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Friends of Peace Pilgrim Newsletter: Number 53 – Late Summer 2009
Peace Pilgrim Pole Placed at the Site of Peace's Transition to a Freer Life
On July 7, 1981, after twenty-eight years and seven crossings of North America, Peace Pilgrim made her "glorious transition to a freer life" due to injuries received in a head-on car crash that took place on Indiana Route 23 a few miles outside of Knox, Indiana. While we had seen newspaper reports from that time, it was only recently that the Friends of Peace Pilgrim board learned that the "Spirit of Peace" documentary team had visited and interviewed Tony and Terry Bau, the couple who lived across the road from the accident site. The filmmakers, Clare Townsend, Gigi Orlowski, and David Muller traveled the country in the early 1990s interviewing people who had known Peace Pilgrim. Terry and Tony had been home at the time of the accident and Terry actually witnessed the crash. She was the first person on the scene and the last person to see Peace Pilgrim alive. Board member Richard Polese was already planning to travel to Detroit via Chicago in July and decided to try to contact the Baus. Knox is located about 80 miles southeast of Chicago. Much to his surprise, Richard found that Tony and Terry were still living in Knox and in the same house they occupied in 1981. With a phone call or two, a visit was arranged. Without knowing very much about Peace Pilgrim other than what the had learned from the newspaper stories of the times, the Baus had been deeply moved by their experience and felt a deep connection to her. They were eager to learn more about Peace and how her work and pilgrimage had continued in the world. As planning for Richard's visit continued, the idea of placing a Peace Pilgrim Pole on the Bau's property across the street from the accident site was presented and whole-heartedly welcomed. On July 14th, 2009, twenty-eight years and a week after the accident that ended the twenty-eight years of walking and speaking that had been Peace Pilgrim's life since 1953, Richard and Tony placed plaques bearing Peace Pilgrim's message on a large pole and planted it where it could be seen by those passing the site. In addition to Richard and the Baus, Ted Hayes, who had been the last radio host to interview Peace Pilgrim on the day before her death, came by for the ceremony. Ted still works at WKVI and did an "on the spot" interview with Richard, Terry, and Tony. Stories about the event ran in the local newspapers and were also reported on the radio. The Baus welcome visitors and we have sent them books and Steps booklets to give to people visiting the site. If you are ever passing through the area, you can find the pole along side Indiana Route 23 a bit west of Knox.

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