40 Days for Life speaker comes to NH: “thank you for your Yes”

On a nippy Thursday, fifty miles away from the New Hampshire State House where the House was in session, people committed to peaceful pro-life action gathered on a small-town sidewalk. They were in front of a town hall which sits next door to an abortion facility. Turning away from news about life-issue legislation, they were there to hear a story of encouragement and hope.

Ramona Treviño shares her story

Texas resident Ramona Treviño is the outreach director for the international 40 Days for Life effort. In a whirlwind tour last week, she spoke at seven regional 40DFL campaign events, including three in New Hampshire. I caught up with her in Greenland.

The Greenland participants welcomed Treviño to her first visit to New Hampshire on a cold but sunny Wednesday morning. She responded in kind. “It’s beautiful. I couldn’t be more blessed.”

_{Ramona Treviño of 40 Days for Life, speaking in Greenland NH. Ellen Kolb photo.}

“I’m a living witness to what the power of prayer does. This for me is a special time of the year, not only ’cause it’s Lent, but also this time of year, twelve years ago, is when I left my position at Planned Parenthood, and had a beautiful conversion that can only be attributed to the Holy Spirit and the grace that was poured out because of your witness, the power of prayer, and fasting.”

Her journey from PP to 40DFL

Catholic by upbringing – “culturally Catholic,” she called it – she knew enough to consider abortion unthinkable when she became pregnant at 16. Her parents agreed, and she gave birth without support from the child’s father. Later, she met and married a man with whom she entered fully into her faith. Even so, “unfortunately, I accepted a position working for the nation’s largest abortion [provider]” a year and a half later. The provider was Planned Parenthood, and the facility was near her Texas home.

How did she end up there? She offered several reasons. First, “ignorance.” While she knew Planned Parenthood provided birth control, STD testing, and well-woman exams, she wasn’t aware that it was a powerhouse of the abortion industry. “I didn’t know that every year they’re responsible for 300,000 abortions in this country.”

She also believed something that I’ve heard time and again from former abortion workers. “I really thought I was helping women. I thought I was going to be preventing abortions. Also, I was of another mentality: I personally wouldn’t have an abortion, but every woman has the right to choose for herself…. And in my [facility] we didn’t perform abortions under our roof. The surgical center in Dallas-Fort Worth was where abortions took place. And that was another way that I justified and rationalized working for PP. I thought my hands [were] clean.”

“You guys showed up.”

What changed? “You guys showed up,” “you guys” being participants in 40 Days for Life. Trevio described listening to Catholic radio one day in her car in Advent of 2010 and hearing a promotional message about 40 Days for Life. The message included the news that the following spring’s campaign would be outside her facility. She was startled.

“I had never heard of 40 Days for Life up to then. [It was the] first time I had heard of this peaceful prayerful vigil that was going to be held for 40 days outside of my facility. It was going to kick off on Ash Wednesday.and of course, being Catholic, I thought ‘maybe God’s trying to tell me something.’ …Now we had always had protesters outside our facility. And you know, these protesters would kind of yell at the women to try to get their attention….They didn’t strike me as loving people.” In the 40 Days for Life message, “there was something about hearing these words: ‘a peaceful and prayerful vigil’ – that really put my soul at peace.”

The 40DFL campaign began. At one point she actually went to the prayer witnesses and asked them for prayers. She had become uncomfortable working for PP, and a priest had advised her to leave, but still she hesitated. The campaign leader later joined in prayer for her, and he asked if he could share her prayer request with others.

That impressed her greatly “He asked for my permission. I think that was huge. It meant he saw me as a person with dignity, and not as some prize to be won.”

Let that sink in for a moment. I sometimes need to be reminded that other peoples’ stories are not mine to share until they give their consent.

“What did you do?”

