A message is held aloft as the March for Life participants walk around the State Capitol block Jan. 19. (HCH photos |Jennifer Rector)
By Jennifer Rector
Hawaii Catholic Herald
The Hawaii State Capitol rotunda was filled with hundreds of folks as young as in the womb and as old as those in wheelchairs and walkers for this year’s March for Life the afternoon of Jan.19.
They gathered to make a visible statement, along with their brothers and sisters 5,000 miles away at the national march in Washington, D.C., that day, standing up for human life no matter how small or how old.
Some attendees said that it was the most people they had seen at the Hawaii March for Life in years. It was a vibrant group — whole families, Catholic school students, religious sisters, Knights of Columbus, priests, laity and more.
“I thought it was a good turnout, a nice spirit,” said Father William Kunisch II from St. Anthony Parish in Kailua. “People have a lot of love here, and I think it came through in everything that was said and done.”
Bishop Larry Silva spoke on the importance of standing up for life especially for the unborn who have no voice for themselves.
Former lieutenant governor Duke Aiona, from Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Wahiawa, has gone to the rally for many years. Though he has not been able to make every single one, he tries to support life all year round.
“I really don’t believe there is anybody in the community who doesn’t support life,” said Aiona.
“Everybody supports life. I think it’s the context that they put it in that gives it this divisiveness,” he said. “The bottom line is usually when life begins. We as Catholics understand that life begins at conception, and so that’s why we value it from the womb to the tomb.”
Some parents attended with their children to teach them the importance of life from a young age.
Jennifer Ruggieo and her husband and young children, a military family, just moved to Hawaii. They previously attended the Washington, D.C., march and were excited to come to the one in Honolulu.
Ruggieo and her kids took the city bus to get to the State Capitol. She hopes that experiences like these will help teach her children the value of life.
“It’s powerful. We just kind of teach them to tell people to be nice to babies at this point, but it’s powerful to put that in their DNA to promote life,” said Ruggieo. “So, it’s important to me that they see how important it is and that they can have a voice.”
Molly Martinez has been going to March for Life since she was a little girl. Her mother would take her every year. Now that she’s married with two kids and one on the way, she makes it a point to give her children the same upbringing.
“To learn the value of life young is very important,” said Martinez.
The keynote speakers were Sister Veronica Mary and Sister Amata Filia from the Sisters of Life, a New York-based religious order founded, in part, to assist women with crisis pregnancies. They spoke on being made in the image and likeness of God and protecting every life that he creates.
The sisters usually attend the March for Life in Washington, D.C., but this year opted for a sunny walk instead of a snowy one.
The nuns were in Hawaii for 10 days attending events like the Red Mass, a deacon ordination, the Mass for the cause of Joseph Dutton, and the March for Life. They also made a trip to Kalaupapa.
Their first reaction to Hawaii was that they were overwhelmed with how welcoming everyone was.
“The pro-life community is as solid as anywhere else in the country,” said Sister Veronica Mary. “We just see a lot of hope here, and there’s a lot of fire. And I’m thinking, wow, you got the saints behind you here. You got two and a half saints!”
The Sisters of Life are known for their outpouring of love on those facing crisis pregnancies and those seeking to heal from their abortions. Their work involves “serving women who are vulnerable to abortion and giving them support and resources to choose life for themselves and their children.”
A crowd listens to a presenter at the 2024 March for Life at the State Capitol Jan. 19. (HCH photo | Jennifer Rector)
They hope this won’t be their last visit to Hawaii.
“God is in charge here. There is a lot of life here, a lot of love here, and we encountered it. We love it. We hope to be back next year,” said Sister Veronica Mary.
For more information on the Sisters of Life visit sistersoflife.org.
The March for Life Rally was one of a series of pro-life events in Hawaii that kicked off on Jan. 12 at St. Elizabeth’s Church in Aiea with a talk by Father Shenan Bouquet from Human Life International.
The Sisters of Life also gave presentations at St. Elizabeth Church and at St. Stephen Church in Nuuanu.
Sister Amata Filia Dierschke and Sister Veronica Mary Sullivan of the Sisters of Life based in New York speak at the Hawaii March for Life Jan. 19. (HCH photo | Jennifer Rector)
On Jan.16 there was a “culture of life” presentation at Immaculate Conception Church on Kauai by Deacon Gary Streff and his wife Valerie, co-directors of the diocesan Respect Life Office.
There was also a March for Life opening Mass at the Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa on Jan. 18.
The pro-life activities do not stop there. All year round the Respect Life Office and other ministries across the Diocese of Honolulu work to help mothers through their pregnancies by offering support and resources. For more information about the Respect Life Office visit www.catholichawaii.org/diocesan-offices/respect-life.
There is also help for those seeking healing from an abortion through Rachel’s Vineyard. Go to www.catholichawaii.org/diocesan-offices/respect-life/pastoral-care/rachels-vineyard-ministry.
