{"id":33097,"date":"2025-01-01T21:02:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-01T21:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cincinnatirighttolife.org\/?p=33097"},"modified":"2025-01-03T01:21:04","modified_gmt":"2025-01-03T01:21:04","slug":"top-7-pro-life-stories-of-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cincinnatirighttolife.org\/top-7-pro-life-stories-of-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 7 Pro-Life Stories of 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By: Alyssa Murphy, originally published December 30, 2024, National Catholic Register<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

YEAR IN REVIEW: Do you remember these heartwarming stories marking pro-life moments of 2024?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As we round out an intense election year, it\u2019s important to reflect on the state of the pro-life movement, remembering some of the most vital stories of the year. It\u2019s only been two years since Roe v. Wade<\/em> was overturned by the Supreme Court, and that historic day continues to fuel a new fire in our quest for all life to be protected, from the womb to the tomb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Countless stories arose this year of babies fighting for survival in NICUs, pro-life advocates being jailed for praying outside buildings where babies are being killed and \u201csuicide pods\u201d being marketed to make assisted suicide look attractive, alongside stories of Catholic nuns doing all they can to help the elderly living with dementia. Amid the many tragedies permeating a society dwelling in a culture of death, there are glimmers of hope to be found.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are seven pro-life moments from 2024 to remember as we venture into a new year with the March for Life on the horizon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. A harrowing year for Leah Darrow with the birth of her baby Sly at the premature age of 22 weeks now has a very happy ending,<\/strong> the model-turned-pro-life-activist shared on social media. Darrow chronicled the entire journey <\/a>online, with so many people praying along with the Darrow family for Sly, marveling at the amazing advancements in neonatal technology. The darling baby, now 7 months old, overcame several hurdles and still has an uphill climb, but Sly\u2019s future looks so bright \u2014 and is a beautiful testament to life in the womb that deserves to be protected at all costs. As his mom likes to say, \u201cWhen a woman chooses life, she saves her own.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Leah Darrow and Baby Sly are featured on the former model\u2019s Instagram account.(Photo: Screenshots )<\/em><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

2. Ryan Anderson\u2019s call for the pro-life movement to embrace fully a pro-family, pro-marriage perspective <\/strong>is a pivotal moment in the shaping of the future of life within the U.S. Focusing on not only the reality of life within the womb, but the necessity to build strong relationships <\/a>to forge even stronger families is of utmost importance. \u201cOur primary task isn\u2019t to persuade people of the humanity of the unborn \u2014 anyone who has ever seen an ultrasound knows all about that \u2014 but to change how people lead their sexual lives,\u201d Anderson wrote in First Things<\/em>. \u201cWe have a pro-life movement, but could anyone seriously suggest that we have a pro-marriage or pro-chastity movement?\u201d And as we look to how the pro-life landscape may change with more Catholics in the White House in the new year, Anderson\u2019s advice has paved the way for more thought-provoking analysis on what a truly pro-life America just might look like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. The powerful pro-life message of Harrison Butker also reverberated for weeks across national media. <\/strong>The Catholic football player made strong statements for the unborn but also in support of family and motherhood<\/a> in his commencement address on the campus of Benedictine College in Kansas. In an era where many young adults are told that settling down and marrying should be the last thing on their goals list, Butker praised the vocation of motherhood, pointing out that many of the graduates present that day \u201care most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world.\u201d The Kansas City kicker was also quick to point out \u201cthings like abortion, IVF, surrogacy, euthanasia, as well as a growing support for degenerate cultural values in media,\u201d saying they \u201call stem from the pervasiveness of disorder.\u201d Although there were many hot takes on his long commencement speech, the heart of his message was pro-life.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Kansas City Chiefs\u2019 placekicker Harrison Butker speaks to college graduates in his commencement address at Benedictine College on Saturday, May 11, 2024.(Photo: Credit: Benedictine College)<\/em><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

