Dear Friends of Life,

I have some wonderful news to share!

Your prayers and the work of one of our volunteers have saved the lives of twin girls.

That’s right – we can augment by two the number of babies saved by our efforts to end abortion.

I received this good news a fortnight ago. Invited to St-Joseph’s Oratory for an afternoon of prayer, I met Doris, one of the many faithful prayer warriors who attend our twice annual 40 Days for Life prayer vigil for the end of abortion.

Yet, her devotion does not end there. She also brings to her church our promotional material such as the prayer card entitled “Prayer for the End of Abortion,” placing it in a common area.

Not long ago, she told me, she had met a mom with a pair of twin at her church. The conversation turned to the pro-life material and on learning that Doris was the one responsible for having placed it, the mother thanked her profusely. On asking why, Doris learned the rest of the story.

One day, the mother, pregnant but ignorant that she was carrying twins, had a harrowing experience with her physician. Upon examination, the doctor, for various reasons, had advised her that she should abort.

Deeply saddened and not knowing quite what to do, she came across the material that Doris had left inside the church. Bolstered by what she read, she resolved then and there to carry through with the pregnancy, delighting even more so on learning that she was carrying twin girls.

Today mother and daughters are healthy and happy. Praise be to God!

This increases to five the number of babies saved during the Montreal 40 days for life prayer vigils.

(We believe that the number is greater as many women who have decided to keep their child after seeing us pray daily across the street from the Morgentaler abortion mill on Saint Joseph Blvd. East, do not slip us a word.)

Returning to Doris’ deed, I find this shows how our affirming gestures, however little these may be, can promote a culture of life.

Here’s another story about the big impact of small gestures. For some time now, Charlotte, one of our regular prayer volunteers, proudly wears the “Precious Feet” lapel pin - an exact replica of the size of the feet of a ten-week old unborn child. One day she gives hers to an acquaintance who took a fancy to it. In turn this woman was asked by a young woman about the pin she was wearing. On hearing what it was, the young lady exclaimed: “You mean to tell me that those are the actual size of the feet of my unborn child?!” At which point she renounced thoughts of aborting her child, something she was considering. Today little Samuel is the delight of many.

Small gestures – leaving leaflets at the back of a church, wearing a precious feet lapel pin, among others, are important.

God is calling each of us to participate in one way or another to build his kingdom of love. At the Quebec Life Coalition, I am privileged to hear these stories.

Thank you for supporting us both financially and through prayer in this endeavour.

For Life!

Brian Jenkins, Outreach Coordinator, Quebec Life Coalition

Dear Friends of Life,

I would like to begin by thanking you for your on-going support - both in prayer and financially, of this pro-life work, particularly to those who responded to QLC President Georges Buscemi’s urgent appeal of this past month. Your donations have allowed us to maintain our current staffing levels, and for this we are grateful.

Earlier this month, I experienced the proverbial “Day that I will long be remembered,” a day filled with experiences typical of why we at the Quebec Life Coalition exist.

In reverse chronological order, I would like to share these with you. First, in late afternoon I learned that Bill 52, the so called “Medical aid in dying” legislation became law. MNAs voted 96-22 in favour of permitting physicians and medical staff, for the task will befall the nurses whom the doctors will ultimately coerce, to euthanize our fellow citizens.

We had laboured long with other groups both within and outside of Quebec to thwart the bill’s passage. In February of this year, we had won a minor victory as an election call had gutted its implementation. Yet the new legislature picked up where the old left off. We will continue to fight!

Earlier that same day, I was at Montreal’s Jewish General Hospital witnessing another drama in this battle for life, one involving life at its earliest stage. In the pediatric wing, I sat in wonder as technician and doctor performed an ultrasound on a five-month pregnant friend. For thirty minutes, I watched spellbound the unborn child resting in the mother’s womb.

Yet, during this scene of nascent life, death’s shadows crept in on two occasions. First, as the medical staff cautiously used its instruments to examine the child, mother and father asked whether the child was “perfect’” if there were any signs of trisomy.

On hearing this, I felt uncomfortable, wondering silently “What if there are? and “Does it matter?”

The technician’s response was negative, but had it come back Yes, what would be the child’s fate? Would it be loved?

No sooner had I gained some modicum of composure that I was startled a second time.

