How a 2,300-mile Walk for Peace thrust a Texas monk and his rescue dog into the spotlight

How a 2,300-mile Walk for Peace thrust a Texas monk and his rescue dog into the spotlight

LOS ANGELES (AP, July 17, 2026) — Chien Le first met the Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara in 2005, a few years before Pannakara became a novice monk at the Texas Buddhist temple where he is now the deputy abbot. What struck Le then, and amazes him still, is Pannakara’s iron-clad determination. “When he decides to do something, he goes all the way,” said Le, secretary of the temple — the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth. “He’s never be…