“Leading with Love,” a conference on pregnancy crisis centers and concrete assistance to new mothers – especially those in crisis pregnancies – took place October 8 at The Catholic University of America, Washington. The conference was jointly sponsored by the Human Life Foundation and the University’s Center for Law and the Human Person.

Jennie Bradley Lichter, former University General Counsel and now President of the March for Life, delivered the wide ranging keynote address, “Reasons for Hope,” exploring the pro-life landscape post-Dobbs. She stressed that the pro-life struggle did not end with the reversal of Roe but only assumed a different shape: with the removal of a claimed federal Constitutional right to abortion, pro-life efforts had to shift back not just to the local level politically but to the individual level – to concrete women facing abortion decisions – personally. Lichter discussed one response: Catholic University’s Guadalupe Project (named after Our Lady of Guadalupe, who is traditionally depicted pregnant) to support mothers in the university community.

The Guadalupe Project is not limited to women with “crisis pregnancies” (though it is set up to help them) but celebrates the gift of life all new mothers and fathers share. The Project ensures that mothers at CUA have the resources they need to thrive, regardless of their personal circumstances. They range from expanded parental leave for university employees to diapers for young mothers on campus to resources for women who find themselves pregnant and single. The now three year old Project is designed to incarnate a real and practical culture of life at CUA.

Quoting a Lozier Institute study, Lichter noted that six out of ten women who resort to abortion say they would not have done so if they believed they had practical support during their pregnancies. Extrapolating from the Guadalupe Project, she paid tribute to the work done by crisis pregnancy centers across America, while also noting their travails since Dobbs. Initially targets of criminal violence, including arson, opposition has now shifted to politically driven efforts, especially by law enforcement in primarily Democratic-dominated states, to force crisis pregnancy centers to make abortion referrals or be sued for false advertising and similar consumer fraud charges. Despite legal intimidation, however, crisis pregnancy centers offer resources – pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, medical care – at volumes pro-abortionists like Planned Parenthood could only dream of, as well as resources like adoption assistance and shelter for abused pregnant women they simply do not.

Characterizing crisis pregnancy centers as the concrete “arms and legs” of the pro-life movement, Lichter concluded with the abiding relevance of the movement’s “heart,” the March for Life held annually each January in Washington. The March renews pro-lifers’ commitments to the cause, rejuvenating their dedication to struggles now largely dispersed in state capitals and local communities. Lichter also revealed the 2026 March’s theme – “the gift of life” – insisting that, despite the tragedy of Roe, the March has endured over half a century because of its positive, life-affirming, civil rights message.

The afternoon conference centered on a panel discussing faith-based pro-life ministries. Led by National Review’s Kathryn Jean Lopez, panelists included: Kat Talalas of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops; Amy Ford of the “Embrace Grace” movement; Chris Bell of Good Counsel Homes; and Sr. Maria Frassati of the Sisters of Life.

Talalas and Ford described church/parish-based pro-life ministries that offer concrete and practical support to pregnant women. Ford, author of Help Her to Be Brave, designed the “Embrace Grace” program, a local church-based program to help women in problem pregnancies to obtain tangible support to keep their babies or put them up for adoption. Although it originated in a Protestant context, “Embrace Grace” offers a practical parish-based program useable in Catholic and Orthodox churches. Talalas described “Walking with Moms in Need” (https://www.walkingwithmoms.com/ ), a step-by-step program for Catholic parishes wanting to launch such a parish-based pro-life ministry to identify what local resources are available and where gaps may exist. The practical nature of the program, designed to pinpoint the local support available or missing for mothers in need, also seems adaptable to ecumenical use. Bell described the four “Good Counsel” homes in operation in New Jersey and New York – a generally hostile political environment to prolife causes – and how they assist mothers in distress there. Sr. Frassati discussed the prolife work of the Sisters for Life, focusing on how often women simply need someone to listen to and accompany them at that juncture in life. The panelists also discussed problems they face in helping women to consider adoption, noting the significant amounts of mis- and disinformation around that topic and the cultural issues (e.g., “am I being a bad parent in giving up my baby?”) that still impede a robust culture that supports adoption. They also touched on the “safe haven” efforts across America to afford women seeking a way to surrender their child anonymously a safe way to do so.

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