00:07 - How are we doing today?

00:10 - Come on, we can do a little better than that.

00:12 - How are we doing today?

00:15 - Great job.

00:16 - Pro-Life Pennsylvania.

00:17 - My name is Pete de Mayo, and my wife and I are

00:20 - the founders of mission, Love and Life.

00:22 - We have three main purposes.

00:24 - Deeper love of God.

00:26 - More authentic love of one another.

00:28 - And for all of us to live a joyful,

00:30 - happy Christian life and witness that to others.

00:33 - On behalf of the Pennsylvania

00:35 - Family Institute, I get to be our host.

00:37 - For today's event, I'd like to welcome you to the 2026

00:41 - Pennsylvania march for life.

00:47 - Before we get started,

00:49 - we want to thank our wonderful marquee

00:51 - PA march for life sponsor, Baer Wealth Advisors

00:55 - and our event sponsor, Sight and Sound theaters and films.

01:03 - I don't know about you, but I think it's great

01:05 - when businesses champion this movement for life.

01:11 - Whether this is your 1st March for life or your 50th

01:14 - March for life either way, or any year in between.

01:17 - We're so glad that you were here with us today.

01:20 - I hope you leave inspired today to continue or

01:23 - start working on behalf of our Preben,

01:26 - their families, and to shift our culture.

01:30 - We have an incredible lineup of speakers for you today, and I

01:34 - can't wait for you

01:34 - to hear their inspiring stories and testimonies.

01:38 - To begin today's rally, we're excited to welcome

01:41 - Pennsylvania Representative Barb climb of the 199th district

01:47 - to lead the Pledge of Allegiance and the Bishop McDevitt

01:50 - High School Choir to lead us in the national anthem.

01:59 - Thank you.

02:00 - Could everybody please stand and uncover?

02:04 - I pledge allegiance

02:06 - to the flag of the United States of America.

02:09 - And to the Republic for which it stands.

02:12 - One nation under God,

02:15 - indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

02:19 - Thank you.

02:28 - Say time, you see.

02:30 - By the dawn's early light.

02:34 - What so from the.

02:36 - We held on the twilight's last gleaming.

02:40 - Whose bus rides and bright stars.

02:44 - Through the barrel of spies

02:47 - for the ground which we watched.

02:50 - Were so gallantly streaming.

02:53 - From the rocket's red glare,

02:56 - the bombs bursting in air improved through

03:01 - the night of our flag was still there.

03:06 - Oh, cigars suspending old banner yet wave

03:15 - for the love of the free and the home, my lord.

03:35 - Thank you

03:36 - to representatives for blind for leading us in the pledge.

03:39 - And thank you to Bishop McDevitt High School

03:42 - for your beautiful rendition of our national anthem,

03:45 - especially in this 250th anniversary year.

03:50 - Now, please join me in

03:52 - welcoming to the stage Pastor Matt Millen,

03:55 - Lead Pastor of Worship Center in to lead our opening prayer.

03:59 - Pastor Millen is passionately leading people to know Jesus

04:04 - to discover their God given purpose and advance his kingdom,

04:08 - including standing for the God given dignity

04:11 - and the value of every human life.

04:15 - We are so grateful he's here with us today.

04:17 - Please welcome Pastor Matt Millen, a fellow pro-life

04:21 - pastor, to the stage.

04:27 - Thank you.

04:28 - We believe that life is a gift from our creator.

04:34 - There's nothing we did to earn it.

04:35 - Nothing we do to deserve it.

04:37 - But we are called.

04:39 - Were compelled to steward the life

04:40 - and protect the human sanctity of life.

04:44 - So let's pray. Would you join me?

04:47 - Heavenly father, we do recognize that life is a gift from you.

04:51 - You formed us.

04:52 - You created us in our mother's womb.

04:56 - So we thank you for that.

04:57 - Thank you for every person who is here.

04:59 - Thank you for the truth that we have been fearfully

05:03 - and wonderfully made.

05:06 - And so, God, now, because of

05:07 - that, we take a moment to examine our own hearts,

05:10 - just like David did in Psalm 139.

05:13 - He said, search me.

05:15 - Oh God, no, my heart.

05:17 - Test my thoughts, my motives.

05:20 - And we take a moment

05:21 - just to examine our own hearts as we prepare for this day

05:24 - to celebrate and protect the value of life,

05:29 - would you examine our hearts that our motives are

05:32 - honoring to you?

05:34 - You test our thoughts that they are pleasing to you

05:37 - and value every human life.

05:42 - Today we lift up all of those who have influence and authority

05:45 - have been given God given authority in this state.

05:49 - We pray for Governor Shapiro and all of our elected officials.

05:53 - We ask you to help them, guide them,

05:57 - and we pray that they would look to you for guidance.

06:00 - We pray for business leaders, marketplace leaders.

06:05 - We pray for all of our educators.

06:08 - We pray for those who are serving in our schools.

06:10 - We pray for those in our neighborhoods.

06:13 - We pray for coaches.

06:14 - We pray for church leaders and pastors and leaders at

06:18 - every level.

06:21 - God, I pray that you would ask that you would help them

06:25 - lead in a way that protects

06:27 - life, raises the value of life from the womb

06:32 - till they take their very last breath.

06:35 - May we be a state known

06:39 - to give you honor and praise in everything that we do.

06:43 - We commit this day to you.

06:44 - In Jesus name we all said Amen.

06:48 - Amen.

07:01 - Thank you, pastor, for joining us today

07:03 - and opening our rally with such a beautiful prayer.

07:07 - Next, I'm thrilled to introduce

07:09 - our first speaker today, president of the P.A.

07:13 - Family Institute, Michael Gear.

07:20 - Michael Gear is the founding president

07:22 - and CEO of Pennsylvania Family Institute, where he has spent

07:26 - decades championing championing the sanctity of human life.

07:30 - After Michael,

07:31 - you'll have an opportunity to hear from House Minority

07:34 - Leader, Representative Jesse Topper and Senator Dawn Keefer.

07:38 - Please join me in welcoming Michael Gear

07:41 - and your pro-life legislators to the stage.

07:52 - Well, good morning, pro-life Pennsylvanians.

07:56 - On behalf of the Pennsylvania Family Institute team

07:59 - and our event coordinator, Kurt Weaver,

08:04 - welcome to all of you lovers of life across Pennsylvania.

08:08 - I'm told there are about 70 busses, our largest number ever,

08:12 - full of pro-life Pennsylvanians coming here to the march.

08:17 - And now it's our opportunity

08:18 - to let the folks behind you in the Capitol

08:20 - and in the governor's office over that way.

08:23 - Hear our voice right now.

08:24 - Let's repeat, we are pro-life.

08:26 - We are pro-life.

08:28 - We are pro-life.

08:31 - We are pro-life.

08:34 - Well, it is certainly an exciting

08:36 - and a joy to be together with you here

08:38 - this morning to celebrate life.

08:39 - And we cherish this opportunity

08:41 - afforded to us in this great nation

08:44 - to do justice, to make our voices heard.

08:47 - To protect all innocent

08:48 - human life from conception until natural death,

08:50 - and to preserve our God given liberties for ourselves

08:53 - and our posterity, including those not yet born.

08:57 - But doing so requires more than just a one day event.

09:02 - It requires ongoing, persistent action.

09:05 - Praying, voting, engaging your presence here today

09:09 - demonstrates that you are the kind of people who want

09:12 - to see a Pennsylvania where God is honored, religious

09:15 - freedom flourishes, families thrive, and life is cherished.

09:20 - And that will take all of us getting involved.

09:25 - Well, today, providentially, we have the opportunity,

09:28 - in fact, an urgent need to take action right now.

09:32 - I say urgent because on this particular issue

09:34 - I'm about to address,

09:35 - today is the deadline to make your voice heard.

09:39 - So right now, I encourage you to get your cell phones out,

09:43 - ready to take this important action.

