Gone were the pointedly political signs, pink hats and crowded street intersections.

Pushed online by the COVID-19 pandemic, the fifth annual Women’s March in Port Townsend was celebrated with a virtual return Saturday, Jan. 23 in a Facebook event hosted by the Human Rights Alliance North Sound.

Packed with powerful emotion and gratitude, the online event was led by Amanda Funaro, a candidate for county commissioner last year who is also a well-known community volunteer and the principal operations officer for Good Man Sanitation.

Participants didn’t take to the streets this year, but gathered for an hour-long program that kicked off with a slideshow featuring photos from previous Women’s March gatherings in Port Townsend, followed by a presentation by the Port Townsend branch of the American Association of University Women and guest speakers that included Siobhan Canty, this year’s recipient of the AAUW’s Woman of Excellence award.

Port Townsend Mayor Michelle Sandoval was a program highlight.

“She’s a lady boss that I think many of us aspire to be,” Funaro said when introducing the longtime Jefferson County resident and public servant.

Sandoval recalled her history as a first-generation American. Her parents were born in Mexico and eventually became naturalized citizens; her father fought as a Marine in World War II.

“I’m lucky and fortunate that I stand on their shoulders and that my son will stand on mine,” she said.

“I think it’s the ability to believe in yourself, but also people along your path that support you, and mentor you, and believe in you.

“While not all of us are necessarily thought of as leaders or as elected officials, I just want to say to you that each one of us is a leader. Not can be, not should be, not will be.

“We are all leaders. What that means is that we take care of each other, and we love each other, and we help each other, and we support each other,” Sandoval said.

She urged those participating in the Women’s March program to make a difference in someone’s life, “particularly at this time where we have lived through such a trauma of the last four years.”

And for many people of color, Sandoval added, “It’s been much longer than four years.”

She recalled the initial uprising, held the day after Trump’s inauguration in 2017.

“The first Women’s March in 2017 saved my life,” Sandoval said.

“It gave me back a sense of hope. And we really need hope to carry on,” she added.

We are still living with COVID, Sandoval said, and she noted the events of the last year that have prompted many to have difficult conversations, ones that no longer turn a blind eye to inequality in the world.

“Change doesn’t happen immediately — as much as we want it to be. It may take us 10 or 20 years. We may be gone by the time real change happens.

“But we still need to be the leaders that show the way,” she said.

She strongly urged people to lead not only in women’s rights, feminism and equality for Black Lives Matter, and for the LGBTQ community.

And for disabled people, she added with voice breaking, “to give them the dignity that we all deserve.”

Sandoval noted the program would end with a recording of Amanda Gorman, the 22-year-old writer who read her much acclaimed poem at last week’s inauguration of President Joe Biden.

What would have happened to her, what missed opportunities, Sandoval wondered, would a young gifted black woman face without the support she had in her life?

“Who else are we missing in our world because they haven’t been given the access?” she asked.

“Be a leader. Support these people. Mentorship. Love. Lead with our hearts,” Sandoval said.