Jim Deferio came from Syracuse, N.Y., to Dover to stick pamphlets into strangers' doorjambs and to tell people inside he'd love to see them at an upcoming creationist seminar.

"It's free," he told resident after resident. Many gave polite thank-yous and then closed their doors.

Deferio is with Repent America, a Philadelphia-based evangelistic organization. Though the group has made headlines for protesting gay pride events and abortion, the group has come to Dover with a different focus: the teaching of evolution.

Six group members were in Dover yesterday, going door to door with Christian tracts and fliers advertising the creationist seminar. By tomorrow, as many as 20 people with Repent America could be outside Dover Area High School to talk to students in their efforts to stir people against the way evolution is taught, said Repent America director Michael Marcavage.

He said public schools must present evolution in a "fair and balanced" way that does not treat evolution as fact. The group subscribes to a literal interpretation of the biblical account of creation, which says God created Earth and its inhabitants in six days.

Quiet reaction: Reaction has been muted, but many who speak out have said they support what the group is doing, Deferio said.

Others have been less than interested, declining the group's fliers, said Jason Sutherland, a Dover resident working with the group.

Dover became "ground zero" for the battle on teaching evolution,

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Marcavage said, when the Dover school board voted to require that ninth-grade biology classes mention intelligent design, the theory that living beings are so complex they must
have been created by a higher power.

Eleven Dover parents won a lawsuit challenging the school district and its board when a federal judge ruled that intelligent design is a form of Christian creationism. The school board responsible for the decision was largely voted out of office in the fall.

Dover resident Richard Smith is one of those who wish the outsiders would leave town and stop harping on a matter he considers largely settled. He expressed particular concern over the group's coming to the high school, which his daughter attends.

"They need to let the children have their learning uninterrupted," Smith said. "It's really not the time nor the place for it, in my opinion."

Good news for some: But for others, Repent America's visit has brought good news. Dover resident Gary Warner said he has seen creationist lecturer Kent Hovind before and is looking forward to seeing him again. He said he doesn't mind the attention Dover is getting because it brings attention to creationists like himself.

The creationist seminar will take place at 6:30 p.m. Friday, March 17, and 10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 18, in the Dover Area High School auditorium.

-- Reach Daina Klimanis at 505-5439 or dklimanis@yorkdispatch.com.