2020 has been a year none of us will ever forget. It’s been a challenging and even tragic year for most if not all of us.

However, despite extra challenges, 2020 has been a year full of achievements and rewarding experiences for Pro-Life Utah.

What We’ve Done

You may have barely heard of us, or maybe you’ve followed us on social media for a while. Or perhaps you’ve been a loyal donor or volunteer with us for years!

If you’re new, we’re here to show you that we do more than talk the talk; we walk the walk!

And if you’re a loyal donor or volunteer, we want to thank you by showing you exactly what your resources have contributed to.

We take a multi-faceted approach to saving lives and promoting a culture of life. To show you exactly how we do that, we explain 8 main ways we have taken pro-life action in Utah in 2020.

In 2020, Pro-Life Utah has:

1. Saved babies

2. Helped mothers

3. Continued support

4. Ministered through sidewalk advocacy

5. Passed major pro-life legislation

6. Purchased our ultrasound van

7. Held our biggest March for Life ever

8. Grown and restructured our organization

1. Saved Babies

Everyone’s favorite update: we have had the blessing of being a part of saving 10 babies!

Every dollar donated and every hour volunteered would have been worth it if it had amounted to only 1 life saved. I.e., we will never know the total number of babies who might have been lost if it were not for you standing up for life on social media or standing on the sidewalk outside Planned Parenthood; however, we are delighted to know that at least 10 babies have been rescued this year as a direct result of our work and your support.

Meet 3 of our babies, Tatiana, Luna, and Brynlee:

Baby Tatiana’s mother was overwhelmed and drowning in despair when she picked up the phone and reached out through our Pregnancy Choice Utah hotline. For Tatiana’s mother, abortion was not an option—it was the only option. We worked with this sweet mother to unpack and resolve many of the issues that were pushing her to make a decision that would have ended the life of her unborn child.

Sweet Luna’s grandmother was desperately searching for help to save her granddaughter and daughter from becoming abortion statistics. Pro-Life Utah was ready and willing to jump into the battle for Luna’s life. We have found that, many times, abortion-minded women do not actually desire abortion; what they are searching for is support. Luna’s mama was no different. Having a team of cheerleaders in her corner gave her the strength to choose life for her darling Luna.

Brynlee’s mom faced immense obstacles in choosing life for this precious angel. She was being aggressively pressured by the father to abort. Sitting in the clinic listening to the description of what her child would endure during the procedure was more than she could take. We are forever grateful that she found the courage to leave the clinic and seek help.

2. Helped Mothers

This year, we have directly helped 10 pregnant mothers as well as 2 post-abortive women.

For women who had already gone through with abortion, we provided post-abortive counseling. Post-abortive grief is a prevalent consequence of undergoing abortion, and we try to help women find healing, hope, and emotional support.

Likewise, for women who are pregnant, we offer counseling and emotional support; however, we also support them with the physical resources they (and their families) need to be able to choose life for their babies. This year, we have provided pregnant mothers with at least the following:

• Baby clothes,

• Baby supplies,

• Legal assistance,

• Rent assistance,

• Necessary apartment furnishings.

We launched our brand new Baby Bank, through which we collect and distribute donations of baby items like diapers, wipes, baby clothes, baby gear, and any other supplies a mama may need to get ready for their baby. To store all of these items, we have moved from a small 10’x10’ storage unit to a 10’x20’ unit, doubling the amount of supplies we can collect and keep on hand to distribute at a moments’ notice.

We continue to supply our hotline with volunteers who are available to help women in need, anytime of day.

If you need help, please call: 1-385-288-1973. 

3. Continued Support

Despite claims that “pro-lifers are only pro-birth,” one of our most rewarding areas of service is continuing to support mothers and their babies after they’re born. For those of us who have worked personally with these women, the bonds that we’ve built are often long lasting.

For instance, this year, we were honored to celebrate the fourth birthday of the first baby Pro-Life Utah helped save! This sweet mother and her boy are still near and dear to our hearts.

The women and babies we have helped may not need the same resources they did when we first met them, but our friendship and mentorship will continue for years to come. Women who come to Pro-Life Utah for help can expect to find long-lasting relationships, community, and support.

4. Ministered through Sidewalk Advocacy

Here at Pro-Life Utah, we coordinate volunteers to minister to the women outside of Planned Parenthood Metro in Salt Lake, the only Planned Parenthood location that performs abortions. We are so grateful to these volunteers for their dedication and love shown to these women.

