December 12, 2022
Students for Life Action (SFLAction) is honored to work with thousands of motivated, young activists around the nation who are eager to see abortion abolished in their lifetime. Thanks to the hard work of many, we are more equipped to protect life in both law and service.
While we have many amazing students, we want to give a special shout-out for the efforts of these four pro-life activists who made a particular difference this year on their college campuses, attended trainings with SFLAction, canvassed during the elections, and more! Here are their stories:
Kaitlyn Ruch
“I first got involved with Students for Life of America back in 2020 during high school, and Students for Life Action during the 2021 Montana Legislative Session! I attended my first Students for Life training in D.C. in the summer of 2021 and have been able to attend the Pro-Life Summit, as well as the National March for Life!
“I ran in a three-way Republican Primary in June of 2022 and won against two opponents who were both twice my age. I then went onto the General in November and got within 378 votes of a politician who has been in elected office longer than I’ve been alive in a historically blue district. With redistricting just around the corner, I am hopeful that a future run will indeed be possible.
“There are many stories that emphasize how grateful I am to have the opportunity to work in the pro-life movement, but one that recently stands out is from Election Day just a few weeks ago. I was in McDonald’s getting myself and some volunteers some warm coffee after we were waving signs when it was a freezing 4 degrees out, and a gentleman approached me, told me that he proudly voted for me, and then gave me his “I Voted” sticker! It meant the world to see someone unashamedly voting pro-life first!”
(CLICK HERE to read more about Ruch who testified for a pro-life bill at 16-years-old.)
Joseph Hogan
“I serve as the President for Benedictine College’s pro-life club, Ravens Respect Life (RRL). I have been involved in the pro-life mission since my mom would take me to 40 Days for Life outside the St. Louis Planned Parenthood and deliver diapers to our local pregnancy resource centers. No one has impacted and inspired me like my mom.
“I received a whole-hearted conviction for the pro-life movement when I started sidewalk counseling in high school. In college, I became involved in our pro-life club and got in contact with leaders at SFLAction who guided and formed me to become the president of RRL the next year! Over the past year, our club sent three students to the SFLAction Summer Collective, have had several students in Fellowships, and invited our brand new Regional Coordinator Kyle Poen to host an apologetics training and table with us!
“During this election cycle, I found a passion for heart-to-heart dialogue on the topic of abortion, and I was able to knock on around 1,800 doors with Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America for pro-life candidates and over 2,000 doors for the Value Them Both Amendment with SFLAction! The most impactful experience from this year was traveling to UCLA to receive a pro-life apologetics training from Justice for All. I then put my training to work, engaging UCLA students in dialogue about abortion and encountering every imaginable pro-abortion argument and worldview.
“I still remember some powerful conversations I had and the hearts that changed! Our club this year has inspired fantastic participation in the pro-life movement on our campus! We had over 30 students spend their fall break door knocking for pro-life candidates in Georgia, and we implemented improvements and started the conversation on our campus for increasing resources for pregnant and parenting students. I could not be prouder of all the incredible officers and leaders in our club, and I am beyond grateful of those who have poured into me and work so faithfully to save the preborn!”
Emma Rector
“I’m a senior at Winona State University, majoring in both Computer Science and Statistics. I got involved with Students for Life Action about three years ago through Warriors for Life, the campus pro-life club where I’ve also served as secretary for the past two years. I’ve primarily worked on texting campaigns for SFLAction, including sending out over 450,000 texts during the election cycle to encourage people to support their local pro-life candidates.
“One time, I was sending texts about candidates who had not filled out the SFLAction Candidate Survey and actually received a response from one of the candidates! I encouraged her to complete the survey so that we could update our texts and share her pro-life stance with voters. I would encourage others to get involved with our texting campaigns as it’s a really easy way to make a difference across the country.”
Lucy Fitfield
“My group has been able to help our local pregnancy resource centers through fundraising and volunteering throughout the whole year. I have been an officer for our group for four years, and over that time period, I have seen it grow immensely. I am lucky to have been a big part of the recruitment for our group, and as president the last two years, have had the opportunity to help train and develop skills in new pro-lifers.
“This year, I personally spent a lot of time campaigning for local pro-life candidates for Congress and other local positions. I got to help at many political events, canvass neighborhoods with flyers, run tabling events, and more. One of the coolest stories that I have from this year was a total mind-changing conversation I had with a pro-abortion father while door-knocking with SFLAction in Arlington a couple of weeks ago. When my door-knocking partner and I introduced ourselves and gave him our pitch, he was immediately not interested and shot us down, but I persisted in friendly dialogue and by the end of the conversation, he decided he would vote after all and vote pro-life.
“Even cooler than the mind-changing conversations with voters have been the ones with pregnant women while standing outside Planned Parenthood, which my group and I do twice a week. One of my favorite, most encouraging memories will always be seeing a sweet, adorable baby in the arms of two crying parents who told us that they had seen us outside Planned Parenthood on the way into their abortion appointment a year ago and had decided that our presence was a sign from God to not go through with it. That day was a great reminder of the real impact that we can have every day and often without ever realizing it.”