09:46 - You may have heard in the news

09:47 - that the Shapiro administration has proposed Department

09:50 - of Health regulations, over 500 pages of them,

09:54 - a gross overreach of government

09:55 - power into the lives of families and doctors, doctors offices,

10:00 - and, excuse me, in schools and in this proposal

10:04 - from this administration

10:06 - are gone are words like mother or woman, replaced with phrases

10:10 - like pregnant individuals and postpartum individuals.

10:18 - The regulations even seek to get into the relationship

10:21 - between pro-life pregnancy care centers and center counsel,

10:25 - their counselors and their clients in certain

10:28 - circumstances.

10:30 - Today is the last day for public comment

10:32 - on this troubling proposal.

10:34 - And so you can take action right now on your phone.

10:37 - Text p a march March to 73075.

10:43 - It's on the screen here as well, and you'll see details on this

10:46 - key concern and an opportunity for you to speak out again.

10:50 - Please text the words P.A.

10:52 - March 2nd 73075

10:55 - and help make a difference for our future.

10:58 - And when you get home from here, pass that on to your friends

11:02 - and family to take action while there's still time.

11:05 - Lastly, I want to say

11:07 - thank you to the lawmakers and policymakers

11:09 - that have joined me on this stage behind me.

11:12 - Pro-Life champions who fight every day.

11:14 - Let's hear it for them.

11:23 - They fight every day to

11:25 - push for a culture of life here in the Commonwealth.

11:27 - And it's worth taking note that today

11:30 - is not a voting session day on the calendar.

11:32 - So these lawmakers were not scheduled

11:34 - to be here in Harrisburg, but made the special trip

11:37 - from all over the state to be here with you.

11:44 - It's not just a one day thing again,

11:45 - to clap for them, but to be involved

11:47 - day in and day out, year in and year out.

11:50 - Right now, I'd like to introduce two lawmakers who helped lead

11:53 - the cause of life here at the Capitol.

11:54 - First is our friend and Minority leader, Jesse Topper

11:57 - from Bedford County, and then pro-life Senator Don

12:01 - Keefer from York County.

12:10 - Thank you so much.

12:11 - Thank you to Family Institute,

12:14 - the March for life, for putting this together.

12:16 - It is truly a blessing

12:18 - for me to be here and speaking in front of so many

12:21 - like minded individuals

12:22 - who believe so strongly in one of the greatest causes

12:25 - you could ever stand up for the cause of life.

12:28 - I remember it was probably my first ever exposure

12:31 - to anything that would be remotely considered political.

12:35 - I was homeschooled, so just in case there's any

12:38 - homeschoolers out there.

12:41 - Part of my curriculum was the first time I ever went.

12:45 - Was a very cold day in January,

12:48 - going down to the March for Life in Washington, D.C.

12:51 - I was in elementary school at the time, and I remembered

12:54 - seeing all of the people

12:56 - and the great buildings in Washington,

12:58 - and then also seeing the counterprotesters

13:01 - that were there with their signs.

13:03 - And I remember asking my mom,

13:06 - what exactly what exactly are all these people arguing about?

13:11 - And she told me something that stuck with me

13:14 - and is still my guiding light on this issue to this day.

13:18 - She said, well, Jess, the best way I can explain it

13:21 - is that the group of people that were with believe

13:25 - that life starts when you're in your mommy's belly.

13:30 - Now, I've already heard from this group

13:32 - that they understand that only mommies can have

13:35 - babies in their bellies, so I appreciate that.

13:43 - But she also said something else

13:45 - that really made an impact on me.

13:47 - I said, well, what about the other people?

13:48 - And she goes,

13:48 - those are the people that we need to pray for

13:50 - so that they can see things the way that we see them.

13:52 - And I would encourage you to continue to do that.

13:55 - We all believe in the value of life, and we all believe,

13:58 - as policy makers up

13:59 - here, that our job is to protect those children in the womb

14:03 - as though they were out of it.

14:04 - And we will continue to do that up in the Capitol

14:07 - representing you.

14:08 - One of the greatest moments

14:09 - of this past year was hearing so many of my colleagues

14:13 - defend life on the House floor back in December.

14:26 - Whether we are in the minority of the majority,

14:28 - we will always have your voice and your back in that Capitol

14:31 - building behind you.

14:32 - I can assure you that.

14:36 - And the last thing I want to say,

14:37 - and I will close with this, because I think it's important.

14:40 - I think it's a challenge that many of us need to hear.

14:43 - We also need to be the pro-life community

14:46 - that rallies around the young people,

14:49 - especially the young women who do make the decision for life.

14:52 - So many times we usher them to

14:54 - that point that they make their decision,

14:56 - but there is life for them after that.

14:59 - And if we don't want the government

15:01 - taking care of them, then we as a faith community

15:04 - need to be wrapping our arms around these young families

15:07 - when they choose life.

15:08 - I encourage you to do that.

15:13 - Because, as we

15:15 - have found too many times in this country,

15:17 - the government

15:17 - that is powerful enough to take care of you is powerful enough

15:20 - to take everything you love away.

15:22 - We need to rally around all of these young families,

15:25 - encourage them to choose life, and say

15:27 - that we will be there for them when they do.

15:29 - Thank you so much and God bless each and every one of you.

15:40 - Well, good morning friends,

15:41 - families, students, pastors, and fellow Pennsylvanians.

15:46 - What a site it is to stand here

15:49 - in front of our beautiful State Capitol steps.

15:52 - Look out with so many of you who have come to stand up

15:56 - and speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves.

16:02 - We're here today because every life has inherent dignity

16:07 - from the moment of conception until natural death.

16:11 - We're here because the smallest among us deserve protection.

16:16 - And we're here because Pennsylvania can't

16:19 - and must do better for mothers, for children, and for families.

16:26 - This year,

16:29 - we gather around a simple but powerful message.

16:33 - Life is a gift.

16:35 - Every human life is a gift unique, irreplaceable,

16:40 - and worthy of dignity and protection.

16:45 - When we recognize life as a gift,

16:47 - we recognize our responsibility to protect it.

16:50 - To support mothers and families,

16:52 - and to build a culture where every child is welcomed.

16:57 - This is not about politics.

16:59 - First, it is about principle.

17:02 - It is about the simple, stubborn truth

17:06 - that a child in the womb is a human being,

17:09 - unique, irreplaceable, and worthy of life.

17:18 - Science confirms what our hearts already

17:22 - know, and our law should reflect that reality.

17:27 - Too often, the public conversation

17:29 - treats abortions as the only answer.

17:32 - When a woman faces

17:33 - an unexpected pregnancy and we reject that false choice.

17:38 - Real compassion means walking with women,

17:42 - offering practical help, and meeting

17:45 - real life needs that come during and after pregnancy.

17:49 - So expecting mothers know that they are not alone.

17:53 - Pregnancy resource centers across the Commonwealth

17:57 - do that work every single day and we salute them.

18:07 - We salute them, we support them,

18:10 - and we will continue to expand that network of help.

18:14 - Because if life is truly a gift, then supporting mothers

18:17 - and families must be part of how we honor that gift.

18:21 - We should be building a commonwealth where no woman

18:25 - feels that she must choose between the future of her child

18:28 - and the future of her own family.

18:31 - We also come with a clear message for all Pennsylvanians

18:35 - and elected officials.

18:37 - Protect the unborn.

18:39 - Support mothers.

18:41 - Reject efforts

18:42 - to expand abortion access at the expense

18:45 - of our most vulnerable, and never forget that the right

18:50 - to life is the foundation of every other right.

19:02 - To the young people who are here today,

19:04 - and there are so many of you out there.

19:07 - You are the generation that can change culture.

19:11 - One conversation, one one

19:14 - classroom, one campus at a time.

19:17 - Keep speaking the truth with courage and kindness

19:22 - to the mothers.

19:27 - And to the

19:27 - mothers who have chosen life under difficult circumstances.

19:31 - We thank you. You are our heroes.

19:35 - And to those who carry the quiet grief of a past

19:39 - abortion, there is mercy, healing

19:42 - and a community ready to walk with you.