Our sidewalk advocates are there every week to pray for and offer education and support to women who come for an appointment during the times abortions are performed, and we clocked 95.25 hours of sidewalk ministry!

The best news is that we have directly been a part of saving 6 babies on the sidewalk this year! Of course, we may never know how many more women changed their minds after seeing our volunteers praying and serving outside Planned Parenthood.

5. Passed Major Pro-Life Legislation

Every legislative session, we promote and help pass pro-life laws for the state of Utah. This year, we helped with and supported 4 major pro-life bills to fight abortion—of which 3 passed!

The bills we helped pass are known as: 1) the Life Begins at Conception Act, 2) the Fetal Remains Bill, 3) and the Title X Amendment. Respectively, they are as follows:

1. SB174 Abortion Prohibition Amendments: Because of this, if the national court decision Roe vs. Wade is overturned, a Utah abortion prohibition will be activated. It will cause elective abortion to become legally abolished.

2. SB67 Disposition of Fetal Remains: This gives parents the option of claiming the remains of their unborn baby after miscarriage or abortion (as opposed to the previous default of the remains being discarded with other medical waste).

3. HB377 Health Care Funding Amendments: This ensures that Title X funding can come to Utah (as it previously had not), and it allows Utah to prioritize the funds’ distribution to providers of prenatal and postnatal care that promote 

We also promoted the failed and surprisingly-controversial bill known as the Ultrasound Bill (HB364 Abortion Revisions). This would have required that an abdominal ultrasound be performed before an abortion as an additional part of the already-required, 72-hour informed consent disclosed information. Unfortunately, this bill did not pass, and, to our great surprise, 6 female senators even walked out on the vote.

6. Purchased Our Ultrasound Van

Christmas came early this year! In August, we traveled to California to pick up an exciting purchase: our new ultrasound van.

Once fully supplied and staffed, this will be a complete ultrasound clinic on wheels. With this van, we will not only be able to directly provide free ultrasounds but also bring it straight to the women who need it.

8 out of 10 women who see an ultrasound of their baby choose life, and we can’t wait to directly provide ultrasounds to women across Utah and help them choose life, too.

With your continued donations and support, we expect the van to be running by spring of 2021.

To get our van up and running, please consider making a donation. Plus, make sure you come see the grand unveiling of the van at our March for Life car parade January 30, 2021!

7. Held Our Biggest March for Life Ever

In January, we organized and hosted our 5th annual March for Life at the Utah Capitol Building—and it was our biggest protest yet! We went from 50 attendees our first year to 2500 people marching for life in 2020!

Our 2020 March for Life included marching to the Capitol Building then filling it to the brim for a special presentation from key speakers.

Of course, due to COVID-19, our 2021 “March” for Life is going to look a little different; this upcoming January, our March for Life will be in the form of a car parade!

Just because you’ll be in the car the whole time does not mean it will be any less impactful or fun. Invite your family and friends, and be prepared to be a part of an event that will be safe, fun, unifying, and even more impactful and groundbreaking than last year.

Bring some car snacks and decorating materials, and arrive early enough to decorate your car in yellow with positive, pro-life messages. We are preparing a moving program you can listen along to in your car on the radio. 

Plus, you can be the first to see the unveiling of our brand-new ultrasound van, which will lead the parade down State Street!

For more information about the 2021 “March” for Life, visit our 2021 March for Life website.

8. Grown and Restructured Our Organization

We are pleased to announce that we have experienced a lot of organizational growth this year! Pro-Life Utah is 100% volunteer-run, and we have gained over 10 new volunteer leaders and many more volunteer team members.

As of December 2020, we have also undergone major changes in organizational structure that will increase the volume, efficiency, and effectiveness of our efforts.

With this new structure and growth, we will begin 2021 with the ability to increase our efforts in areas such as marketing and communications, abortion intervention, legislation, and community outreach. For the first time ever, we now also have new leadership specifically assigned to areas such as Southern Utah outreach, the Baby Bank, the annual March for Life, and intern coordination.

We are still looking for more volunteers and interns! If you would like to find out how to get involved, please contact us.

Thank You

We appreciate all of our hardworking volunteers and generous donors who have given so much of themselves to make all of this possible. Please know that your donations of time and resources are going directly to saving lives and helping women in need.

You may never meet the people you have served, so on their behalf, we say: thank you.

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We plan to continue to do even more come 2021, but the only way we can save lives is with your support. Please consider making a one-time or recurring donation, and make sure you follow us on social media and engage with our posts so we can reach more people and save more lives.

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