Bridge Builders NYC's Third Annual 5K Unites Youth to Let Go and Move with Gratitude

NEW YORK, October 26, 2026 — More than 60 youth from across the tri-state area laced up their running and walking shoes in Central Park this past weekend for the 3rd Annual Bridge Builders NYC 5K Walk/Run. The event brought the community together and helped raise money for the construction of the Sadhu Vaswani Center for World Peace, a spiritual and community center that is taking shape in East Brunswick, New Jersey.

The event was organized by Bridge Builders NYC, the youth community service branch of the Sadhu Vaswani Mission which is a humanitarian nonprofit headquartered in Pune, India. The 5K has become a fall tradition: a chance for young adults to celebrate the power of movement on a Saturday morning while supporting a good cause. It is one of the chapter's flagship initiatives, reflecting its core motto of "Hope, Help, Heal" and its goal of building a brighter, braver world one step at a time.

Beyond the 5K, Bridge Builders brings together young future leaders and changemakers who want to give back and grow together. Each month, members take part in different initiatives, from feeding NYC neighbors experiencing homelessness, to organizing donation drives, to gathering for self-betterment activities such as yoga and meditation.

Starting with gratitude

Before the first step, the event organizers gathered participants in a circle and asked one question: why are you grateful to be moving your body today? The answers set the tone for the morning.

"I work in healthcare and with patients who cannot physically move their bodies," said one participant. "So I'm grateful to be able to do that today, and for a great cause."

"I'm grateful to be able to release stress and to be here with a community of people today," said another.

The organizers then read aloud a message of inspiration from Didi Krishna Kumari, Head of the Sadhu Vaswani Mission, which she first shared at a walkathon in Pune last year.

"With every step we take, we prove to ourselves that we are strong and capable," the message read. "Strong to do what? Strong to let go of anything we're holding on to." Each participant was encouraged to keep this thought in mind throughout the 5K and to move their bodies with gratitude.

Steps toward peace

The Sadhu Vaswani Center for World Peace's new building in New Jersey, which broke ground in April 2025, is envisioned as a space for meditation, service, learning, and community, open to people of every background. The peace center plans to open its doors in August of 2027.

To learn more about upcoming events or to join the community, follow Bridge Builders NYC on Instagram at @bridgebuilders.niny.

About Bridge Builders
Bridge Builders is the youth wing of the Sadhu Vaswani Mission, rooted in Dada J.P. Vaswani's vision that young adults are the builders of a brave new world and a better tomorrow. Through service and community development initiatives, like-minded youth come together to grow, lead with purpose, and create lasting change in their communities and within themselves.

About the Sadhu Vaswani Center for World Peace
The Sadhu Vaswani Center for World Peace (SVCWP) is the overseas outpost of the Sadhu Vaswani Mission, a global humanitarian organization headquartered in Pune, India, that has served humanity for over a century. Guided by the teachings of Sadhu Vaswani, Dada J.P. Vaswani, and its current head, Didi Krishna Kumari, SVCWP is rooted in three core values: cultivating the soul through the practice of gratitude, forgiveness, and compassion; beginning with the child by instilling strong values and character; and finding happiness by making others happy through selfless service. These core values guide SVCWP's dedication to sowing seeds of peace in the hearts of humankind. To learn more, visit www.sadhuvaswanicenter.com/about.

Media Contact: Serena Mohanani | serena@sadhuvaswanicenter.com | 340-244-2607