'Everyone deserves a birthday': Catholic University students to lead March for Life

'We really promote life from conception to natural death in Campus Ministry.'

Students from Catholic University hold an annual March for Life. They carry signs reading, "Everyone deserves a birthday" and "Life is a Gift. Protect it," while they make their way around areas preapproved by the school district.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - LifeNews reported the pro-life attitude of the University and its students, indicating the school holds true to its Catholic identity.

Associate campus minister Pamela Tremblay explained: "We really promote life from conception to natural death in Campus Ministry. We have opportunities to do service with both children and elderly. We have mission trips so that we can encounter life and different ways of living. We are able to promote an entire culture of life so that it seeps into someone's heart. It's more than just one day of going to a march.

"For us, the march is important because we are advocates of life, but I think the focus of an encounter with life is what really transforms our heart to be pro-life. The encounter with a woman who is pregnant and struggling, the encounter with the elderly man or woman who has been neglected by society, these encounters are what really transform people. The encounters create a pro-life culture."

One senior theology major, Molly Boland, shared: "The March for Life is an awesome event. There are so many people there, which is really cool. They're happy to be there celebrating life. The energy is upbeat. We're there for the same thing. We all believe everyone should have the chance to live.

"We invite students to come and learn more about life issues and different takes on [those issues], so we talk about immigration, abortion, what it means to interact with another person. Living a culture of life isn't just about not killing someone. It's about interacting with everyone you meet with charity and love and showing them that you respect their dignity and that you love them."

The University's march will be preceded by a series of events Boland hopes will "pack the sidewalks." They will be praying at an abortion facility the Saturday before the march, hold a viewing of a film with a pro-life message and are scheduled to offer volunteer opportunities related to the march.

The day before the school's March for Life, roughly 1,000 high school and college students are expected to spend the night at the Raymond A. DuFour Athletics Center to offer guests a chance to get started with the march first thing the following day.

Tremplay admitted, "Every year I get nervous that I'm not going to fill those volunteer spots. There are long shifts and they are not the most glamorous. Yet every year I have plenty of volunteers. It amazes me. These students stay up all night, take a little nap, and then they go on the march. Our students are really dedicated to life and I think hospitality is a huge part of our Catholic tradition."

The day of the walk, January 22, University students will lead the march in "a deliberate effort," Father Eric de la Peña announced. "Catholic University participates every year. A campus represents young people and our young people are invested. Their voice counts."

Boland expressed her excitement for the march, adding, "I think it's awesome that CUA is leading the march this year. I think it's time that we develop our [country's] culture into a culture of life, not just on this issue, but on every issue."

Tremblay believes the University's location in Washington, D.C. allows students to experience the march each year and said: "The march is a unique opportunity to see how activism is part of our Catholic tradition. We're fighting for and defending the least among us. To be able to have our students defend the least among us in a political way every year is a unique opportunity that our location in the District provides."

As Catholics, it is important for us to stand for what we believe in and for what God has for our lives. It is a relief to see that younger generations are choosing to turn from the lies of the devil and to face God's Truth to stand for those who cannot.

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