19:46 - We will march today not in anger, but in hope,

19:50 - not to condemn, but to invite, and not merely to protest,

19:55 - but to build a culture where every child is welcomed

19:59 - and every mother is supported.

20:02 - Because every life is a gift, and every gift deserves

20:06 - to be valued, protected and cherished.

20:17 - Pennsylvania has a proud tradition

20:19 - of defending the vulnerable,

20:20 - and let us continue that tradition.

20:23 - Let us be a common Commonwealth that chooses life

20:27 - consistently, compassionately, and without apology.

20:31 - So thank you.

20:32 - Thank you all for standing here.

20:34 - Thank you for marching.

20:36 - And thank you for being the voice for the voiceless.

20:40 - God bless you all.

20:41 - God bless you.

20:42 - I'm born and God bless this great commonwealth of

20:45 - Pennsylvania. Thank you.

20:56 - Thank you so much, Leader and Senator Keefer.

21:01 - Can I ask a huge favor of everyone?

21:03 - Can we move

21:04 - in, please, and gather closer in front of the stage?

21:08 - We are all united in this one mission for life.

21:11 - For love.

21:12 - So if it's okay, we have some people on the outside here

21:17 - who maybe can't see as well.

21:18 - So please pack in the middle as much as possible.

21:22 - Come on, keep it moving.

21:27 - All right.

21:28 - I'm excited to welcome our next speakers, Jenny Bradley

21:31 - Lichter, doctor Monique Ribeiro, and Brooke

21:36 - Jenny Bradley Lichter is a mother and wife,

21:39 - pro-life leader, attorney, president emeritus of the March

21:43 - for life and former deputy director at the white House.

21:48 - After Jenny Bradley Lichter.

21:49 - Will we hear from Doctor Monique Ribeiro?

21:53 - Doctor Monique Ribeiro is an ob gyn

21:56 - and founder of Natural Women's Health.

21:59 - She's a life.

22:00 - She is a mother and a passionate pro-life advocate.

22:04 - She will be joined by other pro-life doctors

22:07 - and medical staff from around the state.

22:11 - And thanks to Doctor Monique Ribeiro,

22:15 - our seventh little one, our seventh baby is here.

22:18 - If you see him running around. His name is Giovanni.

22:20 - So thank you.

22:23 - Following Doctor Rivera, we'll hear from Brooke

22:26 - representing the PA Pregnancy Wellness Collaborative.

22:29 - She spent her entire career

22:31 - fighting for mothers and the sanctity of human life.

22:35 - She will be joined by pregnancy

22:36 - care center leaders from around our state.

22:40 - Please help me welcome Jenny Bradley Lichter, doctor

22:43 - Monique Ribeiro, and Brooke.

22:53 - Hello, Pro-Life Pennsylvania.

22:58 - It is so good to be back in

23:00 - Harrisburg to march with you again.

23:02 - I want to say a big

23:03 - thank you to our friends at the Pennsylvania

23:05 - Family Institute for making today possible.

23:07 - We love working with you all.

23:08 - Thank you.

23:10 - All right, friends, if you were here at last year's

23:13 - Pennsylvania march for life, could you please give a shout?

23:17 - Yes. Okay.

23:19 - I was too.

23:20 - So you all remember, like I do, I'm sure, how incredibly

23:24 - powerful that day was.

23:26 - It was less than two weeks after Charlie Kirk was killed

23:29 - for speaking the truth.

23:30 - It was our first state march for life

23:33 - after that event, actually.

23:34 - And you all showed up in a big way that day.

23:38 - Pennsylvania

23:39 - showed up bold and courageous and totally on fire for life.

23:44 - I will never forget

23:45 - there were so many students here last year,

23:48 - and I love seeing so many students here again today.

23:54 - So. So so I want to tell you something, Pennsylvania.

24:00 - I want you to know that I tell everyone about you.

24:04 - When people ask me what gives you hope for the future?

24:07 - Is the pro-life movement getting old and tired?

24:10 - I tell them about the Pennsylvania march

24:13 - for life, and how big and loud and young and faith filled

24:17 - this crowd was last year.

24:19 - You are inspiring people all over this country,

24:22 - Pennsylvania.

24:23 - You are a reason for hope.

24:26 - It is so good that you are here.

24:31 - Shout out to you.

24:37 - Actually our last our next speaker heard me

24:40 - talking about the Pennsylvania

24:41 - march for life at an event in California a few months ago,

24:43 - so she can confirm you all are my inspiration.

24:46 - I also want to just remind you it matters so much what you do

24:50 - when you leave here.

24:52 - This year marks the fourth anniversary of Dobbs.

24:55 - The pro-life movement

24:56 - marched for decades before Roe fell, and Dobbs has saved lives.

25:01 - Thanks be to God for that decision. But.

25:04 - But we still face battles at every turn.

25:07 - So what can you do to help win

25:10 - our culture and our country for life once and for all?

25:13 - I'm going to give you all some homework.

25:16 - Four steps to Pro-Life engagement

25:18 - to guide you moving forward when you leave here today.

25:22 - Number one, speak the truth boldly.

25:25 - The truth is on our side, friends,

25:28 - so we need to arm ourselves with the truth.

25:32 - We need to know and share the facts and the data

25:35 - about how abortion hurts women,

25:37 - and about the humanity of babies in the womb.

25:40 - So memorize this fact.

25:42 - At six weeks, a baby has a heartbeat.

25:45 - At 12 weeks, that baby is sucking its thumb in the womb.

25:48 - At 15 weeks, a baby feels pain.

25:50 - We need to boldly proclaim that every human person,

25:54 - including every unborn child, has God given dignity

25:57 - and an inalienable right to life.

25:59 - Never be afraid to tell the truth.

26:02 - But number two, speak to the heart.

26:05 - We need to speak to the heart, which is where conversion often

26:09 - starts, not just to the head with our facts and our data.

26:13 - So use

26:14 - every tool at your disposal to show that life is beautiful

26:18 - and that being a parent family life is so, so good.

26:23 - Young people, you are a generation

26:26 - of visual storytellers in a way that I find absolutely amazing.

26:30 - So this is your job, okay?

26:32 - This is your job in the fight for life.

26:34 - Use videos, music, photographs, everything you know how to do

26:38 - so well, to tell the world that every life is a gift.

26:42 - And show the world your joy and your love, which attracts

26:46 - people to our cause better than any slogan ever could.

26:51 - Number three advocate for pro-life law and policy.

26:54 - We have to keep pushing our elected officials to enact

26:57 - good, life affirming policy and hold back the culture of death.

27:01 - You have a chance to do that today in the call

27:03 - to action that you just heard.

27:05 - Keep on making your voices

27:06 - heard here in Harrisburg and in Washington, DC.

27:09 - We need your voices.

27:11 - Your officials listen to you.

27:14 - And finally walk with moms.

27:16 - I told you last year, and I'll remind you today,

27:19 - 6 in 10 women who have had abortions

27:21 - say they would have preferred to choose life

27:24 - if they had the emotional

27:26 - or financial support they felt necessary.

27:29 - That is a call to action for every one of us friends

27:32 - to do what we can to support pregnant women, including

27:35 - by supporting your wonderful local parks and maternity homes.

27:40 - So what I want to leave you with

27:42 - is that every single one of us, no matter our age or our stage

27:46 - or what state we live in, can make a difference for life.

27:50 - There is a righteous stubbornness

27:52 - that has always marked this movement.

27:54 - And after 50 plus years, it's your turn now

27:57 - to keep up and win this fight.

28:09 - Pennsylvania.

28:10 - Thank you for being here.

28:11 - Thank you for being my inspiration, my reason for hope.

28:14 - Thank you

28:14 - for giving all of America so much hope with your on fire,

28:18 - never flagging witness for life.

28:22 - Thank you.

28:29 - Hello, Pennsylvania.

28:35 - Who loves babies?

28:39 - My name is Doctor Monique Ribeiro.

28:41 - I am so blessed to be a pro-life OBGYN.

