After completing 110 days of walking to promote peace, national healing and gathering millions of social media followers on their path, a group of Buddhist monks will return home to Fort Worth on Valentine’s Day.
The monks will be departing Washington, D.C., by bus on Feb. 12 and will arrive in downtown Fort Worth at 8 a.m. Feb. 14, the Walk for Peace team said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
Residents are asked to join in an approximately six-mile walk that morning from downtown to Hương Đạo Vipassana Bhavana Center at 4717 E. Rosedale St. in Fort Worth, where a public peace gathering will be held to celebrate the completion of the journey.
“This is a deeply meaningful moment — completing the full circle,” the post read.
During their journey the monks traveled across 10 states, and more than a million people have followed their progress on the official TikTok account of the Walk for Peace. Some of the videos showcasing their journey have over 10 million views.
Bhikkhu Pannakara and fellow monks pray before beginning their walk for peace in October in Fort Worth. Shambhavi Rimal srimal@star-telegram.com
It all began in Fort Worth
The 19 Buddhist monks began their 2,300-mile walk from Fort Worth to Washington, D.C., in October. They are scheduled to arrive on Feb. 10 in the nation’s capital, where events will be held to honor their efforts to promote peace, unity and compassion.
The monks were joined by a dog found by Bhikkhu Pannakara, vice president of the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center and spiritual leader of the walk, during a similar walk in India.
The monks slept under the trees and ate one meal per day. Two RVs rode along on the journey where the food for the monks was prepared, the Star-Telegram previously reported.
The journey came with challenges, including when some of the monks were involved in an accident near Houston in November. One of the monks, Bhante Dam Phommasan, was injured and underwent surgery to remove his leg.
Nineteen Buddhist monks began a 2,300-mile walk in October from Fort Worth to Washington, D.C., promoting national healing, unity and compassion. The monks will return to Fort Worth on Feb. 14. Shambhavi Rimal srimal@star-telegram.com
“We extend our heartfelt gratitude for the compassion, prayers, and well-wishes coming from across the globe,” Walk for Peace team members said.
More details of the Feb. 14 march, including the route from downtown Fort Worth, will be shared on the Walk for Peace’s social media accounts.
Shambhavi covers crime, law enforcement and other breaking news in Fort Worth and Tarrant County. She graduated from the University of North Texas and previously covered a variety of general assignment topics in West Texas. She grew up in Nepal.
Hundreds of people encircled a group of Buddhist monks at Jordan Lake on Friday, keeping their voices to murmurs and whispers as they tried to hear monk Bhikku Pannakara speak.
Some balanced the balls of their feet on low-hanging tree branches just to see the monks. Many held their phones as high as they could, some FaceTiming their friends and loved ones. Still others carried flowers they hoped to hand the monks.
At the State Recreation Area, the monks answered questions and spoke about avoiding the “suffering” of being overly attached to people — even family. They encouraged the crowd to practice mindfulness by noticing their breath and repeating daily mantras when they wake up.
Afterward, the 17 monks resumed day 90 of their Walk for Peace to Washington, D.C., flanked by Chatham County Sheriff’s Office pickup trucks as they walked eastbound on U.S. 64. They planned to rest in the evening in northeast Apex before heading out again Saturday morning. They are expected to reach the state Capitol building by Saturday afternoon and arrive in the nation’s capital Feb. 10 or 11.
It is unclear how, if at all, the coming winter storm will affect the monks’ plans for heading through Raleigh. The city issued a news release Friday night asking people who want to greet the monks to monitor the city’s official social media channels for updates on their anticipated arrival time.
As he spoke to the crowd Friday, Pannakara reflected that he didn’t expect so many people to be following the monks’ journey — especially not in the cold and rain. But seeing so many people moved to tears informed him that this was the right thing to do, he said.
“It means that we suffer a lot … that when someone talks about doing something for peace, we go all in for it,” Pannakara said.
A procession of Buddhist monks walks along U.S. Highway 64 near Wilsonville on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, as thousands of onlookers line the highway to welcome them. The monks are making a 2,300-mile pilgrimage from Texas to Washington, D.C., as part of the Walk for Peace, an effort to promote peace, compassion and national unity. Travis Long tlong@newsobserver.com
While many in front of her stood on their tippy toes to catch a glance of Pannakara, Leslie Hines sat on a patterned carpet with, among other items, a lyre — inspired by the story of David from the Bible — a white duck with purple hearts — a personal symbol of peace — and burning incense she got from Cairo, Egypt.
Even if she couldn’t see the monks, Hines, who came from Greensboro, just wanted to be in their presence. She took from Pannakara’s talk how to carry her peace with her, with declarations like “may I be well, may I be happy, may I be peaceful.”
As a 12-year Navy veteran, Hines said she’s seen other countries and cultures and knew she had to practice detachment and peace.
“I know our country needs to understand what peace is,” she said. “Our country is the most deceived on what peace is.”
Hundreds of vehicles are parked along U.S. Highway 64 Jordan Lake in Chatham County on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, as thousands of onlookers wait to catch a view of Buddhist monks on a 2,300-mile pilgrimage from Texas to Washington, D.C., as part of the “Walk for Peace,” an effort to promote peace, compassion and national unity. Travis Long tlong@newsobserver.com
Just like in Pittsboro on Thursday, the Walk for Peace drew hundreds of cars to Apex, where drivers parked on the highway’s grass medians to walk with the monks.
Several onlookers came to their knees and bowed in the monks’ presence.
The monks stopped for those who were sick — including a man in a wheelchair and a woman with a card saying she had Lyme’s Disease and needed a prayer — and briefly sung a prayer before continuing their walk. Tears streaked down the woman’s cheeks as she received the monks’ prayer.
As the monks approached, Diana D’Abruzzo snapped a photo before telling herself she needed to experience the moment.
So she used a black sweater as a makeshift mat as she came to her knees, closed her eyes and brought her palms together.
“That [picture] might stay on your phone forever, and you might never look at it,” D’Abruzzo said. “But if you actually sit and absorb the moment, you’ll experience it deeper.”
D’Abruzzo, who came from Chapel Hill, has followed the monks since they were in South Carolina. She knew there would be like-minded people looking for peace among suffering, and she spent most of her time talking to two people she had never met before.
“Just knowing that there are other people out there like you who want to see a better world is so heartening when things are so dark,” she said. “And things are so dark right now.”
In Raleigh, the monks are expected to start walking from N.C. State’s Poole Jr. All Faiths Chapel (1030 Richardson Drive, Raleigh, NC 27603) at 2 p.m. on Saturday and arrive at the NC State Capitol for at 3:30 p.m.
Aloka the Peace Dog rides in the passenger seat of an RV as a procession of Buddhist monks walks along U.S. Highway 64 in Wilsonville on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. The monks are making a 2,300-mile pilgrimage from Texas to Washington, D.C., as part of the Walk for Peace, an effort to promote peace, compassion and national unity. Travis Long tlong@newsobserver.com
This story was originally published January 23, 2026 at 6:29 PM.
Twumasi Duah-Mensah is a Breaking News Reporter for The News & Observer. He began at The N&O as a summer intern on the metro desk. Triangle born and Tar Heel bred, Twumasi has bylines for WUNC, NC Health News and the Center for Innovation and Sustainability in Local Media. Send him tips and good tea places at (919) 283-1187.
