ROANOKE RAPIDS — A ship sailed into Centennial Park on Wednesday afternoon. While the ship was a replica, the ideas it represents were real, and very dear to the group of citizens gathered there.

Roger Bell | Daily Herald The Dartmouth replica arrives in Centennial Park for the Roanoke Valley Patriots T.E.A. Party Wednesday afternoon. Advertisement

The Roanoke Valley Patriots, in preparation for what’s being dubbed “the 9/12 Tax March on Washington,” held a rally in the park, called a T.E.A. party, to gather support and get their message out to Roanoke Rapids.

T.E.A.,  Taxed Enough Already, provides a centerpiece for the group’s views. As their Web site proclaims, the Roanoke Valley Patriots are “against big government, out of control spending, bailouts, more taxes, pork spending and government controlled health care.”

“We’re average citizens who love their country and feel as if Washington is not hearing us and we want to have a voice,” says Pat Croisetiere, the group’s administrator and coordinator of its T.E.A. parties. “We feel the only way Washington hears us is through these T.E.A. parties.”

The event, which drew a fair crowd of like-minded activists to the park, was hastily arranged. Croisetiere admitted she’d only gotten the permit Sunday night, which left little time to gather support.

The group First Coast Tea Party of Jacksonville, Fla., a group similar in mission to the Roanoke Valley Patriots, had notified Croisetiere they were bringing its replica of “Dartmouth,” one of the three ships from the original Boston Tea Party, up Interstate 95 to Washington for the Sept. 12 event. Croisetiere wanted the Dartmouth to be a part of the event in Centennial Park, so she moved quickly to arrange the event.

Clearly those who attended were passionate. Many carried signs or wore T-shirts that expressed distaste for government spending practices, and a few even got up to speak to share why they were involved in the event.

“Government was bailing out people who shouldn’t be bailed out,” said Billie Tucker, one of the citizens who rose to speak. Tucker vowed the group would go to Washington with the Dartmouth and “drive around the White House, Congress, and let them know that we the people have arrived and remind them who runs this country.”

Glenn Lord of Jacksonville, Fla., who designed and built the Dartmouth replica, also spoke. He said he had grown tired of waking up to see how the government spent his money and thinking, “what is this? We’ve got to protect our free enterprise system. The economy is hurting and it’s not an accident.”

“These people no longer represent us and they have to be stopped,” Lord continued. “Our most important weapon is our voice … the First Amendment is the first line of defense against tyranny. Raise our voice loud enough so they hear us in D.C.; they seem to be deaf.”

Lord exalted the gathering to “save America.”

Following Lord, Mike Garris of Roanoke Rapids sought to remind the crowd to not “forget this is just as much a spiritual battle as a political one.” Garris stated the current administration has endeavored to “take the Creator out of everything.”

Beth from Rocky Mount followed, calling herself a “disgruntled, dissatisfied Democrat ready to stand up for my country.” She echoed the First Amendment theme, proclaiming that she’s “sick of being called a liar by (Speaker of the House Nancy) Pelosi … I have a right to say what I want to, and they can’t stop me.”

James Edwards spoke next, taking shots at the media first for not covering the group and its goals fairly, and following that by clarifying one of the group’s tenets. “We like people to have the health care they deserve, but this is about government trying to control health care.” Later he would say, “there’s nothing in the bill about saving money. It’s about rationing health care.”

The grass roots group applauded each speaker and invited anyone in attendance to add anything they wished to say. Garris would later emphasize the group’s aims are peaceful despite Croisetiere’s assertion that the Department of Homeland Security had characterized such organizations as potential terrorists and threats to national security.

Croisetiere said she’s willing to take some risks to get the message across peacefully. “My husband asked me just to not get arrested,” she says with a smile. “I told him that at my age, bring it on.”