Occupy Lynchburg gets off to a friendly start

So far, the name is a bit of a misnomer. The 15-20 people who showed up at the first gathering of Occupy Lynchburg on Sunday afternoon seemed more interested in borrowing Miller Park than taking it over.

“The city has been really good about working with us,” said Rachel Taylor, who emerged as the group’s spokesperson, “so we’d like to keep this as our meeting place for now.”

She was standing under a shedding maple tree at the edge of the park, leaves sifting gently down on the diverse group that had formed in a semi-circle around her. Her audience represented all ages and a variety of attire, and presumably came with an equally diverse set of issues.

“Because the people in this movement want to be inclusive,” said Steve Semienick, who described himself as an “old hippie” and former Libertarian, “it looks a little confused and diffused from the outside. But that’s just the beginning.”

For her part, Taylor — a massage therapist who moved to Lynchburg from Florida — admitted to some nervousness the night before the opening “General Assembly.”

“I didn’t know how many people were going to show up,” she said. “Maybe nobody. You just never know. I’m really pleased with the turnout.”

Taylor had followed the evolution of New York’s Occupy Wall Street and was excited to learn that a similar group had formed in Roanoke.

“So I started going over there,” she said, “and I was the only one from Lynchburg, and they said, ‘You should start a group back there.’”

On Sunday, that group stood by the side of the street for awhile, holding up signs, then adjourned to the spot under the tree. Taylor read a statement from Occupy Wall Street that stressed non-violence, warned against bringing illegal substances to demonstrations and recommended as much cooperation as possible with law enforcement (“They’re part of the 99 percent”).

“I know that Lynchburg doesn’t have any big corporate buildings to gather in front of,” Taylor said, “so we just see this as a means for people to come together and discuss their grievances. In time, things will come out that we’ll want to focus on.”

Don Manning, a Lynchburg resident who has long been a critic of corporate and banking excesses, said: “Things are getting worse. They’re not getting better. This group will help tremendously, I think. This is what America is all about.”

And Roberta Hargis, who carried a toy poodle in her purse and volunteered to be the group’s treasurer, said: “Right now, even the generalities are good enough for me.”

Occupy Lynchburg plans to meet at the park each Sunday for the near future.

“Next time, we hope to have coffee and food,” Taylor said.