We join (virtually) with those gathered in Washington, DC and other participants from around the world who choose to give voice to the voiceless lives that are taken each day!
We gather in the Hall beginning at 8:00 am with the program beginning at 8:30 am.
The event schedule will be:
8:30 - 8:45 am Welcome and Introduction
Georgette, Forney, AFL President and Co-founder of Silent No More
8:45 - 9:15 am Considering Human Dignity
Bobby Schindler, Founder and Director, the Abortion Survivors Network
This talk with introduce audiences to the basics of human dignity, medical ethics, and proper bioethical perspectives on delivering basic and ordinary care. It will also include issues such as “personhood” theory, futile care rulings, and the quality of life diagnosis. Appropriate for any audience but particularly young people and medical/law students.
9:20 - 9:35 am Abortion Pill Reversal
Dr. Mathew Harrision
Many women change their minds once their abortion procedures begin, but doctors won't let women get off the table or leave. However, the increase in numbers of women having medical abortions (also known as RU-486 or the abortion pill), which now make up 40% of abortions performed in the US, can change that. If a woman takes the abortion pill and then changes her mind, there is now a protocol to help reverse the impact of the initial drug given. Dr. Matthew Harrison is credited with discovering that large amounts of progesteron given within 24-72 hours after taking the abortion pill can stop the abortion. Everyone needs to understand how this works in order to help save lives.
9:40 - 10:10 am Is it Possible to Overturn Roe v. Wade?
Allan Parker, President, the Justice Foundation
This presentation will review the current SCOTUS case Dobbs vs. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which could overturn Roe or greatly limit its scope in the future!
10:10 - 10:30 am Comfort Break
10:30 - 10:45 am Does Your Community Need a Safe Haven Baby Box?
Monica Kelsey, Founder and CEO, Pro-Life Speaker, Safe Haven Baby Boxes
Safe Haven Baby Box's mission is to prevent illegal abandonment of newborns by raising awareness, managing a 24-hour hotline for mothers in crisis, and offering a last resort option for women. Churches can partner with First Responders to ensure every community has a Safe Haven Box.
10:45 - 11:15 am Why Abortion is a Man's Issue
David Williams, Men's Ministry Team and Chapter Coordinator, SaveOne
While everyone wants to believe that abortion is only about the baby and mother, men do play a part in creating the child and need to be recognized when we consider the impact of abortion.
11:20 - 11:35 am Comforting Those Who Mourn: Our Shared Responsibility to Remember Children Lost Before Birth
Michaelene Fredenberg, President and CEO, Life Perspectives
Research reveals that one of the greatest challenges men and women who experience miscarriage, abortion, or stillbirth face is the fear that their children will be forgotten. This is easy to understand in a culture that tends to treat reproductive loss as a non-event. However, this type of disenfranchised grief leaves those impacted feeling isolated and alone, putting them at risk for emotional, behavioral, and spiritual difficulties. In addition to gaining a better understanding of the unique obstacles facing bereaved parents and their families, you will walk away with grief care tips, which can be employed individually and as a church community to bring comfort and hope to those who mourn.
11:40 am - 12:10 pm A Prenatal Diagnosis
Laura Heune BSN, RN, CPLC, Executive Director, String of Pearls
An unexpected prenatal diagnosis can bring heartache, questions, and uncertainty into what was supposed to be a happy time. When families are encouraged to terminate the pregnancy, they are often left with little support if they make the decision to carry their baby to term. Perinatal Hospice can come alongside of families and offer individual support and care that honors and celebrates the life of their baby, no matter how long or how short that life may be. Laura will share about her baby Pearl and how churches can provide help and support to families facing a prenatal diagnosis for their unborn baby.
12:10 - 1:10 pm Lunch [A light lunch will be provided for all participants]
1 - 1:15 pm Saving Lives on the Sidewalk
Lauren Muzyka, President and CEO, Sidewalk Advocates for Life
While the idea of sidewalk counseling in front of an abortion clinic may not be what the Lord is calling you to do, knowing what to say to someone who is planning to have an abortion could save a unborn baby's life. This presentation will help us understand what the expectant mom needs to hear.
1:20 pm - 1:50 pm There’s No Such Thing as a “Little” Euthanasia
Wesley Smith, Award winning author, Host of the Humanize Podcast and Chairman of the Discovery Institute's Center on Human Exceptionalism
Wes will look at the international development of a constitutional right to commit suicide and be assisted, for any reason. He will also discuss how this is specifically a threat for people with dementia or Alzheimer’s and share how the conjoining of euthanasia and organ harvesting becomes the new normal once states legalize hastened death.
1:55 - 2:10 pm Addressing Adoption, Foster Care, and Family in Churches
Sharen Ford, Director, Foster Care & Adoption; Johnston Moore
While there is no single tactic to prevent abortion, this talk will explain why the inclusion of adoption, foster care, and the family is strategically smart in our goal to end abortion and how this is being integrated into Anglicans for Life's life-affirming ministry.
2:10 - 2:40 pm Adoption and Foster Care Outreach Opportunities
Sharen Ford, Director, Foster Care & Adoptions; Johnston Moore
Once abortion is ended in the United States, the Church will need to be much more prepared to help those facing unplanned pregnancies. The first half of this presentation will share ideas and suggestions for churches to engage the foster care system and support children and families involved in it. The second half of the talk will highlight ways the churches can support adoptive families.
2:45 - 3pm Never Say Never
Robin Sertell, Education Coordinator, Abortion Survivors Network
After overcoming three abortion attempts via saline infusion, the doctors said I'd never be able to do many basic things. God's helped me to not only do these things but to equip and empower others as well. My life is a testimony of His grace, which empowers us to overcome.
3 - 3:45 pm Keynote
What It Means to Be Human: The Case for the Body in Public Bioethics
Professor O. Carter Snead
Based on his new book with the same title, Professor Snead helps people understand how laws impacting the human body must consider the very nature of what it means to be human - so the laws can be effective in helping those they are intended for.
3:45 pm Closing Remarks and Prayer
Georgette Forney and Bishop John