Thursday, December 1, 2011

Fall 2011 Campaign Report

Thank you very much for your participation in this fall's 2011 40 Days for Life Alexandria campaign! This fall saw our first documented save as well as lots of positive reactions from the local workers and Alexandria residents. With your help we are slowly working to build a culture of life in our community.

Our efforts this fall centered around three main areas:

1) PRAYER AND FASTING
Marie, our prayer coordinator, helped to invite local clergy to participate in our efforts by offering prayers for our campaign intentions. We were blessed to have several priests celebrate Mass for us including Arlington Bishop Paul Loverde. We printed and distributed prayer cards containing a 40 Days for Life campaign prayer as well as a reminder about fasting. We encouraged all our volunteers both prior to and during the campaign to commit to daily prayer and fasting for an end to abortion and for the intentions of 40 Days for Life. Volunteers prayed together and individually at the prayer vigil and various campaign events: the kickoff rally, midpoint prayer vigil, and final celebration dinner. Through the power and mercy of God we are winning this spiritual battle of hearts and minds for a culture of life.

2) VIGIL
Mary Ellen, Tom, Jacinta and others helped coordinate a daily vigil at the abortion facilities at 2830 and 2807 Duke Street from 7am to 7pm daily during the 40 Days campaign. Judging from our online vigil calendar where volunteers signed up for weekly or daily time shifts to come and pray and witness for life, 99% of the slots were covered, a nearly 20% jump from last time. Volunteers prayed individually or in groups, holding positive pro-life signs, and occasionally offering flyers to those passing by. There were many positive conversations and opportunities to share the message of life through this vigil, through which the abortion facilities were covered in constant prayer and those working in the vicinity were reminded of the daily reality of abortion in their neighborhood.

3) COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Paul, Jonathan, Keith, Eric and Sara aided our outreach efforts to our neighbors in the Alexandria through church outreach and networking, rallies and training events, press releases sent to local media outlets, crowd contact and sign-holding in the streets of Alexandria, and door-to-door distribution of pro-life information including local resources for women who may be in a crisis pregnancy. Recruitment efforts were made at 23 different churches and throughout the Catholic diocese of Arlington, and promotional articles were published in several Christian publications. We hosted two sidewalk counseling training sessions for our volunteers, held informational and kickoff meetings, and nearly doubled the size of our existing volunteer list by the end of the fall campaign.

As you can imagine, a comprehensive effort such as this is not possible without the help of many individuals and organizations. We are grateful to all those who assisted, in particular Bishop Ireton High School, the Catholic Diocese of Arlington, St. Mary Church in Alexandria, and many financial donors who helped us  cover the expenses of signs, printing, supplies, and the like. We look forward to expanding our partnership with local Christian and pro-life organizations as we continue our efforts this spring.

For those of you who are wondering, "What's next?" we remember that the fight against abortion is not yet ended in our city. Hundreds of babies are killed each year, and as long as our abortion facilities remain open for business we have the duty to stand up against this injustice. Duke Street's continuing vigil is happening from Tuesday through Friday each week now (approximately 8:30am to 5:30pm daily), and there are still several shifts in need of a prayer volunteer or two during the hours that abortions are performed. I invite you to take an ongoing role in this witness by emailing Mary Ellen (maryellen.40days@verizon.net) for more information, or to let her know the days and times that you are able to participate each week. Signs and literature from the fall campaign are available for your use; just let us know what you need and we will be sure to get it to you.

Finally, if you have been blessed through this fall campaign and feel inspired to help in a leadership role, please know that our first Spring 2012 Campaign planning meeting will be held on Tuesday, December 6, at 7:30pm. I invite you to come and learn more about the 40 Days for Life campaign and meet our core leadership team. Message me for more information or for meeting details. We would be very happy to have your assistance as it is always needed!