The staff adroitly moved the sonic probe over my friend’s abdomen gradually revealing on the video monitor the clitoral lips: it’s a girl.

The joy was obviously subdued. Mother said that she had hoped for a boy yet quickly reconciled herself. Father, on the other hand, remained unreconciled; His displeasure was palpable. Eventually, he asked “Could you be wrong?” His sullenness remained as we left the hospital and walked along Côte-des-Neiges, until we parted company.

Our expectations about life and how fragile it is were more evident from an experience earlier in the day. I had traveled to the hospital from the Morgentaler mill on Saint Joseph Blvd. There I had witnessed upwards to a dozen young ladies enter the building during my hour-long prayer vigil. That is, a dozen terminations of life over a sixty minute period in a mill open 8 hours per day, 5 days per week.

Is the battle to form a civilization of love a losing one? Amid these victories of death, you’d think so.

Yet, a different answer emerges from an event earlier on the same day. I began this day, as every other one, with the Eucharist. Here, I participate in the greatest act of sacrifice done anywhere by anyone, for all time. I witness the ultimate sign of victory, victory of life over death, of love over hate.

I then carry this victory with me and share it with those whom I meet.

Regardless of the arrival of euthanasia legislation, of the visceral reactions of parents, of the tens of women who present themselves daily at the Morgentaler mill, Christ has shown us the way to victory, to our salvation.

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 1 Cor 15:55

Once again, thank you for your on-going support - both in prayer and financially, of our pro-life efforts on behalf of the unborn and the vulnerable.

Yours respectfully,

Brian Jenkins,

Outreach Coordinator, Quebec Life Coalition

Dear Friends of Life,

What kind of prayer warrior are you?

Pictured below are three important warriors participating on a daily basis in the prayer vigil for the end of abortion – the 40 Days for Life.

We see John, Charlotte (seated) and Sr. Leah. Each represents a different and essential component of the team praying outside the Morgentaler abortion mill on Saint-Joseph Blvd.

John shows up three times each day. First, he arrives at about 8:30 a.m. and immediately dons two signs about his neck and proceeds to pace along the sidewalk for up to forty-five minutes. He returns for a second 45 minute stroll in mid-afternoon and yet another just before closure at 7 p.m. He represents a first type of prayer warrior.

A second type is personified by Charlotte. Less peripatetic than John, she comes at the beginning of each day, seating herself, keeping a firm hand on the vigil banner and providing a joyful banter to one and all. She spends a few hours at the site before heading out, though when called upon, longer.

Yet, a third type of warrior is Sister Leah. Member of a local Franciscan community of sisters whose convent is nearby, she spends much of her time in the community’s chapel praying before the Blessed Sacrament. Like John, she enjoys her walks and so visits those of us at the vigil a couple of times each day, offering words of encouragement. She also provides me with a daily bowl of warm soup.

So, what kind of prayer warrior are you?

I suspect that you are your own personal and unique type.

We are unique one from the other. Every child knit in his mother’s womb represents something intrinsically new and never to be replicated. As this child grows and develops, such is done in a never seen way, before or ever after.

How this child matures in his or her relationship with God is unique as well. Whether a John, a Charlotte, or a Leah, we all will blossom at our rate as along as we remain open to God’s will for us on a daily basis.

I have seen as much during this and past vigils. Yesterday, for example, Qui’An came to join me at the vigil location, bringing along a devotion that I had never seen before – the chaplet of Saint Gertrude. For the next thirty minutes she coached me through its recitation. I considered this blessing.

I’ve been graced with the same from others. Here’s a sampling:

• Margarida: Devotion to the Sorrows of Mary
• Maria Pilar: Way of the Cross
• Andre: Chaplet of the Precious Blood
• Carole: Chaplet of Rosa Mystica The graces are flowing.

On a Thursday mid-afternoon, I was approached by a young woman. She told me that she had made the momentous decision to keep her baby. She was scheduled that afternoon to abort her eleven week old unborn child at the Morgentaler mill but instead had a change of heart. She got up, left,and crossed the street to tell me about her decision. May God be praised.

The results of our prayers are not always as tangible. Yet in faith we continue to ask God to heed us.

So, what kind of prayer warrior? Let me know.

