Young,
committed and pro-life
By NADIA MARIA SMITH
CS&T Staff Writer
Jessica Bayer was only 10 years old when she saw a young, vibrant, pro-life
woman who would influence what she decided to do with the rest of her
life.
That woman was Kim Savage, the former director of Generation Life, a nonprofit
organization of young adults that spreads the chastity and pro-life message.
“She was so passionate — I was completely enthralled by her,”
recalled Bayer, who is now 22. “There were these pro-abortion women
standing across the street, holding up signs, and she was yelling to them,
saying, ‘Our generation isn’t going to be ‘Generation
X.’ We are not going to be a generation of death. We are Generation
Life.’ That was when I realized I wanted to do this more than just
at a rally.”
When it came time to decide what she would major in at Temple University,
Bayer decided she wanted to go into social work in order to be able to
run a crisis pregnancy center one day.
“I wanted to be one of those people who could pull the women in
and treat them with compassion,” Bayer said. “We need the
lawmakers to make changes in the law, but we also need women to reach
those women on an individual level, to love them and be able to talk to
them and listen.”
Now Bayer, a member of St. Agnes Parish in West Chester, is about to start
her dream job. She is working in concert with other pro-life advocates
in Bucks County to open a crisis pregnancy center in Bristol. Plans for
it include the provision of counseling services, baby materials, referrals,
and parenting and informational classes.
When the center opens, Bayer believes she will be prepared. She participated
in countless rallies and marches as a student at St. Agnes School and
Bishop Shanahan High School, and was a speaker for Pennsylvanians for
Human Life during her college years. She currently works as a part-time
speaker for Generation Life.
She believes her youthfulness is an asset because most of the individuals
she’ll be serving will be teenagers and young adults.
“Hopefully, they’ll see me as a sister — someone trying
to reach out to her peers,” she said.
The center will be a nonprofit agency, run through donations and volunteers,
and Bayer is also hoping qualified pro-life advocates will donate their
time, money, services or products.
She hopes many volunteers will be young people.
“We are the face of the generation being slaughtered,” she
said. “We didn’t create this mess, but now it is ours. …
We are the ones that can do something about it. It is our time now.”
For more information or to donate call the Pro-Life Union of Southeastern
Pennsylvania at (215) 885-8150.
CS&T staff writer Nadia Maria Smith may be reached at npozo@adphila.org
or (215) 965-4614.