Many more details went into her decision to leave PP shortly after the end of that 40DFL campaign. The scales were tipped in favor of life as she listened to Catholic radio (there’s that influence of media again!) a couple of days after Easter. “An elderly gentleman had called in and he was sharing his own experiences with praying in front of his local abortion facility….[T]he radio host said to him Thank you, sir, for all that you do for the unborn. Thank
you for your witness. Because at the end of our lives, we’re all going to stand before God. And He’s going to ask you ‘did
you know about abortion? Did you know babies were being ripped from their mothers’ wombs limb by limb? More than
3000 per day?’ And then He’s going to ask you ‘what did you do?’ And that was my moment in which my conscience
was completely illuminated.” Three days later, her time at PP was over.

Now, twelve years later, Ramona Treviño works for 40 Days for Life. “The truth is, guys, you’re my heroes.” She pointed out that during this campaign in 604 cities worldwide – the largest 40DFL campaign to date – 248 abortion-minded women have chosen life. “Something’s happening. And our prayers are unitive. God is answering our prayers. You are answering that call: ‘what did you do.’ Thank you for your Yes.”

House votes to gut Fetal Life Protection Act

The New Hampshire House has passed HB 224 on a 205-178 roll call, sending to the Senate a bill stripping penalties from the Fetal Life Protection Act and thus rendering FLPA useless. Governor Sununu has indicated he will sign the bill if it reaches his desk.

The Senate hasn’t scheduled a hearing on HB 224 yet, but that doesn’t matter: contact your senator now. The Senate must stop HB 224 so it never reaches the Governor’s desk.

We have a governor who wants to be able to say he signed New Hampshire’s first abortion rollback in a quarter century – hey, look at me! I’m moderate, not an extremist! – while also rendering that rollback unenforceable. Unregulated induced abortion throughout all nine months of pregnancy would once again be state policy, if the governor were to sign HB 224, or even if he were to let the bill become law without his signature. He would be able to tout “moderation” in appearance while being an abortion extremist in practice.

That asinine political gamesmanship will only be called off if the Senate kills HB 224.

The House roll call on the vote is at this link (go to left side of that web page and click under “House roll calls”). Motion was “ought to pass,” so a “yea” vote was a vote to remove penalties from FLPA. All the Democrats present voted Yea, while 16 Republicans joined them. And by the way, the chief sponsor of HB 224 was a Republican.

Repeat after me: pro-life is not spelled G-O-P. Every single senator, regardless of party, needs to hear from constituents on this. The governor is enormously influential with his fellow Republicans. Those Republicans need to be reminded whom they were elected to serve.

There will be a Senate hearing on HB 224 at some point. I’ll report once that’s on the schedule. That will be a good day to take off work, bring the kids, carpool with your friends, tell your pro-life friends in neighboring states what’s going on, and show up for however long it takes to look those five Senate committee members in the eye and tell them you are NOT okay with HB 224.

For its encore, House voted to declare abortion “vital to the equality and liberty of all individuals”

HB 88, the counterpart to SB 181 recently killed by the Senate, was passed by the House today, 199-185. That one was on a division vote, not a roll call, so no rep’s name is associated with a vote. HB 88, titled “relative to reproductive rights,” would prohibit abortion regulations other than the ones already on the books. Right now, FLPA is on the books, with a 24-week abortion limit. If the governor signs HB 224 removing penalties from FLPA, nothing will prevent the performance of abortion at any point in pregnancy. HB 88 calls abortion “vital to the equality and liberty of all individuals,” in case there’s any doubt about the extremism behind the bill.

Ah, but the Senate will kill it, you might be thinking. I do not share such optimism. The Senate killed SB 181, but HB 88 gives the abortion advocates another bite at the apple. If only three senators flip their votes, HB 88 will pass.

Outright repeal of FLPA, HB 271, failed today on a tie vote and was then tabled. (Yes, it was that close.) The threatened constitutional amendment, CACR 2, didn’t come close to the 60% support it needed. As I write this, it’s midday and the House still has its afternoon session ahead, with more votes to come. I’ll edit this post as needed.

Links to roll calls and vote information

The General Court website is the source for this information. I’ve listed the two bills featured in this post first, followed by the rest of the life-issue bills I’ve reported on so far this session. Each bill has its own information page on the General Court website; to find out who voted how, look at the left side of the bill’s page and click underneath “House Roll Calls.” Note that for division and voice votes, there are no names associated with the votes and therefore there’s no roll call.