Until then, thank you for your on-going support of our ministry, both in prayer and financially. It helps to promote values important for our society and to come to aid in a very concrete manner, outside an abortion mill in a very impious sector of Montreal.

Wishing one and all a Blessed Easter,

Brian A. Jenkins, Outreach Coordinator

Dear Friends of Life,

Blessed Lenten greetings to you and your loved ones.

Prayer, fasting and almsgiving are integral elements to our Lenten observance. Dare I suggest two more: advocacy and education.

ADVOCACY - I wish to encourage you, during Lent, to acts of advocacy against an all too long provincial governmental practice of funding abortions In this mail out you will find three inserts aiding to this end.

First you will find a poster. This may be conspicuously placed so to inform your neighbours about this hideous policy.

Second, you will also find a defund abortion letter. Addressed to the provincial finance minister, we invite you to read, sign, and mail it to the Honourable Mr. Nicolas Marceau expressing your disagreement with governmental paid in full abortions.

Finally, also included herewith is a petition for you to invite friends, family, and like-minded persons to sign. Mailing this will also strengthen our position.

Remember, a unified voice has clout. No better example of this is the recent interruption of the euthanasia legislation, bill 52 – also known as Medical Aid In Dying. A vocal, unified front of physicians, non-professionals, disabled person groups, and others, both within and outside Québec, expressing disapproval for this piece of law-to-be thwarted its acceptance in the National Assembly.

(Another Lenten deed you may wish to get involved with is the April 10, 2014, day of protest. Whether meeting with your MNA on that date or gathering outside his or her local riding office, it is important to bring you our opposition to this unconscionable practice of funding abortions.

EDUCATION - In addition to advocacy, we also believe that education is fundamental to rid the blinders that are obscuring Quebecers about the harm of abortion.

To this end, we are making available a small yet powerful little booklet entitled “Sharing the Pro-Life Message.” Though published in the US and containing many facts and figures from south of the border, the booklet is helpful, nevertheless for us as it touches on generic information about the pro-life movement such as how to share the message, life in the womb, addressing pro-choice arguments, among others.

With a small financial gift, I would be delighted to mail one to you.

A second educational tool is our yearly congress.

In 2010, the Quebec City congress garnered much media attention and brought much attention to our work. Our invited guest then prelate of Quebec City, Mgr. Marc Ouellet, spoke powerfully about the sanctity of life in the womb and the inherent harm of abortion, irking the sensitivities of many within the culture of death, particularly the media.

Likewise our 2012 congress in Sherbrooke, Qc, did not go unnoticed either. Occurring during the “printemps érable” period, many disenfranchised college age youth attempted to disrupt the proceedings but were met with vigilante congress attendees, thwarting their plans.

This fall, as the leaves turn into their fabulous hues, we will meet once again and discuss how to bring colour back to the pallor that characterises much of Quebec culture. The theme remains to be determined, yet our speakers will undoubtedly discuss such topics as: abortion defunding, obstructing the euthanasia agenda, the education of our youth, among others.

There you have it: advocacy and education, two bulwarks that we at the Quebec Life Coalition foster in our efforts to maintain the values on which our province was founded and which today have been deemed “passé” by Quebec’s intelligentsia.

Thank you for your on-going support in these and other projects and have a blessed Lenten period.

For life,

Brian A. Jenkins, Outreach Coordinator

Dear Friends of Life,

I trust this letter finds you and your loved ones well.

At this time of year, we are moving along with various projects – welcoming guest speakers to Montreal, coordinating the 40 days prayer vigil for the end of abortion, planning the Triduum for Life including the day trip to the National March for Life in Ottawa, and more. See this month’s bulletin and subsequent ones as well as our web site for on-going details.

There is also an all new initiative, one closely aligned with our organization’s political aim, one which has taken root elsewhere across the country -  the defunding of abortions from our provincial financed health care system.

Yes, abortion on demand is covered by our tax dollars.

• FACT: Quebec taxpayers fund at least $26 million every year for the killing of children in the womb.
• FACT: There is a shortage of family doctors and nurses, and funding for elder care and for treating autistic children sorely lacking.
• FACT: Abortion is an elective procedure that is not medically necessary.
• FACT: Over 96% of abortions are performed for convenience, as a back-up birth control method.