28:46 - I am a leader of the 40 days for life movement

28:50 - outside of the downtown Philadelphia abortion centers.

28:55 - I am a wife, a mother,

28:58 - and I love all of you guys so, so much.

29:03 - I am so grateful for your presence here today.

29:06 - Guys, today I'm here to share

29:09 - a really important fact.

29:12 - As a physician, I want to assure you

29:16 - there is never, ever any

29:21 - medical necessary abortion.

29:34 - As physicians, we have all taken oaths, every single

29:38 - one of us standing behind me and all throughout the world.

29:42 - We have all taken oaths to honor every life, to try

29:46 - to do our very best to save every single life.

29:51 - And it's true that there are instances in life

29:55 - where we come across very dangerous and scary moments

30:00 - in a woman's pregnancy,

30:03 - where she has a medical complication

30:05 - that puts the baby at risk and puts her life at risk.

30:09 - But that is why there are also amazing

30:13 - physicians who are trained specifically

30:17 - to take care of moms with medical complications.

30:21 - Maternal fetal medicine specialists

30:25 - walk with these moms, and their job

30:28 - is to take care of the mom and the baby.

30:33 - Because there are two patients in every pregnancy.

30:42 - There is a difference.

30:44 - There is a difference

30:46 - between deciding that you need to end a pregnancy

30:51 - and dismembering a child,

30:52 - and throwing that child in the medical waste bin

30:56 - versus walking with that mother,

30:59 - trying to prolong that pregnancy as long as possible.

31:03 - So you can give that child every possible chance to survive.

31:08 - And then once that baby is delivered,

31:11 - honoring that child, loving that child, letting

31:15 - that child know that their life has purpose,

31:18 - their life has so much

31:20 - importance, and that every moment

31:24 - of their life, from conception to natural death,

31:27 - their life is intended to be honored and loved.

31:32 - Because what is our job?

31:36 - What is our job as human beings?

31:39 - To love one another?

31:42 - Right?

31:43 - That is the most important thing we can ever do in life to

31:46 - love one another.

31:47 - So, my friends, I am here to ask each and every one of you

31:52 - don't stand for this nonsense.

31:55 - When people say, oh, it's a medically necessary procedure.

31:59 - It's not. It's a lie.

32:00 - I'm also here to call each and every one of you

32:04 - to not only come out for this amazing march

32:08 - once a year, but instead in two days,

32:12 - 40 days for life all over the world begins.

32:16 - And I would love for each and every one of you to join us

32:19 - in prayer outside of the abortion centers.

32:23 - Join us and stand in prayer and allow God

32:28 - to move the hearts

32:30 - and the minds of the women who are walking into these places.

32:34 - Allow him to use you as a vessel, and allow him to fill

32:39 - you with the Holy Spirit, so that you can be

32:44 - the person who stands up for these innocent lives.

32:48 - God bless each and every one of you.

32:50 - God bless Pennsylvania.

32:52 - God bless every mom and every baby.

32:56 - Love you all.

33:03 - Good morning.

33:04 - How are you doing this morning?

33:05 - Let me hear you and find out.

33:10 - I love seeing familiar faces from my home

33:13 - city of Philadelphia.

33:13 - In this crowd to

33:16 - most of you have probably heard of pregnancy centers.

33:20 - You may know that they give women space an opportunity

33:23 - in a stressful moment to breathe and consider their decision.

33:27 - An opportunity to learn about the comprehensive

33:30 - support and resources available to them.

33:34 - 1 in 3 women report that financial

33:37 - or logistical barriers delay their access

33:40 - to prenatal care and impact their decision for life.

33:44 - Did you know that pregnancy centers accelerate women's

33:48 - access to that care,

33:50 - helping impact these barriers, such as helping

33:52 - with insurance out of pocket costs, transportation

33:55 - difficulties and trouble they have finding providers?

33:59 - Did you know that the practical support provided

34:02 - like safe housing, nutrition and basic infant supplies,

34:06 - directly impacts both maternal and infant health?

34:12 - The pregnancy medical clinics standing behind me

34:15 - offer health services provided by physicians,

34:18 - nurse practitioners, physician assistants,

34:20 - nurses, and sonography.

34:23 - And did you know that these services are offered for free?

34:31 - Pregnancy centers are

34:33 - there for the moment of decision and beyond.

34:36 - We support the baby and the mother, the family.

34:42 - I'll never forget a conversation I had

34:45 - with the woman who came to

34:46 - Alpha Care through her pregnancy in early season of motherhood,

34:50 - while she was living

34:51 - in one of Philadelphia's shelters with her little boy.

34:54 - A friend slipped her

34:55 - a postcard with our pregnancy medical clinics information.

34:59 - She told me that she carried that postcard around

35:02 - in her pocket for several weeks, living in denial

35:05 - about the second child growing in her room.

35:08 - She thought, I can't do this alone.

35:11 - I just can't bring a baby into this situation.

35:15 - She finally built up the courage to call our center

35:18 - and make an appointment, knowing those services would be free.

35:22 - I don't care.

35:23 - She received a pregnancy test positive,

35:27 - then an ultrasound where she was able

35:29 - to see the baby boy growing and moving on the screen.

35:33 - In that appointment,

35:35 - she knew she was cared for, and she learned

35:37 - how our pregnancy clinic staff would be there

35:40 - throughout her pregnancy and beyond by her side.

35:44 - She made that decision to have that baby.

35:52 - And let me tell you,

35:54 - that conversation that I'm telling you about.

35:57 - We weren't speaking at the pregnancy center offices,

36:00 - and we weren't meeting up in the shelter

36:02 - where she had stayed.

36:03 - We met in her furnished house with her child's

36:07 - playing next to me.

36:12 - Here's the most important part.

36:14 - She said to me

36:15 - I didn't know what love was before coming to your center.

36:19 - I'd never experienced it before.

36:22 - Now I'm learning how to love my sons.

36:25 - I've experienced love from you.

36:27 - I know you love me.

36:28 - And I've learned about God's love for me.

36:31 - What a home for those boys to grow up in.

36:34 - If you believe that's what it's all about.

36:36 - I want to hear someone in this crowd shout. Amen!

36:42 - The Pennsylvania Pregnancy Wellness

36:44 - Collaborative represents its member centers and over

36:46 - 160 pregnancy center locations across the Commonwealth.

36:50 - Please raise make noise for my brothers

36:52 - and sisters who serve in these centers day in and day out.

36:55 - Thank you.

37:15 - Absolutely.

37:16 - Are you ready?

37:32 - When I say we are, you guys say

37:35 - we are.

37:37 - We are.

37:38 - We are.

37:40 - The fight for life takes every single last one of us.

37:44 - And we have a bunch more t shirts over here

37:46 - that we're handing out.

37:47 - We need you guys to wear this message in public.

37:51 - It takes people willing to speak up for the unborn.

37:54 - It takes leaders.

37:55 - It takes defending life in our communities and our government,

37:59 - our political leaders,

38:01 - pregnancy centers like the people

38:03 - that I have standing here on the stage with us.

38:06 - We must all be united in this common cause

38:09 - for life and protecting the innocent from death.

38:12 - That's why we want to take a moment

38:14 - to recognize some of the people

38:16 - who are standing here for life together in Pennsylvania.

38:19 - I'm joined here on stage by the pregnancy resource

38:22 - centers and pro-life leaders from across our Commonwealth

38:26 - who have truly, truly committed themselves

38:29 - to protecting life and walking with supporting these mothers

38:33 - and children.

38:34 - If you look at the screen,

38:35 - you'll see a list of these passionate defenders of life.

38:39 - We're grateful to have them with us today.

38:41 - Please join me in celebrating

38:42 - their tireless pro-life efforts with your applause right now.

38:53 - Thank you.

38:54 - And now I turn it

38:55 - back over to Michael, who will introduce our keynote

38:59 - speaker for the day.

39:05 - Hey, I'm back everybody.

39:12 - So I just want to salute the pregnancy

39:15 - resource center folks that are behind us.

