By Anne Marie Amacher
BETTENDORF — Every child is the image of God, pro-lifers said during a praise and worship event Jan. 22 to mark the 37th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion.
The evening began with recitation of the rosary in the upper-level meeting room of the Women’s Choice Center. Father Steven Loftus, pastor of St. John Parish in Rapids City, Ill., and St. Mary Parish in Hampton, Ill., and a faculty member of Alleman High School in Rock Island, Ill., led the rosary at the pro-life center, which is located across the street from Planned Parenthood.
More than 60 people recited the rosary, before walking up the drive to Heritage Church for a continuation of the program. The drive was lined with luminaries to remember those who have been aborted.
Vicki Tyler, executive director of the Women’s Choice Center, welcomed more than 325 people who attended the praise and worship service. On behalf of Life and Family Education Trust, which operates the center, she said “the body of Christ comes together to remember the Roe v. Wade decision.”
For those who were 37 years old or younger, she told them they had survived because their parents chose life. “Now we stand together for the sanctity of life.”
Bettendorf Christian Church’s praise team led the music for the service. Members of the Good News Center dance team from Davenport performed a dance at the end of the program.
A video titled “We Are His Masterpiece” was shown.
From there, participants walked down the hill to the front of the Women’s Choice Center where pastors of different churches led prayer for the end to abortion and for healing.