$26 million is a conservative figure. This past December the deVerber Institute in Toronto published a scientifically rigorous examination of the impact of abortion on women’s health. Its findings show how abortion adversely impacts physical health, both immediate and long term, contributes to intimate partner violence, and more.

$26 million is a conservative figure, representing only the direct costs. The TRUE cost rises significantly when accounting for the indirect charges due to abortion’s complications. These latter, as per the deVerber study, include breast cancer, infertility, autoimmune disease, mental health, and more.

So, figuring in both the direct and indirect costs, the TRUE price tag of abortion from these complications easily drains our health care system of upwards to $100 million annually!

Are you ok with that?

Also, the business school at the Université de Montréal came out with its annual evaluation of Québec’s productivity and prosperity and the conclusions were not good. The bottom line stated that we are living well above our means. Many of us believed as much, yet to have the prestigious École des Hautes Études Commerciales de Montréal corroborate our intuition is affirming.

Is it not time for Quebec legislators to treat our money with respect!

To use our funds for Health Care and not some medically unnecessary procedure - i.e., abortion?

The cash windfall from defunding abortion can either be used to spruce up our ailing health care system. For $26 million per year, Quebec could hire 138 family doctors or 360 nurses to help alleviate the shortage crisis. Or purchase 17 life-saving MRI machines every year. Or provide crucial therapy to 328 autistic children each year. All theese uses of taxpayer dollars would present genuine health care… rather than killing babies.

It’s one thing for an individual to make a personal choice to kill a baby in the womb. It’s quite another to expect the rest of us to pay for it.

So we urge everybody to join us on Monday, February 17, 2014, outside the CLSC des Faubourgs, 1250 Sanguinet Street, (between ste. Catherine and René-Levesque), site of late-term abortions in Québec, at 11 a.m. to inaugurate this defund campaign.

For life,

Brian A. Jenkins, Outreach Coordinator

Dear Friends of Life,

Blessed New Year greetings!

At this time of year, I become nostalgic, reminiscing about the past twelve months, the fond moments, the difficult trials of our pro-life ministry, so as to plan for the year ahead.

Here are a few moments that made 2013 memorable.

First, among the fondness of memories was your participation in the National March for Life in Ottawa, in early May. We needed to charter three buses for the day trip; that is, two more than in the previous years. Also, one of these traveled all the way from Quebec City!

Also vividly etched in my memories of 2013 was our annual Triduum for Life, particularly so was the presence of Montreal’s Auxiliary Bishop, Mgr. Thomas Dowd, in a mass and a candlelit Eucharistic procession with many of you outside of the Morgentaler Mill.

Next, in 2013 I was privileged to meet 25 intrepid women, outspoken on their commitment for life and all opposed to abortion, many of whom were post abortive. We met and prayed outside the former Morgentaler mill in East end Montreal, before they walked to Ottawa to attend the March for Life.

2013 also saw the death of Henry Morgentaler. His passing away into eternity was commemorated by a silent candlelight prayer service outside the abortion mill bearing his name on Saint Joseph Blvd., asking our Maker for the repose of his soul, hoping that he had renounced his slaughter of many innocents.

As the attacks on life are not restricted solely to the outset of life, 1700 of us met in Quebec City to denounce the government’s plan to permit the euthanasing of our fellow citizens. We were part of a two-bus convoy from Montreal to our provincial capital to have our voices heard

Finally, in 2013 we coordinated two 40-day prayer vigils for the end of abortion. These symbolize the bridgehead of the culture of life in our society rampant with attacks against life and our families.

The Frailty of Human Life

The most significant events of the year for me were our support of women and the life which they carry within them – the unborn child.

In 2013, I was blessed by three women in particular.

First, on March 15, Théofil was born. His mom had left the Morgentaler abortion mill the previous October and crossed the street to seek our help. Over the ensuing months, through varying trials, mother chose life for her child and on the fateful day, a boy was born.

The second woman I met, over the summer months, also chose life for her unborn child, though the situation was precarious. Having had two abortions in her early life and caring for three preterms – a 6 year old, a 2 year old, and a six-month infant, she had thought of aborting her latest. Circumstances proved otherwise and in early September she saw the fruit of labours – a little baby girl.

The third woman I met was also within the grasp of the abortionist. I met her as she left the abortion mill, seventeen-weeks pregnant with her second child. She was thinking of aborting so as to solve a difficult life situation.