39:17 - My wife Susan, somewhere here in the audience,

39:19 - she helped found one of the first pregnancy

39:21 - resource centers out in the Pittsburgh

39:22 - area back in Mother's Day, 1985.

39:26 - We love those.

39:28 - Love those ministries.

39:30 - Well, I want to encourage all of you

39:31 - to get your smartphones out once again

39:33 - for another action item today.

39:35 - Each of you, all of us,

39:37 - we are all the voice of the unborn

39:39 - in the conscience of the Commonwealth,

39:41 - even as so many have turned their back on the weakest,

39:44 - most vulnerable members of the human family, the unborn.

39:48 - They are under unprecedented attack.

39:50 - And without us they have no voice.

39:53 - We know that.

39:54 - And God tells us in science proves that the unborn child

39:58 - is a distinct human being and as such is deserving

40:01 - of full protection under the law.

40:03 - Abortion is not health care.

40:08 - And this this knowledge, knowing this

40:12 - heightens our responsibility way beyond this day.

40:14 - To pray,

40:15 - to vote, and to engage on behalf of the sanctity of life.

40:19 - There are significant races up and down the ballot

40:22 - this election season,

40:23 - and the votes were cast, and the level of engagement

40:26 - we show can truly make a difference

40:28 - between life and death, and whether Pennsylvania will

40:31 - head in a pro-life direction or look more like New York.

40:35 - Massachusetts in California.

40:40 - Please don't make this a

40:41 - one day activity, and we want to help you.

40:45 - The screen over here, the big jumbo screen, is a QR

40:48 - code that will help you to lead you to a very helpful resource

40:53 - that sends text message reminders of key voting dates,

40:57 - nonpartisan key voting dates, and deadlines

41:00 - to make sure you are registered to vote and to help you fulfill

41:03 - your responsibility to vote so you don't skip those dates.

41:07 - Please scan the QR code now.

41:09 - And those of you young people out there

41:11 - who will turn 18 on or before November 3rd

41:15 - this election, you are eligible to register to vote.

41:18 - So your high schoolers out there or under?

41:22 - Under 18.

41:22 - But if you're turning

41:23 - 18 before November 3rd, you can register and vote.

41:27 - Well, speaking of voting, I enthusiastically voted for our

41:31 - next speaker every single time he was on the ballot.

41:35 - His bold and effective pro-life and pro-family leadership

41:38 - during his tenure in the United States

41:40 - Senate and beyond is unmatched and unsurpassed.

41:45 - Of course, I'm referring to our keynote speaker,

41:49 - the Honorable Senator Rick Santorum,

41:51 - former member of Congress, United States Senator

41:55 - and presidential candidate.

41:58 - You know him as an outspoken defender of life,

42:01 - marriage and family and truth.

42:03 - And despite withering criticism from anti-life,

42:06 - anti-family radicals.

42:08 - Rick Santorum has always stood tall, always boldly

42:12 - and fearlessly pressed on, grounded in his firm conviction

42:16 - that every human being is fearfully

42:18 - and wonderfully made in God's image.

42:21 - I'll never forget his incredible leadership

42:23 - in getting the partial birth abortion ban

42:26 - passed and signed into law, as he said on the Senate floor.

42:31 - It's a baby.

42:32 - It's a baby.

42:35 - I've known Rick since he first ran for Congress

42:38 - in Pittsburgh in 1990, when we were both just 32 years old.

42:43 - We're both grandfathers now, and I can truly say Rick

42:46 - Santorum is a man who walks the talk

42:48 - and practice his what he preaches.

42:51 - Please welcome the Honorable Rick Santorum.

43:01 - Thank you.

43:02 - Thank you.

43:02 - Mike.

43:06 - Thank thank you, Michael.

43:07 - Thank you so much.

43:08 - And thank you to the Pennsylvania

43:09 - Family Institute and the March for life.

43:12 - It's an honor to be here, but the most I want to thank is

43:15 - I want to thank you.

43:17 - Every time I get a opportunity

43:19 - to come to and speak to the people of Pennsylvania.

43:22 - I just want to thank you.

43:24 - And you may want to say,

43:25 - you may think, well, thanking him

43:27 - for electing me to the Senate. Yes.

43:28 - But more importantly, thanking you for

43:31 - giving me the opportunity to

43:35 - to experience something that changed my life.

43:38 - You know, when Mike talked,

43:39 - you said he was one of the great

43:41 - fearless leaders in the United States Senate.

43:44 - But I served two terms in the House

43:45 - before I became a United States Senator.

43:48 - And Mike didn't mention my fearless

43:49 - leadership there for a reason, because it wasn't.

43:53 - I was like most folks who were pro-life,

43:56 - which is the easy road, which is to vote pro-life

44:01 - and keep your mouth shut to vote pro-life and never,

44:05 - ever author a bill, never a champion of cause.

44:10 - What I found out in most politicians, though,

44:13 - is that if you

44:14 - just vote pro-life and don't really try to win,

44:17 - they're going to leave you alone.

44:19 - It's when you stick your head out of the foxhole is

44:23 - when they come after you.

44:25 - And that's who I was until I came

44:28 - to the United States Senate, thanks to you.

44:30 - And in the United States Senate.

44:33 - My life changed because of two things.

44:35 - Number one,

44:36 - someone had the courage to come up to me and

44:39 - and invite me to a Bible study in the United States Senate.

44:42 - And someone also my wife

44:46 - found a church, our

44:48 - church in Northern Virginia, when we moved our family there

44:52 - with an amazing priest who rocked my world.

44:56 - And over a period of a year, that first year in 1995,

45:01 - I went from having Christ

45:04 - in my faith as part of my life

45:07 - to the center of my life, to my reason for being here.

45:18 - And it's amazing what happens when you put Christ

45:21 - in the middle of your life, and when you seek his will,

45:26 - and when you get close enough to God.

45:29 - Because I think God speaks in whispers.

45:32 - And when you're close enough to him,

45:34 - you can actually hear what he's calling you to do.

45:37 - And at the very time that was going on,

45:40 - this bill called partial birth abortion was up for an override

45:43 - vote in the United States Senate in 1996.

45:48 - And the man who was leading that charge backed away.

45:52 - He didn't want to do it anymore because

45:54 - he was getting too much heat and he was up for election.

45:57 - And so the leader of the Republican Party

46:00 - went to our caucus and said, are any of you willing to do it?

46:05 - And no one raised their hand.

46:08 - No one.

46:09 - And there I sat as one of those

46:12 - no one's and I don't know what came over me,

46:17 - but the Lord lifted my hand up.

46:30 - One of the things I found in my life is

46:33 - when the Lord presents an opportunity.

46:35 - Don't think.

46:36 - Just say yes.

46:40 - And so I embarked on something that

46:43 - I had never intended, in fact, swore that I would never do,

46:47 - which is to speak out and be a leader on the issue of life.

46:52 - And the reason I share that with you is I was not someone who

46:56 - wanted to do that.

46:56 - I was not someone who was convicted to do it.

47:01 - Not someone who was raised to do it,

47:04 - but someone who ran into it.

47:07 - Because I ran into the Lord.

47:19 - And my message today is actually a pretty simple one.

47:21 - I'm going to tell a couple stories,

47:23 - but yeah, you can go through and I can list all the things

47:26 - and the work that I did on life and but the reality is

47:32 - God. Yes.

47:34 - Did I lose races because of my position?

47:36 - Did I get beat up by the media?

47:38 - Have I been vilified in every possible corner? Yes.

47:42 - Praise God!

47:49 - Because remember, I love the

47:51 - I love the Beatitudes because there's all sorts

47:54 - of charisma in the beatitude, you know, the peacemakers and

47:59 - and meek and humble of heart.

48:00 - But there are two beatitudes for people

48:05 - who stand up for righteousness sake

48:08 - and those who are willing to be persecuted for the Lord. Two.

48:15 - And when you stand for life,

48:17 - you check both of those boxes.

48:23 - So what I want to tell you is

48:26 - that, yes, you will suffer a lot.

