October 5, 2008 - War protesters filled the streets - and blocked traffic - Saturday evening during a march from the Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic on Westfall Road to the campus of Monroe Community College.

The march topped off North East Winter Soldier, a day of anti-war activities organized by Iraq Veterans Against the War. Fifteen veterans of Iraq, Afghanistan and Vietnam told their stories, and a rally in front of the V.A. clinic drew attention to what protesters say are limited hours. The clinic is not open on Saturdays.

"The pain of our veterans does not stop on weekends or federal holidays," said Iraq veteran Bryan Casler, president of the Rochester chapter of IVAW.

Kelli Large, 23, made the two-hour trip to Rochester from Moravia, Cayuga County, to support the event. Her 21-year-old brother, Johnny Jackson, is serving in the Army in Afghanistan now.

"It's awful," said Large. "I don't sleep. I wake up crying and I worry all the time. It's like having another job."

Large's husband, Mitchell Large, 32, says it will be hard for him to vote in the November election because neither major-party candidate supports the immediate withdrawal of troops.

He said the march along East Henrietta and Westfall roads at least put the war in the minds of some people, if only for a few minutes.

"It makes the community think," he said.

More than 100 people attended North East Winter Soldier, including dozens of students from the Campus Anti-war Network.

Hearing the veterans' testimonies reminded Cornell University sophomore Malcolm Sanborn-Hum, 19, of Westchester County, of the seriousness of the situation in Iraq and Afghanistan. "It's not this romanticized, black-and-white kind of story of us bringing democracy and freedom to another country," Sanborn-Hum said. "It's more nuanced. There's lots of suffering."

Iraq veteran Mike Totten, 26, was at Saturday's event to help veterans who needed support after telling their stories.

Totten is part of Homefront Battle Buddies, an IVAW program that trains veterans to help other veterans sort through the aftermath of war.

"Our message is, 'You are not alone,'" Totten said.

Totten reiterated the importance of demanding better health care for returning veterans. He says the V.A. has vastly underestimated the number of veterans coming home with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Casler, who also serves as the northeast regional coordinator for IVAW, says he hopes the event inspires more people to join the anti-war effort.

He told his own war story Saturday. Speaking in public about his experience is easier than it used to be, he said, adding that hearing other veterans' stories is part the healing process.

"I never feel better than after hanging out with my Iraq and Afghanistan buddies," he said.