4. Countering the rise of assisted suicide and the first American traveling overseas to escape terminal illness by \u201csuicide pod\u201d was the moving testimony of Carmelite Sister M. Peter Lillian Di Maria, <\/strong>with her wealth of experience working with elderly patients suffering from dementia. She shared with the Register countless stories of how those who can\u2019t remember the simple facts of how they spent their day still can recount prayers and verses spoken during Mass<\/a>, offering a glimpse into the awe-inspiring plan God has for all of our lives. One granddaughter, Kate Fassbender, recounted to the Register: \u201cIt was a spiritual memory that cannot be described in any other form of memory. She never forgot her prayers, her faith nor the people that formed her …\u201d And in the year of Eucharistic Revival, Sister Peter shared a beautiful reality: \u201cFor cognitively impaired elders, even in their confusion, when they see the Host and chalice raised and are receiving Communion, they have a sense of knowing that Jesus is present.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Kate Fassbender poses with her grandmother, Marie Fassbender, during a family baby shower a year and a half after her diagnosis with vascular dementia.(Photo: Kate Fassbender)<\/strong><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

5. Widow Mari Kuhlman marked her one-year wedding anniversary this year with a beautiful tribute, reflecting on the real beauty that comes from the sacrament of matrimony. <\/strong>The single mother, who is raising her infant son, recalled the couple\u2019s shared desire to \u201cbring others closer to his Sacred Heart\u201d even now from \u201cdifferent sides of the veil.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her words and witness remind us all of the many graces that are bestowed upon couples in marriage \u2014 most importantly the gift of life: \u201cRaphael is everything we ever hoped for in a son \u2014 he\u2019s absolutely perfect; truly the best parts of ourselves in a tiny human.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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L to R: Mariana (Mari) Kuhlman shares happy news; Mariana and Nathaniel (Nate) Kuhlman smile on their wedding day.<\/em><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

6. Bishop Michael Burbidge of the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, is working overtime to make all children with special needs feel loved and included. <\/strong>In an era where children with Down syndrome are almost obsolete, the shepherd of Arlington has taken it upon himself to make sure all children with special needs are granted every opportunity<\/a> that all Catholic students receive in a warm and inviting environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All Catholic schools within the diocese \u201cwelcome children with disabilities,\u201d Bishop Burbidge told the Register. And for him, it\u2019s all about living the Gospel and following \u201cthe example of Jesus, who embraced all children and all people without exception.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The prelate says a sense of purpose is so important in building a culture of life, making us \u201cfully alive as human persons.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Options students from St. Paul VI Catholic High School visit the Arlington chancery and strike a pose with Bishop Michael Burbidge.(Photo: Courtesy photo)<\/em><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

7. A self-written obituary of a 100-year-old man went viral this year, <\/strong>with countless Catholics from around the country paying their respects to Richard A. \u201cDick\u201d Ruth<\/a>, \u201cwho was influenced by the well-kept graves he saw in the cemeteries of Germany\u201d to spend much of his time tending to a corporal work of mercy: praying for the dead. Working with soil around the headstones of his buried loved ones, he \u201cworked hard through the years to keep the graves of his beloved dead well adorned with tulips in the spring and summer flowers throughout the rest of the growing season.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We can learn so much from this self-proclaimed \u201cfeeble evangelizer of Jesus Christ.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Richard A. \u201cDick\u201d Ruth born June 13, 1924 \u2014 August 20, 2024 of Johnstown, Pennsylvania alongside his wife Dorothy.(Photo: Screenshots )<\/em><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

 Alyssa Murphy is the Register’s Managing Editor of Digital Assets.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cover Photo: Courtesy photos \/Darrow\/Kuhlman\/Ruth\/Wikimedia Commons.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By: Alyssa Murphy, originally published December 30, 2024, National Catholic Register YEAR IN REVIEW: Do you remember these heartwarming stories marking pro-life moments of 2024? As we round out an intense election year, it\u2019s important to reflect on the state of the pro-life movement, remembering some of the most vital stories of the year. 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