48:28 - But remember the Lord said. What?

48:32 - Pick up your.

48:34 - He didn't say pick up your box of chocolates.

48:39 - He didn't say pick up your Volvo.

48:42 - He said, pick up your cross.

48:45 - And that's where he will bless you.

48:47 - And I want to share with you just a couple of stories

48:51 - of how the Lord has blessed me.

48:54 - And let me assure you that if you embrace the cross

49:01 - of life in a world that is not for life,

49:07 - in a world that says, just think about you, not others,

49:12 - he will bless you beyond measure.

49:16 - And I say that particularly to the legislators, to the clergy,

49:21 - who sometimes make it hesitant in both jobs

49:25 - to speak out and to be bold and to take the criticism

49:30 - and maybe the losses that come with it.

49:35 - I'll share one story that happened to me.

49:36 - You may have heard it when I was the United States Senator.

49:39 - This was in 1998.

49:41 - This was the second time

49:42 - we tried to overturn President Clinton's veto.

49:45 - And I was debating Barbara Boxer on the floor

49:48 - of the United States Senate for about six hours.

49:52 - I always say I

49:54 - deserve some time off in purgatory for that.

49:59 - And after six hours, we were exhausted.

50:02 - We had done some amazing things, and we're sitting there

50:05 - ready to shut down the Senate. The vote was the next morning.

50:08 - And I just got this sense that I needed to say more.

50:12 - We were two votes short and I thought maybe, just maybe,

50:17 - if I get up and talk tonight, maybe there's a couple of

50:20 - senators who went home and turned

50:22 - C-Span on and I might be able to reach them.

50:26 - So I went back to the cloakroom, called my wife.

50:29 - We had four children at the time, including a newborn,

50:33 - and it was 8:00 at night.

50:34 - And I said,

50:35 - you know, honey, I said, I just feel like I need to say more.

50:38 - And I heard our littlest one crying in the background.

50:42 - And I said.

50:43 - And she said, what?

50:44 - She always says, what Karen always says,

50:46 - which is, that's what God calling you to do.

50:48 - That's what you need to do.

50:52 - And so.

50:55 - So I went back on the floor of the Senate and I got up

50:58 - and I talked. I

50:58 - said I'd just be a few minutes, an hour and a half later.

51:02 - So the march is going to be delayed.

51:04 - Just just warning you right now.

51:07 - An hour and a half later I finished.

51:10 - But during that time I stood up because this

51:13 - had become a national story.

51:15 - I mean, everyone was covering it

51:17 - all, not just in America, but around the world.

51:20 - And we were getting.

51:22 - I was getting letters from all over the world

51:24 - because the the principal reason for keeping partial birth

51:29 - abortion, late term abortion legal was to kill

51:33 - disabled children in the womb.

51:37 - To kill children who mothers found out after

51:40 - they were pregnant that they didn't want

51:42 - the child they were carrying.

51:45 - So they needed late term

51:46 - abortions because they couldn't find out before.

51:49 - And speaker after speaker got up and talked about how

51:53 - this was the compassionate thing to do

51:57 - for mother and child.

52:00 - And so I stood up there with pictures of people

52:04 - who wrote me, who had spinal bifida or who had other.

52:11 - Does the other conditions that were identified

52:14 - try so many 21 down syndrome,

52:17 - trisomy 18, Edward syndrome, all these birth defects.

52:21 - And they sent me pictures and I told their stories

52:25 - that these are lives worth living.

52:37 - I poured it all out. I,

52:40 - I felt amazingly, that God was with me that night.

52:44 - And I went home, got home about 1030 at night.

52:48 - My wife was asleep. My kids were asleep.

52:51 - I got up at 530, which was my routine off.

52:54 - Back to work. Came to the vote

52:57 - full of full of hope and we lost by two votes.

53:04 - I remember walking out of that chamber and walked out,

53:07 - just like you'd walk out of the front of the Capitol

53:09 - here, right across as the Supreme Court building.

53:13 - And I felt like a failure.

53:15 - Or as Donald Trump would say, a loser.

53:20 - I was a loser.

53:22 - Not only did I lose the vote.

53:24 - It was another night

53:25 - that I wasn't home to hold my wife, going to bed

53:30 - to tuck my children in again.

53:34 - And I thought, how prideful

53:36 - I must have been to think I could make a difference.

53:40 - The devil will do that to you.

53:45 - Two days later, I got an email

53:48 - and my staff brought it into me and was from a young man

53:52 - from Michigan State University, and he said his follows

53:58 - the other night.

54:00 - Last night he said,

54:01 - my girlfriend and I were sitting on the couch together

54:03 - and we were flipping through the channels

54:05 - and we came across you standing next

54:07 - to a picture of a young man with disabilities.

54:09 - And so we stopped to listen.

54:12 - And as we listened to

54:14 - you and your argument against partial birth abortion,

54:18 - I noticed that my girlfriend was crying.

54:22 - And so I asked her.

54:23 - I said, what's wrong?

54:25 - And she said, I'm pregnant

54:30 - and I have an abortion scheduled in two days,

54:35 - but I'm not going to have an abortion.

54:47 - He said you may have lost the vote on the floor of the Senate,

54:52 - but you saved the life of my child.

55:03 - You will march today

55:05 - and you may lose a vote in the Senate tomorrow.

55:09 - You will march today, and there will be

55:11 - another 100 abortions in Pennsylvania tomorrow.

55:15 - But remember this you're doing what God has called you to do.

55:20 - You are doing his will.

55:22 - You are doing his work.

55:23 - You are standing for his truth.

55:31 - And you see this.

55:34 - God sees this.

55:46 - My second story.

55:48 - I lost my Senate race in 2006,

55:52 - and two years later we had a little surprise.

55:56 - A little girl named Bella.

55:59 - And when she was born, we didn't know.

56:03 - We knew there was something wrong.

56:04 - We didn't know because we don't believe in

56:06 - prenatal testing, because we'll take whatever God

56:09 - gives us.

56:13 - Because every child is a blessing.

56:17 - And we found out she had a condition

56:19 - called trisomy 18, and we were told

56:22 - that that condition is incompatible with life,

56:26 - that she will die soon.

56:29 - That she was lucky to be born alive, 90 plus percent or not.

56:33 - And those that are die within the first few weeks.

56:37 - She was sent home on hospice,

56:40 - and we used to celebrate every week's birthday

56:43 - and hope that there would be as many weeks birthday as

56:46 - most people have. Years.

56:49 - But she didn't die.

57:00 - She continued to fight.

57:02 - And so with her continuing to fight, I continued to fight

57:06 - not just for life, but also for the disabled.

57:10 - And so I went out and it actually became.

57:12 - The reason I ran for president in 2012 was because of what

57:16 - I thought the health care system was doing

57:18 - to people with disabilities.

57:19 - And so I spent my career

57:23 - fighting for life and fighting for the disabled.

57:28 - I'm going to fast forward to just four years ago.

57:31 - Four years ago, I got a call from my daughter,

57:34 - who had been trying

57:35 - unsuccessfully for years to have a child, and she said,

57:39 - I just got a call from a woman at a, at a

57:42 - who was at mass in Annapolis, Maryland,

57:46 - and the priest had got up and said

57:47 - that there was a woman in our community

57:49 - who is pregnant and is delivering in two weeks,

57:52 - and that she the, the, the adoption had fallen through.

57:58 - And if there's anybody who would be willing to adopt a child,

58:02 - the proviso is this child is going to have special needs.

58:06 - It's going to have probably some severe disability.

58:10 - And so this woman who knows of Arbella

58:14 - called by my my daughter and said, you're

58:18 - exactly the kind of person who, who, who I know would do this.

58:22 - And she said, of course, within 24 hours,

58:26 - she was on a zoom call with the mom and.

58:38 - For those of you who Catholic out there, my, my,

58:41 - my wife's my, my daughter's saint,

58:45 - the one she's named her company after, the one she has

58:47 - a relic of, she's just all in with Saint Teresa of Lesotho.