As the procedure would last two days, I had two further chances to convince her that death is not a solution to the difficulties that come our way. In the end despite our efforts and support, she decided to abort the child.

These three women confirmed how frail and fleeting life can be. I saw this when I visited the preterm shortly after her birth and again when I saw the third mother leave the clinic the day she had aborted her 17-week-old.

With this new sensitivity, I pray that these latter experiences of 2013 may foster within all of us at Quebec Life Coalition and all our supporters greater resourcefulness and perseverance to be supportive of women to choose life for their unborn children

For life,

Brian A. Jenkins, Outreach Coordinator

P. S. Congratulations are in order to the women who gave birth this past 2013, particularly those of whom join us in our ministry - Natalia, Maria del Pilar, Michele, and Monica.

Blessed Advent greetings to you!

First I wish to thank you for your continued support of our ministry both spiritually and financially. It is a source of comfort to have you consistently respond to our appeals. Please accept my heartfelt thanks and my apologies if we have ever been unable to extend our appreciation to you more readily. Though we may not have responded to your letters or emails, we do read them all.

Also, you will notice with this mail-out that there are changes in our image, in our approach. We believe that this will make us more persuasive and more effective when it comes to winning hearts and minds to our cause of protecting innocent human life. I am pleased to present you these three changes that will permit the Quebec Life Coalition to radiate more brilliantly in Quebec with the light of truth.

First we have a new logo. It may look familiar to many of you. It is inspired from a photo, frequently known as the “precious feet,” that has resonated with many in the pro-life movement. This photo, seen here, is of the feet of a small unborn child at 10 weeks gestation.

Also, our new logo is reminiscent of a newborn child’s footprint, occasionally taken right after birth. These feet represent humanity in all its fragility, and the circle about it suggests a nest or protective barrier for this vulnerable life.

Our second change is our newly designed website – i.e., CQV.QC.CA.

You cannot fathom the dramatic growth of our web site since its inception. For example, in 2009, the site hosted on average a hundred visits a day for a total of two to three thousand per month. Today, through the first 28 days of November, it has been visited an amazing 54,000 times from around the world – i.e., an average of 1,900 per day! This means that our message is spreading across Canada and the world. (Our website has recently been redesigned - see picture, and will shortly reflect this change.)

Our third change is the most important one. We have a new slogan that reflects more clearly the totality of the human person to be loved and protected. We are advocating “Respect for the human person - body and soul - from conception to natural death.” Yes, it is both the body AND the soul that we are affirming in all and any moral or ethical reasoning. In fact, our new brochure (which we will publish shortly) describes the work of Quebec Life Coalition as follows:

Respect for the human person in its entirety, whether moral or ethical, is founded on respect for the Divine person, known under the name of “God.” For without God, our immortal soul and the associated free will that He gives us, the human person is reduced to but a pile of material to be appropriated and/or discarded at will. All, therefore, have a duty to deepen their knowledge of God, His commandments and His love-filled plan for life and the family.

So we are pointing out the root problem that without God, the human person becomes a mere “clump of cells,” which each may use for his or her own ends. On the other hand, if each person is of inestimable value, it can only be because he or she has been created and loved by God.

For Life,

 
Brian A. Jenkins, Outreach Coordinator

P. S. Please help spread the message of the “precious feet,” by using the complimentary return address stickers inscribed with our new logo.

Dear friends of life,

I trust you have had time to catch your breath!

I have and so am writing to thank you for your support during this past 40 Days for Life prayer vigil for the end of abortion!

From everybody here at the Quebec Life Coalition, a very sincere thank you for participating in this prayer vigil.

You experienced a lot. First, the weather was capricious. For the first four weeks, all was balmy, idyllic in many respects. Yet week five presented an entirely different face - steady rain and strong winds. In particular, the Thursday was a combination of the two while the Friday, no rain but VERY strong winds. Thanks to the herculean efforts and cunning of many, our banner was kept from soaring away and its message prevailed – “Pray for the End of Abortion.”

Also your psychological mettle was tested in a couple of ways. First, on the eve of the vigil we were surprised to find the vigil location entirely inaccessible - a six-foot high fence stretched around its perimeter. The municipality had decided to begin park renovations that very day! Yet Divine Providence provided a new location, one which I think afforded new graces.