HB 224, to repeal penalties on late-term-abortion providers under the Fetal Life Protection Act (FLPA), : the vote was 205-178 on an “Ought to Pass” motion. A Yea vote was a vote to expand abortion by making FLPA unenforceable.

HB 88, as described above, was killed via division vote rather than a roll call. Representatives thus avoided being held accountable for their votes on this bill.

CACR 2, a constitutional amendment to enshrine abortion in the state constitution: the vote was 193-191 on an “Ought to Pass” motion, which is short of the 60% required for a constitutional amendment to pass the House. A Yea vote was a vote to make abortion constitutionally protected.

HB 271, to repeal FLPA altogether: the bill was tabled on a voice vote after an “Ought to Pass” motion was defeated on a tie vote, 192-192. A Yea on the “Ought to Pass” motion was a vote to repeal New Hampshire’s 24-week abortion limitation and thus keep abortion unregulated throughout pregnancy.

HB 582, abortion statistics, was killed on a division vote: 205-177 on an “Inexpedient to Legislate” motion.

HB 591, a “heartbeat bill: prohibiting abortion after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, was defeated on a 271-110 vote on an “Inexpedient to Legislate” motion.

HB 615, requiring independent audits of “reproductive health facilities” to ensure that no public funds are used for abortion, was tabled on a division vote, 354-29, effectively killing the bill.

The following bills were killed on voice votes (no roll call, no count) on “Inexpedient to Legislate” motions: HB 346, a born-alive infant protection bill, and HB 562, informed consent for abortion;

Leaven for the Loaf marks ten years with anthology “Pro-Life Journeys”

I started this blog in April 2012. Early in 2022, with the ten-year anniversary approaching, I decided that creating a short anthology of posts would be a nice way to celebrate. The project took much longer than I expected. Who knew a book of less than eighty pages could require a dozen drafts?…uh…pretty much every author I consulted during the process, that’s who. Live and learn.

I’m happy to offer the finished product, in e-book format. Pro-Life Journeys is now available as a Kindle e-book on Amazon.com. A paperback version is in the works, and it will be available on Amazon as well.

Selecting the posts to include was difficult, but I think you’ll agree that the people whose stories I share are worth hearing about again – or reading about for the first time, if you’re new to the blog. For example, I’ve included the story of the families whose persistence led to New Hampshire’s fetal homicide law. There are interviews with people who work in pregnancy care centers. There are stories shared with me by former abortion workers, one local and one nationally-known. Those are just a few of the people you’ll encounter in the book. I take note of a couple of policy debates as well.

I called the final chapter “The Journey Ahead.” What can people committed to the right to life do now, in a post-Dobbs environment? I offer what I hope are constructive thoughts about that.

Pro-Life Journeys distills ten years of posts down to a short collection of stories about memorable people whose words and work can inspire us. I hope the e-book finds a place in your library!

By the way, you don’t need a Kindle tablet to read the e-book. The Kindle app is available via Google Play and the Apple Store for use on other devices.

If you like what you read, please help me share the news! Every self-published book including Pro-Life Journeys depends on readers’ reviews, social media posts, and good old-fashioned word-of-mouth. Let’s enjoy this particular journey as a team.

To all the blog’s readers, thank you for giving Leaven for the Loaf its staying power. Here’s to more years ahead.

Year in review: a surprising #1 spot on the blog

In politically momentous year for life-issue news, the most popular post on Leaven for the Loaf wasn’t technically a “post” at all. It wasn’t even political. It was a page: Pregnancy Resources in New Hampshire.

I wrote about the Dobbs decision and the leak that preceded it, and those posts drew a lot of readers. Likewise for alerts about important hearings in Concord. But the number one thing that readers sought here in 2022, judging from the number of views, was information on the pregnancy care centers and allied agencies providing support for babies and parents alike.

That’s fitting, in a year when we’ve been reminded repeatedly that political victories have their limits. I think when Dobbs pushed abortion policy to the states, it also prompted us to look at what we’re doing locally in terms of service and witness. People are looking for practical ways to help.

