Marguerite Babcock of Cook Township sat on a bench at St. Clair Park in Greensburg on Thursday as speakers stressed the need for unity in a country deeply divided less than two months before the presidential election.

“I’m extremely concerned about the high level of divisiveness and nastiness that has grown under the Trump administration,” Babcock said.

But she said listening to the speakers re-enforced her commitment to work harder to be able to connect with people of different political beliefs.

The hourlong Unity in the Community rally, which attracted about 100 people, brought together people from diverse backgrounds — law enforcement, ministers, recovering addicts and those leading addiction recovery efforts, the legal profession and supporters of gay and lesbian rights and a speaker against human trafficking.

The Rev. Bobbi Hineline of Greensburg pointed out that “we’re all part of the movement toward unity.”

As a freight train rumbled along the Norfolk Southern tracks over the hillside from the park, Hineline said that “we’re all on this train together for unity.”

There was a sense of unity in the country in this century, but it wasn’t for very long, said Jessica Rafferty, an attorney with the Greensburg law firm of Quatrini Rafferty.

“We saw this unification very briefly — after Sept. 11,” Rafferty said.

Rafferty urged people to “stand up for yourself, your beliefs, but most importantly, stand up and fight for those who may not be able to stand up and fight for themselves,” Rafferty said.

In an appropriate gesture to a Western Pennsylvania icon, Rafferty told the crowd to “be one of the helpers Mr. Rogers looked for as a young boy.”

One of the worst discriminated groups in the country are the lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders and queers, said Jean Slusser of Burrell Township, Indiana County, president of the Greensburg Chapter of PFlag, a group supporting those in the LGBTQ community and their families.

“We can no longer be silent. There’s no way to separate one group’s struggle from another,” Slusser said.

“One of the biggest things that keeps us far from unity is fear of each other,” said her husband, James Slusser.

The rally also recognized National Recovery Month with a march around downtown Greensburg by about 50 people, some carrying banners such as “Recovery … it’s a we thing.”

“Unity is the fellowship of recovery. It is that unity we learn in recovery,” said Tim Phillips, executive director of the Westmoreland County Drug Overdose Task Force.

There were tables set up at the rally promoting services to help those facing the challenges of addiction.

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