The second test came about from this new location. Not only were we closer to the pedestrian and other traffic (facilitating exchanges) but also to the clientele of the abortion mill. Many of you shared with me your malaise about seeing the girls enter and leave the mill, particularly the latter. Some of these young women showed obvious after effects as they walked away.

A case in point was Jessica, a young woman in her early twenties and 17-weeks pregnant, keen on carrying through with her abortion.

Was God’s hand working to save mother and child? Through various circumstances, I thought so as she met with us not once but four times prior to her abortion! We had ample opportunity to share the pro-life message as well as offer support – legal, material ... Yet, she was unswayed by our efforts to convince her to carry her unborn child for the full term.

Even the day of the abortion, accompanied by her mother, she came by our site and then accompanied two of us to a coffee shop. Our last minute plea of support fell on deaf ears.

She even dropped by after her procedure. At this time, I was struck by the change I saw in her temperament. Her initial simple disposition was usurped by an impatient, unsettled one. Please keep her in your prayers as she deals with her post-abortion turmoil.

This event contrasts quite distinctly with a similar scenario that occurred the previous fall. At this time, Floriane left the abortion mill and crossed the street to seek our help. It was a blessing befriending her and the child’s father. Our actions were rewarded this past March 18 as she gave birth to little Lucas, seen here with one of our prayer volunteers.

Those of you who've walked and prayed along Saint Joseph Blvd., and those of you who participated in your own ways elsewhere, have gained some powerful experiences over the past seven weeks. Hours of praying, fasting, counselling, and discussing with persons opposed to the pro-life message have all contributed to an faith enriching experience.

So, thank you for without you, there would be no 40 Days for Life.

For life,

Brian A. Jenkins

Outreach Coordinator

Quebec Life Coalition

Dear Friends of Life,

September 2013 is shaping up to be a busy month.

Bill 52, the charter of values, and our 40 Days for Life prayer vigil for the end of abortion will keep us busy battling the forces that seek to tear our society asunder.

The legislative initiative, Bill 52 – “An Act respecting end-of-life care,” was tabled this past June 12, 2013, in the National Assembly. This bill will permit the euthanizing of Quebecers under the auspices of “end of life health care.”

Ten Reasons to Oppose Bill 52

Many professional bodies have stated their opposition to euthanasia. The World Medical Association, the American Medical Association and the Canadian Medical Association, as well as fifteen (15) states and international organizations, like the European Human Rights Commission, are all categorically against euthanasia and assisted suicide.

Why might that be?

Isabelle & Ward O’Connor of the palliative care group Albatros Mont- Laurier note ten reasons to oppose bill 52. These are the following:

1. States should never have the right or the power to induce the death of their citizens: It is far too great and dangerous a power to concede to them;
2. Provoking death dehumanizes care givers;
3. Inducing death depersonalises patients, debasing them to the level of things, machines, or animals;
4. Induced death fosters the mentality that “dignity depends on autonomy”;
5. Manipulated, substituted, imposed, or presumed consent threatens the elderly, the sick, the physically or mentally handicapped and the otherwise weak and vulnerable;
6. Induced death is the polar opposite of palliative care, and therefore at odds, and competing with, palliative care;
7. Once the door is open to “medically assisted dying”, even ever so slightly, the categories of people who become candidates for euthanasia never cease to increase;
8. Euthanasia is unnecessary, as the right to refuse treatment is now entrenched in legal precedent;
9. It is preferable to invest in hope rather than in despair;
10. Dangerous confusion still lingers on concerning what constitutes euthanasia and what does not.

As for the charter of values, which the provincial government seeks to formulate and implement, it aims at violating the right to wear religious symbols. Affecting persons working in the civil service, educational institutions, and health care settings, the legislation is misguided as it will undermine values that form the foundation of society – religious expression.

Finally, the 40 Days for Life prayer vigil for the end of abortion is about to begin its tenth peaceful edition here in Montreal this September 25, 2013. The setting for this public gathering remains unchanged: the Morgentaler mill on Saint-Joseph Blvd, East. Join us in prayer and to express your opposition to how the lowliest of our society, the unborn child, is treated and how women are exploited by this so-called “right.”

