The Pali Peace Lady has changed her approach. Instead of waving at thousands of commuters as they zoom past every morning, she has moved off major thoroughfares and is talking to people in parks and on sidewalks. Her message is the same, though: Peace is within everyone. We just have to remember that about ourselves.
Tamara Barria Montana started what she calls her Peace Project in 2016 along Kalanianaole Highway. In the mornings she would stand on the roadside near Aina Koa Street holding a banner bearing words of compassion and encouragement and waving to commuters rushing to work or school. She moved to the town side of Pali Highway in 2017, and many people looked forward to seeing her joyful greeting every morning.
In May 2017 a woman involved in a traffic accident on Pali Highway said Montana was causing a distraction, so Montana stopped her morning ritual, much to the disappointment of those who sought her happy face as a beacon in their morning slog.
She left town for a while to visit her daughter and work in Seattle. When she returned to Hawaii, she started thinking about how to continue her Peace Project in a different way.
First, she cut out thousands of fabric hearts and hand-painted each with a message of love. She started passing them out to people she met in Waikiki. She painted a heart on a banner and began waving to pedestrians and cars passing near Kapiolani Park and Magic Island. Then she got the idea to take her message viral. Montana began asking people if they would pose for a photo with her peace sign.
She created a website, alohanamaste.org, to post the pictures and started asking people she met to share the photos on Instagram with the hashtags #onemillionpeacehearts or #myheartforpeace. She has connected with people from around the world and has set a goal of touching “One Million Hearts” with her message. Her website now is packed with collages of all sorts of folks — tourists, local surfers, big families, solo joggers — all wearing smiles and holding her peace sign.
“If I ask and they say no, it’s OK for me,” Montana said. “Some are uncomfortable taking pictures, but they read the words on the banner. I thank them for listening and thank them for their time.”
As we talked on the walking path around the back side of Kapiolani Park, a police cruiser rolled up and parked across the street. I worried there had been some sort of complaint about her and that I would be dragged in as a witness. As far as I saw, she hadn’t bothered or distracted anyone, especially in contrast to campaign sign wavers. Montana, however, was thrilled to see the police officer.
“Good morning!” she called out to him.
The cop crossed the street and walked over to us. He took off his sunglasses and asked her name, and I was bracing for what might come next. But then he said he just stopped to thank Montana for her efforts to remind people to be kind to one another and to respect fellow beings.
“If people paid attention to what you’re saying, that would make my job a lot easier,” officer Tony DeLeon said. Montana asked if she could hug him, and he said, “Sure.” After they hugged, he asked where she was from. She answered, “Chile,” and he told her that his first language is Spanish. They were both so happy about this connection that they hugged again. I asked if I could take a photo for the newspaper, and DeLeon said, “Sure,” and they posed with her peace banner.
This new chapter of the Peace Lady’s project brings her closer to people. Instead of waving as they rush past, she can have a conversation, share stories, laugh and hug. She’s making deeper connections in real life and on social media. She’s pretty happy at how things are turning out.
“Peace is not something hanging in the clouds,” she said. “Peace is within you.”
Reach Lee Cataluna at 529-4315 or lcataluna@staradvertiser.com.