58:51 - Okay.

58:55 - She got the call on

58:57 - October 1st, the feast day of Saint Teresa.

59:00 - Blessed.

59:02 - So they get on the call,

59:05 - and she starts telling her story that, you know, was.

59:10 - She was very excited. She's married.

59:12 - They were very excited to have another child

59:13 - until they found out that the child was disabled

59:17 - and her husband and her mom wanted her to abort,

59:23 - and she was torn about it.

59:26 - And so she said, well, you know, I was in the middle

59:29 - of this indecision

59:33 - when I pulled my phone, old phone out of my pocket, and

59:37 - I saw that it had but dialed somebody.

59:41 - And I hear the voice

59:43 - and I pick it up and it's a Catholic priest,

59:48 - she said, I'm Catholic, but I haven't gone to church in years

59:51 - and I haven't seen this priest. And forever.

59:53 - I didn't even know he was still in my contacts.

59:55 - And she said, wow,

59:59 - 230 maybe I'm supposed to talk to you.

01:00 - 05.435 And so she told him his story, her story.

01:00 - 10.773 And so he connected her with a crisis pregnancy center

01:00 - 14.410 and the Sisters of Life.

01:00 - 23.352 And so she goes through and

01:00 - 24.953 and the sister who's working with her

01:00 - 27.122 as a woman by his sister, Mary Doolittle.

01:00 - 30.293 And she mentions this woman, Sister Mary.

01:00 - 33.496 She does she mentions that she's talking to the sister of life,

01:00 - 36.064 and she tells her story. And the sister

01:00 - 38.500 says, I have a book I want to send to you.

01:00 - 42.105 And the book is called Bella's Gift.

01:00 - 45.540 It was a book that Karen

01:00 - 48.778 and I wrote about our daughter, Bella.

01:00 - 52.382 And so she sent this mom the book,

01:00 - 56.019 and Elizabeth sister, did you read the book?

01:00 - 01.590 And she said, I read the introduction,

01:01 - 04.459 and after reading the introduction,

01:01 - 07.463 I decided not to have an abortion.

01:01 - 16.238 And Elizabeth said, well, you know,

01:01 - 18.340 my mom and dad wrote the book

01:01 - 21.344 because she knew that Elizabeth was our daughter.

01:01 - 24.413 She goes, my mom and dad wrote the book,

01:01 - 27.417 but I wrote the introduction.

01:01 - 33.455 And she and she said, well, I just want you to know,

01:01 - 36.058 I didn't read the whole book,

01:01 - 39.195 but the book sits on my nightstand

01:01 - 47.370 next to my bed, and every night before I go to bed,

01:01 - 54.177 I look at that picture of your sister and I say a prayer

01:01 - 58.081 that whoever adopts my little girl

01:01 - 02.719 or love her as much as your parents love Bella.

01:02 - 13.462 And then my daughter says that sister of life.

01:02 - 16.466 Could that have been Sister Mary Doolittle?

01:02 - 19.901 And the woman says, well, yes, it was.

01:02 - 21.503 How did you know?

01:02 - 25.373 And she said, five months ago I was at a conference

01:02 - 28.710 with Sister Mary Doolittle, and she pulled me aside

01:02 - 31.714 and said, Elizabeth, I have this

01:02 - 36.918 just feeling that the Lord has put upon me that you're to pray

01:02 - 41.691 for this woman in Annapolis, Maryland, and her daughter.

01:02 - 46.294 And she said, every day since then, I have been praying

01:02 - 49.298 for you and your daughter for the last five months.

01:03 - 03.546 So our first grandchild

01:03 - 06.983 is a little girl.

01:03 - 12.254 Who is potentially going to be aborted

01:03 - 15.258 and with disabilities.

01:03 - 20.429 You think you can out give God.

01:03 - 25.935 But God blessed me for my years of work

01:03 - 29.839 on abortion and disabilities

01:03 - 34.076 with a little girl that I can love the rest of my life.

01:03 - 37.280 That reminds me to thank the Lord.

01:03 - 56.599 Fearless.

01:03 - 00.303 Be courageous.

01:04 - 05.740 Stand for life not just because God is calling you.

01:04 - 09.010 Because our country desperately needs

01:04 - 12.014 that light, that witness

01:04 - 15.717 to the dignity of all human life.

01:04 - 21.156 And let me assure you, God will bless you.

01:04 - 23.058 You may not see it.

01:04 - 26.062 You may not get the email,

01:04 - 30.867 but God will bless this country for the work that you're doing.

01:04 - 33.903 God bless you.

01:04 - 40.575 Thank you so much.

01:04 - 42.344 Thank you so much

01:04 - 45.882 and your steadfast and courageous defense of life.

01:04 - 48.950 All right, everyone, we have a photo op right now

01:04 - 51.753 and video ops. So we need you guys to gather in here.

01:04 - 52.421 Get ready.

01:04 - 55.424 Signs up in the air.

01:04 - 59.094 And I say we are.

01:04 - 02.998 You guys say when I say we are.

01:05 - 06.535 You guys and gals say we are,

01:05 - 18.613 we are, we are, we are, we are, we are.

01:05 - 22.550 Let everyone in Harrisburg, in Pennsylvania here you.

01:05 - 25.620 This is the largest gathering that

01:05 - 28.624 the state capital sees annually.

01:05 - 35.997 We are we are, we are.

01:05 - 38.066 Amen.

01:05 - 39.935 God bless all of you.

01:05 - 42.939 God bless all of you.

01:05 - 52.181 And lastly, I would like to bring up the Most Reverend

01:05 - 56.051 Archbishop Nelson Perez from the Catholic Church

01:05 - 59.254 of Philadelphia, who is going to close us with prayer

01:05 - 02.557 before we get ready to March 1st last time.

01:06 - 04.826 We are.

01:06 - 07.830 Thank you, Archbishop Perez.

01:06 - 15.037 God is good and all the time.

01:06 - 18.340 God is good.

01:06 - 20.175 He is good. He's good.

01:06 - 23.311 As he gathers us together again to continue to raise

01:06 - 27.183 our prophetic voice for life

01:06 - 32.455 from conception to natural death, a gift, right?

01:06 - 33.822 I said it last year.

01:06 - 35.957 I love that your poster.

01:06 - 37.792 Can you bring it up?

01:06 - 39.995 They can't. Second, they see it from the back.

01:06 - 44.333 Love life, choose life, love life, choose life.

01:06 - 45.600 Isn't that beautiful?

01:06 - 50.306 What is at the center and at the heart of the pro-life

01:06 - 52.073 movement is love.

01:06 - 54.042 It's love for life.

01:06 - 56.311 It is love for life. And.

01:06 - 00.549 And we're privilege and honored to be all together once again.

01:07 - 03.585 The biggest gathering and demonstration

01:07 - 06.055 in the state of Pennsylvania is happening right now.

01:07 - 10.158 Happening right now.

01:07 - 13.094 Joining me on stage are my brother bishops

01:07 - 16.132 from from different places in our state.

01:07 - 20.236 Bishop Efron is an auxiliary bishop from Philadelphia.

01:07 - 28.277 Bishops Keith is a bishop of Philadelphia.

01:07 - 34.350 Bishop Larry Kulick is the Bishop of Greensburg.

01:07 - 39.555 Bishop mark Eckman is the Bishop of Pittsburgh.

01:07 - 43.025 Bishop is the Bishop of Allentown,

01:07 - 46.761 and Bishop Christopher Cooke is an auxiliary

01:07 - 49.732 bishop of Philadelphia.

01:07 - 54.203 You'll be preaching our mass at the end of our walk.

01:07 - 00.443 I'd like to share with you words from our Holy Father,

01:08 - 04.013 which actually he shared with all of us

01:08 - 07.716 in January at a pro-life march.

01:08 - 11.654 Part of his message.

01:08 - 13.788 But he spoke from his heart.

01:08 - 17.425 And today he speaks again through these words

01:08 - 19.227 to our heart.

01:08 - 22.231 Listen closely.

