UWF Students For Life » News

Festival on the Green: Recap

Andrew — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 23:38:57 +0000

Thank you everyone for your help and support in making this fun activity such a resounding SUCCESS!

This event was a time to unite with the community and the university in a celebration of food, culture, knowledge, and craft. Our group was located next to the stage where our volunteers enjoyed the performances of young musicians, belly dancers, karate, and Native American music. In this location, many passers-by were caught by the image of our life-like fetal models.

I don’t know if our table would have caught as many as we did otherwise since many other tables were also selling backed goods or painting faces, but our table had something truly unique and beautiful. I cannot tell you how many children loved to hold and rock the little tiny babies! It was amazing. They kept saying, “I love babies. They’re so cute!” The fetal models spoke for themselves: Human Life exists in the womb, Life is Beautiful, Life is a Miracle. It is one thing to imagine and even see a picture of human life in the womb. It is quite another to hold a replica (each being the weight, size, and feel of the fetus at 10, 12, 20, 26, and 30 weeks of development) in your hands. It’s another step in exploring the mystery of the life.

People of all faiths and cultural backgrounds shared their stories about life, touching our hearts more than we could ever have touched theirs. Our table was truly the hallmark of the family, and it was a tremendous blessing to be a part of this communal human experience of Life.

Best of all, our group had a chance to reach out to a UWF Student who was pregnant. Maybe she didn’t need help – I couldn’t tell by her response – but what was more important to us was the chance to give her support, kindness, and hope that if she did need anything, we were here with resources she could count on. The cool thing was that she also got to touch and feel what the person inside her looks and feels like RIGHT NOW! I wonder if that stayed with her… We will never know the impact of our actions, but we can only try to be charitable in love as much as possible!

This event was a SUCCESS for our group. If you are a member, you should be proud because you are a member of a group that is truly touching and caring for the community

Here are some pictures from the event:

Be sure to check out our Media page for pictures from other events.

Video [HD]: UWF Students for Life Interview about Closing of Pensacola Abortion Facility!

Andrew — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:59:12 +0000

Featuring:

Ernie Cyr, Coordinator of Pensacola 40 Days for Life
Bernadette Ensley, President of UWF Students for Life

Originally aired on WEAR 3 at 6pm CDT on November 4, 2009.

Transcript:

A place that’s been at the center of the abortion debate for years in Pensacola is shutting down.

The Community Healthcare Center, one of Escambia County’s two abortion providers, closed its doors last Friday.

Channel Three’s Greg Neumann joins us now with more on the clinic’s future.

During a routine inspection by the Florida Agency for Healthcare Administration last month, inspectors discovered that the center’s laboratory license, which is separate from their abortion license, had been expired for 413 days.

That led to a choice for the center: pay a huge fine, or shut its doors.

There’s little to no activity at the Community Healthcare Center today.

That’s because its owners chose to close it, rather than pay a 413-thousand dollar fine to AHCA, the Agency for Healthcare Administration.

Ernie Cyr: “It’s just a complete joy and what a blessing on our community to have this facility close.”

Pro-life advocate Ernie Cyr had been leading the Forty Days of Life protest outside the clinic, which just ended on Sunday.

He saw a legal notice in the local paper Tuesday, stating that the center was terminating its practice.

Ernie Cyr: “I’m in the dark just as much as the next person, so we don’t really know why exactly. We call it a miracle, really.”

…Or more likely, an oversight by the clinic.

Whatever the reason for the expired license, AHCA lawyers did offer the clinic a reduced fine as part of a settlement agreement, but never received a response.

Bernadette Ensley, UWF’s Students for Life: “For this to up and close the last weekend of Forty Days of Life is really shocking and great.”

Bernadette Ensley is a UWF senior who heads Students for Life.

That group and others will now concentrate their protest on AMS of Pensacola.

Bernadette Ensley: “It just gives us time to focus on the other abortion clinic and praying and being out there for support.”

Now, we don’t know for sure if the Community Healthcare Center is closing for good, because no one affiliated with the clinic would speak with us Wednesday.

But an AHCA spokesperson says they can’t reopen until they pay that fine.

Reporting in Pensacola, Greg Neumann, Channel Three News.

Community Healthcare Center of Pensacola: CLOSED!!!

Bernadette — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:23:48 +0000

You read that right: The abortion clinic on 9th Ave has closed for good! A legal notice was posted in the Pensacola News Journal yesterday, November 2nd, confirming it.

The clinic officially closed for business on October 30th, the last Friday of this fall’s 40 Days For Life campaign. A handful of UWF Students for life were there peacefully protesting. We had no idea it would be the last protest in front of that facility.

This is a tremendous triumph for life, and we couldn’t be more excited.

You can read the whole story on 40 Days for Life Pensacola’s website.

Come join us in the jubilant celebration of the closing of 9th Avenue Abortion Clinic this Wednesday at 6:30PM in the Commons Nautilus Chamber. We will have cake and drinks… and lot’s and lot’s of joy! Members who have attended the protests may share their experience if they wish- and officers will explain what this closing means for our group.

Blessings to all!

Bernadette Ensley

Today’s vigil a success!

Andrew — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 21:39:18 +0000

Just a quick note about this morning’s vigil/peaceful protest at the 9th Avenue abortion clinic.

We had 12 members of UWF Students for Life in all!

That’s a great turnout for our first vigil! Even though it was raining, cold, and really early (5:30am), our group was there to defend the defenseless.

It really makes a difference when college students take a stand. We are survivors of this holocaust. We are the next generation of mothers and fathers. We have the most powerful voice on this issue.

To see pictures from this morning, take a look at our gallery page.

Thanks so much to everyone who came. We will be doing this again soon!

The “new group on the block”

Bernadette — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 04:54:19 +0000

Here we are! One of the, if not the newest group at UWF! As of September 1st, UWF’s Student Organizations staff bumped our paperwork up a notch and made us official in only 3 days! And then after waiting one day, for good measure, we had our first event ever!

Thanks to everyone who came! We are so glad you were there to support this new group and – most importantly -all human life, from conception to natural death.

Now, less than 3 weeks later, we have our very own website: uwfstudentsforlife.org

Hopefully, this site will help us to communicate and collaborate more efficiently and also be a resource for anyone with questions or problems regarding life issues.

If you get a minute, check out the website, send us a message, or make use of the resources there. Good luck in school this semester, hope to get to know at least some of you on campus if not through email.

God bless!

Your president,

Bernadette Ensley