The annual Earth Day celebration was held along the Willamette River on April 22, Golden Year 3 (2006). At this festival, there were musicians, dancers, circus performers, and more than 150 booths, most of which were distributing or selling earth-friendly information or products. Initiates from the Oregon Center set up a booth with a large banner entitled “Alternative Living.” Our booth was situated in a great corner location.

Local initiates passed out the Alternative Living flyers, as well as simple, practical vegetarian lunch recipes. A flat screen TV played Master’s lectures. Colorful balloons floated around the booth, creating a cheerful atmosphere and gaining the attention of the crowd. . Initiates had made eggless cakes and cut them into small pieces in advance. At the festival, we gave them to the people so that they could sample delicious vegetarian desserts. Large baskets of Wisdom Cookies with Master’s aphorisms inside the cookies were placed where passers-by were free to take.

The response was wonderful. Many people appreciated Master’s Alternative Living flyer and commented on how informative it was. Even those who were already vegetarian said it was very useful. They were also very thankful for the many vegetarian recipes offered. Several people stood aside to read Master’s Alternative Living banner and then came by the main table to request copies of the flyer. One gentleman in particular seemed very touched by Master’s message. He commented that many animals were killed every day for our food and that the Earth would be transformed if the killing were stopped. He was so humbly grateful for Master’s message on becoming vegetarian. Many times, he sincerely said, “Thank you for making a difference as tears started to form in his eyes.

A number of people said they had seen the Alternative Living flyers before. Some had seen them in vegetarian restaurants in Portland, Oregon. Others had seen them in restaurants in California, and still others had seen them on various Internet sites and in the local newspapers. It was great to know that Master’s flyers were familiar to so many.

The people who came to the booth not only mentioned seeing Master’s flyers before, but many said that they recognized Master. Several said they had seen Her on television or had seen Her sample booklets in Her restaurants. One woman said she loved to watch Master’s lectures because Her teachings were so wonderful. Another woman said she saw Master’s latest television broadcast, “Africa: God’s Backyard” and had made her family watch it with her. Still others commented on Master’s great wisdom. One person said, “I just love listening to Her!”

Overall, initiates distributed approximately 4,000 Alternative Living flyers and 2,000 vegetarian recipes at the Festival. They were grateful for the beautiful experience and the opportunity to share Master’s teachings in such a wonderful setting.