministry.
Long said the festival is especially necessary and relevant because of unrest in Syria and the recent anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.
“Peace is not a just a passive activity,” Long said. “You have to be working for peace.”
Long encouraged students to mindfully create pinwheels and write kind and encouraging words on them.
“Peace also means reconciliation and hope and equality,” Long said.
Courtney Zanetti, acting senior, said she looks forward to the festival every year.
“The greatest part about it is bringing in the outside community,” Zanetti said. “I also love that students can walk by and see something they don’t see on this campus every day.”
To create a pinwheel, visit the Bishop Angie Smith Chapel or print out the template from pinwheelsforpeace.com.
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