Meet the Pro-Life Leaders of Tomorrow at the National Prayer Service
The National Prayer Service hosted annually on the morning of the March for Life by Priests for Life and the National Pro-Life Religious Council each year shines a spotlight on those working hard to end abortion from coast to coast. Last year we added a new dimension to the interdenominational event – introducing the winners of the pro-life essay contest sponsored by Stand True, the organization I founded that since 2010, has been the youth outreach for Priests for Life.
Three young women – Mary Grover, Charlotte Swannack and Grace Walker-Ros – won last year’s inaugural contest with their essays focused on the importance of participating in elections, even for those still too young to cast a ballot. All three winners were able to attend, with their families, giving the audience a chance to meet these remarkable young people.
This year, we have a young man in the mix, and he is hoping to be at the Jan. 23 prayer service at Constitution Hall. Elijah Baral, a homeschooled 10th grader from York, Pennsylvania, took a very unique approach in his winning essay that addressed the topic, Why I Am Pro-Life in a Culture that Promotes Abortion
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In A Modern Day Proposal, Elijah highlighted the inhumanity of the pro-abortion worldview by suggesting – tongue firmly in cheek – that the bodies of aborted babies be sold and eaten. (Read the essay here).
Our junior high winner, Maggie DiAntonio, is also planning to attend with her family. The homeschooled seventh-grader from Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, wowed the judges with Why I Am Pro-Life, a deeply personal composition that explained how her pro-life convictions were bolstered by living with three disabled siblings. (Read it here)
College winner Eliana Anybinder, a student at New York University, is spending a semester abroad so will have to miss the prayer service. Her essay, Hope Has a Heartbeat, focused on the holistic, pro-woman nature of the pro-life movement. (Read it here).
This year’s service has the theme America’s 250th Birthday: Celebrating the Right to Life as recognized in our Declaration of Independence, and will pay tribute to the courageous witness of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, who sacrificed his life to reach young people all over the country with his message of faith, family, prolife, and allegiance to the founding principles of our great nation.
Liche Ariza, who stars in the global television sensation The Chosen will speak at the service, and Priests for Life National Director Frank Pavone will deliver the keynote address,
Co-sponsors for the service this year include National Institute of Family and Life Advocates; American Principles Project; Bott Radio Network; Thomas More Society; Human Life Alliance; Timothy Plan; The Justice Foundation; Operation Outcry and Intercessors for America.
The service will run from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m., preceded by a Catholic Mass at 7:30 a.m. Tickets are not required and large groups can easily be accommodated.
Constitution Hall is at 1776 D St. NW, at the corner of 18th Street. For more information, go to NationalPrayerService.com.
LifeNews Note: Bryan Kemper is the director of youth outreach and street activism for Priests for Life.
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