Youth prepare for annual March for Life

By Katherine Long
Sun associate editor

When Bob Walters was hired as diocesan director of youth ministry in 2006, he figured he’d wait until the following year to put together his first youth pilgrimage for the diocese to the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. But Bishop James Moynihan had a better idea.

“He called me into his office and said, ‘I want you to put together a trip this year,’” Walters said. The march, held each January to coincide with the anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in the landmark Roe vs. Wade case, was just four months away.

With some quick work, Walters pulled together a busload of young adults and chaperones and pulled off a successful trip. The pilgrimage has grown in popularity and size each year since, attracting youth from across the diocese.

Following a special Mass celebrated by Bishop Robert Cunningham on Jan. 21, Walters, along with 220 young people and chaperones, will board four buses in the Cathedral parking lot and embark for this year’s rally in the nation’s capital. Parish-led trips will also depart from Immaculate Conception Church in Fayetteville, Holy Family Church in Fairmount and Immaculate Conception in Greene. Once in D.C., the pilgrims will join some 500,000 other people, the majority of whom will be Catholic young adults, for the march on Jan. 23.

“This youth rally preceeding the march is the largest gathering of Catholic youth in the U.S. It’s twice the size of the National Catholic Youth Conference,” said Walters. “This is the best trip for giving our young people an opportunity for deeper conversions to faith. Being with so many of their peers helps them have the hope and courage to stand up for their faith.”

Bethany Owens, 16, from Holy Family Church, this year is making her second trip to the march, and is excited to be among other young people who share her beliefs.

“I’m looking forward to being at the march with such a big group of pro-life supporters,” she said. “For me, this is a fundamental issue. In order to have our other liberties, we need the most basic liberty — life. Going to the march is a way for me to be a voice for the unborn and to show my support.”

Giving the students an opportunity to immerse themselves in the culture of life and understand why the dignity of human life is essential is a key goal of the trip, Walters said. So, too, is allowing them to deepen their faith through personal encounters with Christ. There will be many opportunities for prayer, including a private Mass celebrated by Bishop Cunningham in the National Basilica, as well as reflection and testimonials.

Of course, the trip is also designed to be fun — there will be a Christian tour of the monuments, time to explore the city and plenty of group meals — and the students are excited to sightsee and meet new people. But it’s their convictions that are fueling their journey.

“I believe that it is wrong that so many babies never get a chance to live,” said Andrew Klawiter, 16, from St. Mary’s of the Assumption Church in Binghamton. “Going to the march is my way to show support, to show that I’m for life.”

Matt Burgher, 16, of St. Vincent de Paul/ Blessed Sacrament Church in Vestal, has similar motivations.

“It’s just wrong,” he said. “That baby could be the next president, could be anything. Every baby is an innocent life.”

The students said they have friends or acquaintances who disagree with their views, but that they are able to constructively discuss their beliefs about the sanctity of life.

“I just try to be straight with people,” Klawiter said. “I ask them why they feel that way and then explain the way I see things.”

Owens said she mostly gets respect for expressing her views.

“Some people don’t agree with me, but they respect my opinion. They think it’s cool that I’m standing up for my beliefs,” she said.

Walters said that he is consistently impressed by how open young people are about their beliefs and how firmly they can stand their ground against those who don’t share them. But he also strives to make sure the students see that this trip is not just about protesting Roe vs. Wade, but rather about a prayerful witness for life.

“This is a pilgrimage, not just a protest,” he said. “This trip is a way for our young people to find Christ in others, pray, deepen their faith and learn how to bring the respect for all life back home to their families, schools and friends.”