Crowd protests decades-old Supreme Court abortion ruling

Nearly a hundred people gathered together to raise their voices hoping they could somehow traverse the frigid air to warm the hearts of those in charge of the nation's abortion laws last Tuesday in Thompson Falls.

The crowd that assembled in front of the Sanders County Courthouse in near freezing temperature for the Celebration of Life were there to mark the 35th anniversary of the Roe versus Wade Supreme Court ruling that legalized abortion Jan. 22, 1973. Don Gratz, the event's organizer, said the Thompson Falls' celebration was just one of many events being held across the nation that day. "There's marches across the nation. We just wanted to join forces and voices with them," he said.

With the temperature reading 34 degrees Fahrenheit on a nearby bank sign, Gratz, with a megaphone in hand, led the congregation on a nearly half mile march down Main Street to Ferry Street. Bundled in warm clothes and armed with anti-abortion and pro-life signs the crowd stopped traffic as they advanced down the street singing "The Battle Hymn of the Republic."

After the march, Gratz, 67, said that he organized the march to raise "awareness of this terrible tragedy, of the loss of life." "Today is the 35th anniversary of Roe versus Wade … 52 million babies have been aborted in that time, which is 4,000 a day," Gratz said.

To put these numbers in perspective, Gratz used the example of 9/11. He said about 3,000 lives were lost in the attacks Sept. 11, 2001, and everybody views this as a horrible tragedy. "Well, 4,000 infants everyday are destroyed by abortion," he said.

Gratz said this was the first organized pro-life effort held in Thompson Falls on the anniversary of Roe versus Wade. Gratz, a Grand Knight for the Knights of Columbus, said he called churches across the county trying to drum up support. "I made such an effort to make it non-denominational," he said.

Gratz said he was hoping for a large number of supporters, but was still surprised by the amount of people that showed up. He said he saw people from all corners of the county. He said that with such public support, he feels he needs to keep holding the event. "As long as they are still killing our infants, we have to. We have to let our voices be heard," Gratz said.

In Plains, Terrie Woods didn't have the support of a large crowd, yet there she stood holding her pro-life sign, something she has been doing for at least a decade. On Tuesday, Woods said she stood by Railroad Avenue for an hour, in 20-degree weather, holding her sign that read "Cherishing life Blessings from Above."

Although Woods stood out on the street alone, she was representing Blessings From Above, which is a nonprofit, Christian-based pregnancy center that provides emotional and financial support for young mothers. Woods said since she started the center four years ago, her signs have taken a more positive approach.

"I use to be anti-abortion … I call myself pro-life now," Woods said. "Basically, it's the same thing, other than it's not the abortions that drives me. It's the young moms and the life that's inside of them."

Woods, who is a a mother of three, said her signs used to be anti-abortion and more graphic, but now she uses the signs as a positive way to advertise the pregnancy center, located in The Assembly of God Church in Plains. "It's not that my heart was condemning or judging those that had an abortion, but it was those graphic pictures that made me be so pro-life," she said. "I'm out there because I want to help. Not because I want to stir up people," Woods added.

Woods, who got pregnant at 17 years old during her senior year in high school in 1975, said she went to a pro-life group about 18 years ago and has centered her life around the cause since then. "I believe if your passionate about something, you need to do something positive about it," she said.

Before Blessings From Above, Woods said she had helped hundreds of girls, mostly by just talking to them, but she's given them rides and helped them financially as well. Woods said she started center because she thought God had bigger plans for her. She said the center mainly deals with young women because those are the ones that they are the most worried about, but she said the center will help any mother in need.

Woods said that because she focuses so much of her life on helping young mothers that she mostly gets positive feedback when she stands out on the street each year. "This town is very kind to me. They always have been. By some of the looks on peoples faces you can tell they don't agree with me, but I think because I've been faithful and am trying to do something positive to help they've given me a lot of grace," Woods said.

Woods said it doesn't matter if people agree with her or not. "I believe in this enough that I'm willing to stand here. If somebody wants to stop and talk with me, or yell at me, or whatever they want to do, I'm willing to help." Woods said.

Woods said she's been asked if it's been worth it to stand out in the cold for nearly a decade to advertise her pro-life stance. "That ad has brought me girls, so it is worth it," she said.