By Addison Brenton
Student Writer
Addison Brenton is a 9th grade student at Crooms Academy at Information Technology.
The slight trickling of the fountain framed the scene in the plaza of Downtown Sanford, just between the Christmas Tree and the clock near the road. A group of people all huddled around a candle in a cooking pot. It must’ve looked abnormal, maybe even weird. But I couldn’t care less, after all, we were in a peace light ceremony.
The peace light is known throughout the world to be an avocation and symbol of world peace. It has been spread by Austrian scouts and volunteers since 1986, and has been in Bethlehem for even longer. In fact, the peace light has been burning in oil lamps for 1000s of years in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. It’s been spread to dozens of countries, it was spread to our own - permanently - after the tragic attacks on 9/11 as a message of love and peace towards America.
Nowadays it’s being spread by loyal scouts and even ordinary people all over the country. There is a peace light being held in almost every state, from California to Maine. Every year (Aside from 2020 - because of Covid - and 2024 - because of the war in Israel) Austrian scouts and volunteers load the flame into special boxes to keep it safe and lit as it makes the journey from Austria to all over the world. The one spread on that particular night - December 15th - we believe to have been brought over in 2022, it was being held in Texas but spread to Jacksonville, where it was then spread to our town of Sanford.