On this latter matter, we need persons of strong faith willing to peacefully express themselves by their presence for one-hour blocks of time, in the spirit of Christ’s words to his apostles – “could you not watch one hour?” We can be reached by calling either (514) 344-2686 or (438) 930-8643.

Yours Respectfully,

Brian A. Jenkins

Outreach Coordinator

Complimentary Quebec Life Coalition Air Miles card

Now available!

The Quebec Life Coalition proudly presents its Air Miles card, available free of charge.

Every time you use it, points will accumulate permitting us to save on travel expenditures.

These points may be redeemed for purchasing airline tickets – either for our own use or that of an invited guest.

A partial list of participating vendors appears below.

To receive your card, simply tick the square on the response stub and return it to us or call us at 1-855-996-2686 and we will gladly mail you one!

Dear Friends of Life,

I trust you and your loved ones are enjoying this blessed summer.

It is a blessed summer, magnificent in its splendour. The weather, the fresh produce, the time for solitary walks, gatherings with friends and family, all contribute to making this season memorable. The harshness of winter and spring has rapidly been forgotten.

We at the Quebec Life Coalition are enjoying this time of year as well and doing so in a pro-life manner.

Our summer fundraiser exceeded our expectations, surpassing the goal we had established. Thank you for believing in our efforts and in the manner by which we are working to rid our society of the scourge of abortion. At the end of this letter, I share more concrete details about the fundraiser.

In terms of pro-life activities, our efforts reflect the tenor of the season – welcoming pilgrims and an outdoor social.

The pilgrims we are welcoming are the Crossroads Walkers. This is a group of college-age men and women who decided to spend their summer walking across our country for the cause of life. Six women and three men left Vancouver this past May and ever since have been slowly making their way eastward on foot. They will end their trek in Ottawa on August 9th. By the end of their walk, they will have travelled close to 6000 km.

This weekend they will be our guests here in Montreal. This will be the third consecutive year that we have hosted them. It begins this evening at Saint-Sylvain parish. The parish`s pro-life group has invited them to partake of their once per month gathering – adoration and mass.

On Saturday, their schedule will take them around town. They begin the day visiting Saint Joseph Oratory for Mass and taking in some of the sights. Afterwards they will walk to the Morgentaler mill via the Mont-Royal cross. On arriving at the mill, time with be spent in silent prayer followed by a picnic in Lahaie Park.

A brief period of free time follows the picnic after which the nine will split up in order to visit different faith communities. Six churches have opened their doors to them while here and these will get to her the group share what it has been like walking across our country. These talks will be given both Saturday evening and Sunday morning.

Once the speaking engagements are over on Sunday, more free-time is available to them. They can visit the shrines on and off the island or just laze around. Monday will then have arrived and before we know it they are leaving for Ste. Anne de Beaupré shrine outside Quebec City.

The outdoor social I noted above concerns yet another activity that we at the Quebec Life Coalition have integrated in our summers – our annual corn roast. This third edition of the outdoor classic will be held on the grounds of St-Émile church - 3330 rue Rivier, Montreal. Last year, under sunny skies, upwards of fifty people attended the afternoon event of corn and conversation.

This year we have added something new – an invited speaker. Father René Larochelle will provide some intellectual substance to accompany the material substance. The corn will be ready for serving at noon and the talk will begin at 2 p.m. and will last about an hour.

Finally, an activity not noted above but one that goes without saying is prayer. We know that the battles for establishing and fostering a culture of life are on-going even during the leisure months of summer. It is important to give thanks to God for the countless blessings he showers upon us and ask for his on-going support in our daily work.

Particularly important is the battle for life in regards to Bill 52, the provincial government’s euthanasia legislation. Little seems to be preventing it from becoming law of the land. Yet as believers we know that there is an even greater power than that of the men and women in our legislative houses who decide upon the outcome of this legislation.

Yours Respectfully,

Brian A. Jenkins

Outreach Coordinator

Quebec Life Coalition

p.s. As noted above, we are particularly buoyed by your response both materially and in prayer for the work we are doing. Many of you have been inspired to participate in our summer fundraiser to pledge in an unprecedented manner. Several became monthly donors. Others contributed substantial one-time amounts. I am deeply heartened by these responses. We had fixed our goal at $8500 and at month’s end, about $9500 has been received, representing over 110% response! Thank you.