Rain, snow, sleet, heat––the Peacemakers of Schoharie County have weathered it all.
They’ve also endured the occasional caustic remark or angry gesture during their nine years of standing on the corner of Main and Union streets in Cobleskill for one hour once per week.
But despite bitter cold and the heat of the opposition, the Peacemakers believe they’ve made a difference.
This past Saturday marked the 450th vigil for the Peacemakers, who started their weekly observance nine years ago.
“We first came here the first Saturday in October 2001, when the US was preparing to bomb Afghanistan and we didn’t think they should,” said Katherine Hawkins, a long-time member.
The Peacemakers had actually held vigils before that, in the 1980s and ’90s, but the post-9/11 struggle in the Middle East triggered the weekly events.
The thrust isn’t so much to convert hawks to doves but to remind passersby that there’s room for other opinions and discussion.
“We presented the idea that it wasn’t black and white,” Ms. Hawkins said, referring to the bombing of Afghanistan. “We presented the possibility of another side and that there were questions to consider.”
About a half-dozen were on the corner Saturday, bundled against the cold and holding signs––“War is Not the Answer” and “Let’s Try Diplomacy” among them. Sometimes as many as a dozen turn out; sometimes, only three.
“Our numbers don’t matter, as long as we’re here reminding people,” said Ann Adams.
Her husband, Elliott, called the one-hour vigil “as grass roots as you can get.”
“People wave or honk. . . that’s a political statement,” Mr. Adams added. “We’re changing the way people think.”
It wasn’t always that way, and occasionally it still isn’t. Ms. Hawkins said the early vigils drew more anger from passersby.
“It’s changed, though,” she said. “We still get the finger or an insult, but many more people honk and wave now.”
The Peacemakers have broadened their scope over the years to other social-justice issues. They support a school for 28 children in Kabul, Afghanistan, and are deeply involved with the Voting Integrity Project, which strives to improve all aspects of public voting.
But the cornerstone of their message is peace.
“It’s important that we speak our view with incredible consistency,” said Sue Spivack, who’s participated in Cobleskill vigils since the ’80s.
“War is not the answer. There are more important things than the military to spend money on, especially in a recession.”