Waxahachie Council 8417 Presents Hike for Life 2021 Checks to 3 Ellis County Pro-Life Ministries

On Friday, January 21, 2022, St. Joseph Council 8417 held a ceremony at the FirstLook Pregnancy Center in Waxahachie to donate checks totaling over $17,000 raised by the 2021 Hike for Life held in Waxahachie on October 2, 2021.Grand Knight Jason Anglen and Pro-Life Director Hugh Reynolds presented the checks to the following three Pro-Life Ministries:

• Parish Pro-Life Group, St. Joseph Catholic Parish, Waxahachie
• Project Gabriel, St. Joseph Catholic Parish, Waxahachie
• FirstLook Pregnancy Center in Waxahachie

The St. Joseph’s Parish Pro-Life Group has been active for many years in a variety of efforts to promote the Sanctity of Life in both our parish and the Waxahachie community.Coordinator Georgia Fitzhugh and her late husband Greg, have led many Pro-Life classes, activities, and prayer vigils.Most notably, they have maintained the parish Mary Garden, where parents, family and friends can sit and quietly remember unborn infants who have died. This sacred burial space is dedicated to the belief that unborn children are human lives and souls who are created and loved by God.

St. Joseph’s Project Gabriel is part of a nationwide parish-based ministry providing assistance to mothers facing unexpected pregnancies, especially those who may be considering abortion. Project Gabriel is one of nine Pro-Life ministries offering assistance and education to expectant and new mothers under leadership of the Catholic Pro-Life Community of Dallas.A woman who calling the phone number 972-BABY-DUE will put the caller in touch with Project Gabriel at the parish level.

FirstLook Pregnancy Center is the only Pro-Life Pregnancy Care Center in Ellis County. FirstLook's mission “is to lead Ellis County to embrace Life by promoting best sexual health practices and providing family support in the name of Jesus Christ." The staff and volunteers provide free medical, material, educational, and spiritual support to mothers, fathers, and their pre-born children. In 2019, Waxahachie Council 8417 donated funds from the Hike for Life, plus matching funds from the KC Ultrasound Initiative, to provide FirstLook with a new $26,000 ultrasound machine. This year, Hike funds are providing over $13,000 to fund ultrasound training for FirstLook’s nurses.Armed with the power of the ultrasound, mothers can actually see the miracle of the new life growing within them.