The California woman who has become the face of the anti-war movement last night urged Hawai'i residents to be more active in the fight to end the war in Iraq.

Cindy Sheehan spoke to an overflow crowd of more than 200 people at the Church of the Crossroads in Mo'ili'ili. The event was sponsored by the anti-war group Not In Our Name.

Sheehan has become the symbol of the peace movement since she held a 26-day sit-in last August near the entrance to President Bush's Crawford, Texas, ranch. Hundreds of people from across the country joined Sheehan at what became "Camp Casey" as she vowed to stay until Bush spoke to her.

Sheehan's son, Army Spc. Casey Sheehan, 24, was killed in Iraq on April 4, 2004.

Since August, Cindy Sheehan and other family members of soldiers killed in Iraq have founded the Gold Star Families for Peace. She also has inspired anti-war protests and last night she brought her message to Hawai'i.

Sheehan was critical of the Bush administration, which she characterized as a "war machine." She said Bush is using the military in the name of oil and to fill the wallets of the wealthy in this country.

"America is a good country, but we can be a great country and we're only going to be a great country if we quit using our violence, if we quit killing people," Sheehan said. "The war machine is always looking for conflict. The war machine is always looking for some way to eat our children and spit them out."

Sheehan, of Vacaville, Calif., said she never thought of herself as an activist and she never imagined that her sit-down at the Bush ranch would lead to such an outpouring of support. She said her son "died for nothing" and she wanted to be sure other families won't have to go through the pain that she has endured.

"We don't have a chance to heal and we're never going to fully get over what's happened to us," Sheehan said. "People always want to marginalize me and say, 'Oh, she's just a grieving mom.' Well, you're damn right I'm a grieving mom and thanks to George Bush I'm going to be a grieving mom for the rest of my life."

Sheehan encouraged the crowd to be active in protests here and on the Mainland.

"What we found out at Camp Casey was we do have a voice, that they have tried to take our country away from us and we weren't going to let them do that anymore," she said.

Perhaps the most emotional moment of the evening came when Sheehan asked the father of a Hawai'i man killed in Iraq to address the crowd. Paul Wessel described how his son, Kevin, loved the Army and how he was killed last April by a car bomb.

Kevin Wessel would have turned 21 today.

"He was happy to be there. He was happy to serve all of you because he truly believed that's what he was doing," a tearful Wessel told the crowd. "He loved being a soldier, that's what he lived for. However, he never lost his humanity."

Although he opposes the war in Iraq, Paul Wessel said Americans should direct their anger and frustration at the White House, not the troops.

"Please remember, don't take this out on the soldiers. Give them as much love and appreciation as you can," he said.

Prior to the speeches, Judy Jones stood alone outside the church hall to protest the event. Jones was later joined by a couple more protesters who support the war.

"I don't believe we need to bring the troops back until the job is done," Jones said.

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.