01:08 - 28.437 Society is healthy and truly progresses

01:08 - 32.373 only when its safeguards the sanctity of human life

01:08 - 37.813 and works actively to promote it in this regard.

01:08 - 42.618 I would encourage you, especially the young people,

01:08 - 45.587 especially the young young people of your under 25.

01:08 - 46.622 Raise your hand.

01:08 - 50.626 Give them a round of applause.

01:08 - 57.732 The Holy Father says

01:08 - 01.737 that he's encouraged, especially by young people.

01:09 - 04.072 And so are we, aren't we?

01:09 - 06.975 So are we.

01:09 - 10.146 He asks us to continue to strive, to ensure

01:09 - 14.016 that life is respected in all of its stages

01:09 - 18.154 through appropriate efforts at every level of society,

01:09 - 22.190 including dialog with civil and political leaders.

01:09 - 24.492 And that's why we're here today.

01:09 - 25.827 We are in dialog.

01:09 - 29.230 We're raising our voice because we love life,

01:09 - 33.334 and we choose life because life is a gift from God.

01:09 - 37.940 And no one, no one has a right to play around with that.

01:09 - 43.913 And sometimes they do.

01:09 - 45.580 Sometimes they do.

01:09 - 47.015 That's why we're here.

01:09 - 48.917 Unfortunately, right.

01:09 - 51.921 Over a million abortions every year.

01:09 - 55.590 That's like like a city.

01:09 - 57.392 Like a city.

01:09 - 01.697 But sometimes it comes down to a moment.

01:10 - 04.599 I was sharing, actually, with

01:10 - 07.603 Doctor Monique, who spoke to you a little while ago.

01:10 - 09.537 I was on an assignment

01:10 - 12.040 as a pastor of parish in Philadelphia,

01:10 - 16.078 and I was called to one of our secular hospitals

01:10 - 18.546 because a young Hispanic family

01:10 - 20.782 I've been there with their little baby

01:10 - 24.753 just born, was very, very sick in the NICU,

01:10 - 28.189 and I was called in to baptize this little child.

01:10 - 31.427 It was like this, right?

01:10 - 35.264 And and the mom said to me

01:10 - 39.068 that, that she was told

01:10 - 43.272 sadly.

01:10 - 47.175 Don't waste your time or your money.

01:10 - 49.877 This baby will never survive.

01:10 - 52.982 So, like, disconnect the stuff, right?

01:10 - 59.421 And the mom said to me, I just don't want to give up.

01:10 - 01.289 She had you know what she had.

01:11 - 03.224 She had hope.

01:11 - 05.293 She had hope, right?

01:11 - 06.394 She had hope.

01:11 - 10.332 And I said to her, honey, don't let anybody define

01:11 - 11.866 the life of your child.

01:11 - 14.302 God has already defined that.

01:11 - 17.272 And no one gets to choose otherwise

01:11 - 20.509 or even tell you what to choose with that.

01:11 - 26.482 And with tears in her eyes, she said to to the nurse.

01:11 - 30.185 He's not going anywhere.

01:11 - 40.296 Eight years later, I gave first communion to this kid.

01:11 - 46.868 God is good, right?

01:11 - 49.872 All the time.

01:11 - 53.174 So how do we walk the walk?

01:11 - 57.146 Well, sometimes we walk on our feet, right?

01:11 - 02.351 Like we will today, and then other times on our knees.

01:12 - 07.422 So how have we walked this walk on our knees

01:12 - 10.426 and on our feet?

01:12 - 14.496 And so now we lift our hearts in prayer.

01:12 - 17.465 Figuratively on our knees.

01:12 - 19.067 I can't kneel unless I got a kneel.

01:12 - 19.902 Or because I can kneel.

01:12 - 22.905 I can't get back up.

01:12 - 28.077 So we lift our hearts to our mighty God and ask us,

01:12 - 31.113 ask the Lord to continue to bless us,

01:12 - 35.117 to help our country protect life

01:12 - 39.554 from conception to natural birth, to

01:12 - 41.656 to love life the way God loves life

01:12 - 44.993 because he brings life into existence because of his love.

01:12 - 49.031 And together we pray.

01:12 - 53.468 Almighty God and Father, as creator of men

01:12 - 56.939 and women in your divine image and likeness.

01:12 - 00.943 You are both the author and sustainer

01:13 - 03.978 of all human life.

01:13 - 07.949 We come to you today as ever, ready to profess and defend

01:13 - 11.587 this truth, especially for the sake of the unborn.

01:13 - 14.856 We ask you, Lord, your

01:13 - 17.893 continued blessings on all our efforts

01:13 - 20.228 to bring about the legal protection

01:13 - 23.631 of those in the womb and afford them, and all people,

01:13 - 26.635 the guarantee of the right to life.

01:13 - 30.838 Your constant goodness to us in all things

01:13 - 34.143 and at all times gives us hope.

01:13 - 38.080 Hope that our work and prayer today

01:13 - 41.283 will bear fruit for your glory,

01:13 - 45.220 for the glory of the gift of life that you have given us,

01:13 - 48.957 and for the benefit of the society we live in.

01:13 - 51.058 We make this prayer as we do

01:13 - 54.596 all our prayers in the Holy name of Jesus Christ.

01:13 - 56.063 Amen.

01:13 - 00.935 And let's walk in a little bit on our knees.

01:14 - 02.503 On our feet. God bless you.

01:14 - 05.507 Have a great day.

01:14 - 31.033 Called the summary to land that I love.

01:14 - 33.668 Stand beside her.

01:14 - 38.907 And I threw the night with the light from above.

01:14 - 45.147 From the mountain and on to the present to the ocean.

01:14 - 52.821 Cyclone that last summer called my home

01:14 - 56.290 from my home.

01:14 - 00.896 God bless America, my home.

01:15 - 05.133 Sri. Home.

01:15 - 11.507 Home.

01:15 - 19.280 Thank you, Archbishop Perez.

01:15 - 21.549 Thank you to your other fellow bishops.

01:15 - 24.586 Thank you to Bishop McDevitt, this beautiful choir.

01:15 - 27.623 Can we give them another hand?

01:15 - 30.558 My gosh, they are wonderful.

01:15 - 33.494 We're so grateful for you being here, Bishop McDevitt.

01:15 - 35.129 Before we conclude our rally,

01:15 - 36.998 I have a few administrative announcements.

01:15 - 40.935 First, if you have any trash anywhere near you, please,

01:15 - 44.439 please pick up and drop it in a nearby trash can.

01:15 - 47.475 Please drop it in a nearby trash can.

01:15 - 50.211 Secondly, a huge thank you

01:15 - 54.116 to the incredible students of Regina Luminous Academy.

01:15 - 56.384 The entire high school is here.

01:15 - 58.252 Regina Luminous Academy is going to

01:15 - 00.622 kick off our March for life.

01:16 - 04.825 They're from Chester County, and they're going to be

01:16 - 08.463 carrying the banner to lead all of us in the march.

01:16 - 12.233 Please be sure to visit any exhibitor

01:16 - 16.671 or tables in the Capitol Rotunda after the march to learn more

01:16 - 20.242 about how you can get involved in our pro-life movement

01:16 - 23.144 in Pennsylvania all year round, and visit

01:16 - 26.315 our legislators office and tell them to stand for life.

01:16 - 31.119 Finally, finally, on behalf of PA Family Institute,

01:16 - 32.720 we want to thank all of you

01:16 - 36.891 for being here with us today and being a witness to stand

01:16 - 42.798 for love and for life until abortion is unthinkable.

01:16 - 46.434 We must continue to stand with every woman

01:16 - 49.438 and for every child.

01:16 - 56.310 One Corinthians 1313.

01:16 - 57.578 Faith, hope and love.

01:16 - 01.749 But the greatest of all these is faith, hope and love.

01:17 - 05.219 The greatest of all these is faith, hope and love.

01:17 - 08.957 The greatest of all these is now we march.

01:17 - 10.492 God bless you.

01:17 - 18.300 Every circumstance.