Right to Life of North Central Indiana has enjoyed a great partnership with Grace College & Seminary for many years, due in part to our close proximity and shared Christian values. Grace College has partnered with us by allowing us to use their Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center (MOCC) for our Fall Legacy of Life Banquet. This location has served as a great banquet space for years, and has connected us with various Grace athletic teams and student organizations who graciously give their time to help us with set-up and tear-down of the event.
This school year, Right to Life has also partnered with Grace College’s chapel team, led by Dean of the Chapel, Brent Mencarelli, to bring Brooke Martin, EMMY-winning anchor and reporter, to the student chapel stage on January 19th, 2024. Students were deeply touched by Martin’s moving story about choosing life for her daughter diagnosed with a fetal anomaly. You can read more about Brooke Martin’s visit here. We hope to bring other pro-life speakers to the chapel stage in the coming months and years to inspire and encourage both students and faculty.
One of the most prominent ways that Right to Life has connected with Grace College this year, and last, is through Grace’s student-led Students For Life group. The group started up last school year and attended many of our pro-life community events, such as our annual Life Chain and our first Life Guardians Training in October 2022. This school year, under the leadership of sophomore Savannah Cook and her leadership team, the group has continued their committed partnership with RTL. One of our newest staff members, Liz Swain, is on the Grace SFL leadership team with Cook and she has served as a bridge this year between the two organizations, allowing us to have an even stronger relationship than ever before.
When asked why she wanted to pursue pro-life leadership on campus, Cook informed us that she is from Colorado, a well-known pro-abortion state, and learned much of what she now knows about the abortion debate from social media. She cited her conviction for “being a voice for those that don’t have a voice” and asserted that as Christians, this is an issue that we should be concerned and passionate about. She served as Vice President of the club last year as a freshman, and when she was asked to take over the club as President this year, she knew this would be a great opportunity to “personally grow in leadership skills” and “learn what we can do as college students to impact the pro-life movement”. She often encourages her group that everything we do to serve in the life movement, including prayer, is making a difference, even if the fruit isn’t visible right away.
This school year, Grace’s Students For Life group has been committed to attending our various pro-life community events. In September, a group of students helped us set-up for the banquet, and even attended the banquet with discounted student tickets. In October, members of the club joined us in our annual Life Chain in Warsaw, standing proudly for life on a busy street corner. In November, the students worked together to craft agape gifts for participants in our annual Pregnancy Resource Center Networking Day. In January, we financially assisted four students from Grace’s SFL group in attending the Indiana March For Life in Indianapolis. We also helped to promote a fundraiser they hosted at Buffalo Wild Wings to raise funds for Heartline Pregnancy Center. And, just a few weeks ago, we hosted nearly 20 Grace students at our second annual Life Guardians Pro-Life Training.
Cook greatly appreciates the club’s close partnership with Right to Life because it allows them to get off campus and serve/participate in pro-life activities in the broader community. She also stated that attending RTL’s events allows their group to do more throughout the year because they aren’t responsible for planning the event themselves. When asked what his favorite RTL event was to attend this year, Grace senior Jonathan Downey replied,
“The fall pro-life banquet was probably my favorite associated with RTL. I enjoyed hearing from multiple speakers about their own personal struggles with the abortion industry and the fact that some government officials recognized the event and work of RTL of NCI.”
We look forward to a continued partnership with Grace College, both through Students For Life and the school as a whole.
Learn more about student pro-life groups here.