Nearly five years after the start of the war, area peace activists remain passionate about their causes.

And their numbers are growing, says Adria Scharf, executive director of the Richmond Peace Education Center.

"We are continually partnering with new groups," she said. "Richmond has a reputation for being so conservative, but there is a lot of energy focused on peace and social justice."

Richmond activist Rain Burroughs stands outside the Second Street office of U.S. Rep. Robert C. Scott, D-3rd, every Friday at noon. "I'm calling for the impeachment of Dick Cheney and then George W. Bush," she said.

Scott serves on the House Judiciary Committee, which would handle an impeachment resolution.

"Real change comes from sticking with it. You might lose and lose and lose, but then you win," Burroughs said.

Larry Syverson of Chesterfield County became a national figure after he protested in front of the federal courthouse in Richmond for years. "In the beginning, a lot of people were upset," he said. "Now it's hard to remember the last time anybody said anything negative."

All four of Syverson's sons joined the military; three of them have a combined total of five tours of duty in Iraq.

He said he plans to return from his winter hiatus with a new sign showing a picture of son Branden and the message, "Don't send my son back to Iraq."

Syverson serves on the executive committee of the Massachusetts-based Military Families Speak Out and said membership has expanded in the past year from primarily parents to military spouses.

Every Friday in Harrisonburg, a group has met for the past five years to pray for healing and an end to the war, said Lisa Schirch, a professor in the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding at Eastern Mennonite University.

"EMU also has been working with Iraqi organizations to support Iraqis working for peace and security in their own country," she said.

Mike Bentley, a board member at the Plowshare Peace and Justice Center in Roanoke, said he has seen the number of participants in monthly peace vigils increase there over the past five years.

"The catcalling and finger flips we got initially are way down. The thumbs up and honks are way up."

This weekend in Washington, the Christian Peace Witness for Iraq, an ecumenical ad hoc group, plans a peace rally and other activities on or near the National Mall. One of the projects is 10,000 Feet of Hope, a rope adorned with ribbons and bands of cloth sent in by faith communities from around the country and modeled after Buddhist prayer flags.

Contact Lisa Crutchfield at (804) 649-6362 or lcrutchfield@timesdispatch.com.