Home | Join/Donate | Current Voices | Liturgical Calendar | What's New | Affirmation | James Hitchcock's Column | Church Documents | Search

---

Voices Online Edition
Vol. XVIII: No. 3 - Michaelmas 2003

Rockford Revival
We've recently heard from a Woman for Faith & Family member in the Rockford, Illinois area who is interested in putting together a local WFF chapter. If you are interested in joining with her in this effort, contact Janet Froula at 630-762-8162 or write to her at:

262 Pleasant Plains Dr
Saint Charles, IL 60175-1090

---

Missouri Pro-Life Groups Demonstrate at Capitol
In response to recent action by Missouri Governor Bob Holden, pro-life groups geared up to demonstrate at the state capitol on September 10. Missouri House Bill 156, the "Women's Right to Know Act", would have prohibited a person from performing or inducing an abortion unless the physician had first met with the patient and discussed the indicators and contra-indicators of the abortion. HB 156 passed with a large majority (122 to 35 in the House, 23 to 6 in the Senate). Governor Holden vetoed the bill. He also completely cut all funding to the state's Alternatives to Abortion program -- a program that assists women in Missouri who are experiencing crisis pregnancies and would choose to maintain their pregnancy if provided with needed support. Support includes counseling, and assistance with health, housing, and transportation difficulties. (See WFF's letter to Governor Holden on this program below).

---

WFF Urges Missouri Governor to Fund Alternatives to Abortion Program
Below is the is the text of the letter that Women for Faith & Family sent to Missouri Governor Bob Holden to urge him to restore funding to the state's Alternatives to Abortion program (see story above.)

August 27, 2003
Dear Governor Holden:
Our organization represents thousands of Catholic women in Missouri on issues that affect their lives as women, wives, and mothers.

We urge you to restore the funding for the Alternatives to Abortion program. Without this funding, the State of Missouri will negatively impact the ability of women of low income to have healthy pregnancies and healthy children.

This program assists Missouri women who experience crisis pregnancies and who would choose to maintain their pregnancy if the support they need were provided. We understand that through this program the Department of Health contracts with a coalition of faith-based providers across the state to offer needed services to these women.

Most of the women served by this program have an annual income of less than $9,000. Many of these women have had high-risk pregnancies and, despite the odds against them, gave birth to healthy babies with this program's support. These are real women who depend upon the services that the Alternatives to Abortion program provides.

We know that you are committed to the health and safety of all Missourians. We hope you will continue to implement Missouri's long-standing policy of preferring healthy childbirth to abortion.

We strongly urge you to restore the funding for the Alternatives to Abortion Program.

Sincerely,
Helen Hull Hitchcock
Executive Director, Women for Faith & Family

---

Liturgical Calendar
If you haven't visited our web site and our interactive Liturgical Calendar -- or if it's been a while since you've visited, why not "surf" on over? We are constantly updating and adding new pages and more information -- along with readings for the day and prayers. You will find links on some of the feast days to help you celebrate with your family.

If you have traditions, customs, ideas or suggestions for celebrating feasts and seasons of the liturgical year we invite your contribution. Please e-mail them to us or write: Women for Faith & Family - ATTN: Gina, PO Box 300411, St. Louis, MO 63130.

Come to the Liturgical Calendar to take a look.

---

Correction:
In our Pentecost issue, we mis-identified the religious order of "Edith Stein and the Contemplative Vocation" author Sister Joan Gormley. Here's the scoop from Sister Joan herself: "The Sisters of St. Mary of Washington came to an end some time ago. I was consecrated by one of the bishops in Baltimore and am currently living with the Daughters of Charity in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Though I am not a member of that community, I participate in one of their local communities to the extent that is possible, given my own commitment in the Order of the Consecrated Virgins and my commitment at Mt. St. Mary's Seminary".

So now you know.

---

**Women for Faith & Family operates solely on your generous donations!

WFF is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Donations are tax deductible.

---

Voices copyright © 1999-Present Women for Faith & Family. All rights reserved.

PERMISSION GUIDELINES

All material on this web site is copyrighted and may not be copied or reproduced without prior written permission from Women for Faith & Family,except as specified below.

Personal use
Permission is granted to download and/or print out articles for personal use only.

Quotations
Brief quotations (ca 500 words) may be made from the material on this site, in accordance with the “fair use” provisions of copyright law, without prior permission. For these quotations proper attribution must be made of author and WFF + URL (i.e., “Women for Faith & Family – www.wf-f.org.)

Attribution
Generally, all signed articles or graphics must also have the permission of the author. If a text does not have an author byline, Women for Faith & Family should be listed as the author. For example: Women for Faith & Family (St Louis: Women for Faith & Family, 2005 + URL)

Link to Women for Faith & Family web site.
Other web sites are welcome to establish links to www.wf-f.org or to individual pages within our site.

---