Some abortion advocates used Dobbs as an excuse to attack pregnancy care centers. All the more reason to keep those centers going and thriving, in my opinion.

People of the year

My People of the Year are the individuals behind the New Hampshire centers providing abortion-free care. Each staff member and volunteer is critical to the success of a center. The relationships they build with the people they serve do more than any court can do to build a culture of life. I nod to donors as well. Financial support translates good intentions into positive action.

The “do better” award

If I still had a little scuffed participation trophy from my kids’ earliest years on the town soccer team, I’d haul it out and re-purpose it here.

My “Do Better” award goes to the 2022 political candidates who talked about inflation when opponents were talking about how abortion limitations threatened women’s lives. You know who you are. The voters sure do.

Coming in 2023

Pro-Life Journeys, an anthology from the first ten years of Leaven for the Loaf, will be published within a few days on Amazon. I’m very excited to share stories from some of the most inspiring people I’ve written about, who deliver timeless messages. Watch for more information in the next Leaven email newsletter, coming out the first week in January.

Leaven for the Loaf will be covering legislation in Concord, keeping you updated on what’s happening and how you can affect the outcome. I’m especially keen to report on the effort to pass an amendment to the state constitution that would give abortion constitutional protection. It’s a budget year, and budgets involve more than numbers; recall that’s how the Fetal Life Protection Act was finally passed in 2021.

Because of the razor-thin GOP majority in the New Hampshire House, leaders of the minority were able to persuade House leadership that a 50-50 split of committee seats was a good idea. Look forward to some interesting outcomes in Judiciary, for example.

I intend to report on more pregnancy care centers and their services. The leaders of Pathways in Littleton and Options in Rochester have been generous with their time when I’ve visited them. They left me with a new understanding of how to serve a community.

Are you planning a pro-life event in your area? I’d like to hear about it and possibly cover it for the blog. Send me an email at ellenkolbnh@gmail.com.

My speaking schedule for 2022 will kick off in a couple of weeks at a private event in Hollis. May I help you as a speaker for your event or show? Send me an email and let’s discuss it.

On a personal note

Readers who have been kind enough to follow my writing across several blogs on unrelated topics can now keep up with the whole darn thing at ellenkolb.com. I guarantee it’ll be the only site you’ll see from an activist pro-life New Hampshire Catholic hiker who can’t stop scribbling. I hope you’ll join me there and subscribe to the site’s own newsletter.

May God bless you abundantly in the New Year!

A sad reminder of the Safe Haven law

December in New Hampshire can mean bitter cold nights. Anyone living in makeshift quarters is in for a rough time. A few nights ago, a woman living in a tent in Manchester gave birth and then allegedly misled emergency responders about her baby’s location. There’s no telling for sure what she was experiencing. Pain from labor and delivery; mental illness; chemical impairment; fear of losing the only shelter she had: any or all could have affected her judgment. Miraculously, the premature baby eventually was found alive and is now reportedly hospitalized. The mother faces charges including child endangerment.

The mother might not have been in a position to know about the Safe Haven law, which would have let her bring her newborn baby to any police or fire station – even a church – without any threat of prosecution for child endangerment or abandonment. Circumstances were terrible all around for mother and child that night. If there are any good outcomes from the media coverage of the night’s events, one is surely the mention of Safe Haven. Maybe some other mother and child will benefit from that.

New Hampshire’s Safe Haven law was passed in 2003. It was written to deter abandonment of newborn infants by allowing anyone to bring a child up to 7 days old to a “haven” – hospital, police or fire station, or church – with no questions asked, so that the child can be cared for even if the parent isn’t willing or able to do so.

I attended the hearings on that bill many years ago. Its passage was a bipartisan victory. The chief sponsor was Phyllis Woods, Republican from Dover. Among the eight other sponsors was Barbara Hull Richardson, Democrat from Keene. The House vote was 327-45. The Senate passed it on a voice vote after defeating an amendment proposed by the chamber’s six Democrats. Governor Craig Benson signed it in May 2003.

In short, it was as uncontroversial a life-issue bill as one could hope to see. It’s good for babies and good for a scared or desperate unprepared parent. And it only works if people know about it.