Why Chapters are important

I discovered this on the National Right to Life website. It outlines the significance of the importance of setting up pro-life chapters.


What Is a Chapter? What Does a Chapter Do?

Pro-Life Grassroots Activism Is Both Fun And Makes a Difference

By Holly Miller, NRL Field Coordinator, and Jacki Ragan, Director, State Organizational Development Dept.

Let's start with a truism: Our friends and neighbors probably do not often think about the life issues.

It is a safe bet that the average American is far more likely to be thinking about our war on terrorism, the state of our economy, their own jobs, their kids' schoolwork and activities, and what's for dinner. Abortion, infanticide, and euthanasia probably do not enter into their minds on a very regular basis.

Yet, for all that, there is still this. Most people, deep down, understand however vaguely that there exists a clear and present threat to innocent human life. It is a thorn in their conscience, the source of which they can't explain.

Pro-lifers don't need prodding. We don't need our "consciousness raised." The lives of unborn babies, disabled newborns, and the medically dependent elderly is always on our minds, along with all the other issues weighing on the hearts and minds of every American.

Pro-lifers are not naive. We understand that for the most part abortion is not in the pages of our local newspapers.

Yet this lack of attention does not change that regrettable truth that nearly 4,000 unborn children die daily. These little ones may be out of sight. It is our job to ensure that they are not out of mind.

Thus, whatever else is on the nation's mind, the critical task for NRLC's nearly 3,000 chapters never changes: to keep the life issues on the public's mind. How? Local Chapters.

A right-to-life chapter is an indispensable part of the overall strategy to restore legal protection to innocent human life. The chapter is the core component, the very heart of the pro-life movement.

Without a web of interconnected, organized pro-life chapters the Movement would not be viable. That is the stark truth.

Focusing its activities within a local community, the chapter most often is the pro-life movement as far as your neighbors are concerned. In large part, when this Movement prevails, it is reflecting what local pro-lifers have accomplished in educating their friends, family, and neighbors.

The essence of your pro-life chapter is the establishment of a consistent, regular presence in your community. Your faithful presence reminds your neighbors that babies continue to be legally killed in your area and that good, decent, hardworking Americans believe that is an abomination.

If you didn't politely but firmly disagree, the larger public would assume abortion must be okay because no one is saying No!

But is this all easier said than done? How does a chapter accomplish big projects year after year?

After all, chapters are made up of people with responsibilities to their families, employers, churches, children, and more. And putting on a good event requires planning, time, money, volunteers, and more. But take our word for it, it can be done.

Planning the same programs annually will make your work far easier. This establishes rapport with the local businesses and government offices with which you will coordinate your efforts.

Also, after doing each project many times, much of the planning becomes "old hat," freeing you to focus on minor adjustments to your programs or to work on a new or one-time project, such as a billboard.

Spacing events out will give your chapter plenty of time to plan upcoming events and ensure that nobody "burns out." If you plan an event each season, you will have a month to "cool down" after one event, and two months to gear up for the next.

For example, plan to commemorate January 22 by attending the state March for Life or by holding a vigil or prayer breakfast in your own community. Then, wait until Mother's Day to perform your next project, whether that is a rose sale, signature ad in your local newspaper, diaper drive for the local crisis pregnancy center, or Mother's Day picnic.

After Mother's Day, unwind for a month or so, and then start preparing your booth for the county fair. That'll include signing up for the space and recruiting volunteers to staff the table. Be sure to order plenty of educational materials to distribute to fair goers.

After the fair, you'll have a few months to plan activities for October which some churches recognize as "Repect Life" month. Work with area churches, and pray for an end to abortion in solidarity with people of all faiths, not only in your community but also across the country.

The above are just a few projects NRL chapters accomplish in their own neighborhoods. What you can do as a chapter to advance the pro-life cause is limited only by your imagination.

Be creative. Be visible at local events, whether at your town's annual celebration, a craft fair, a health fair, or a parade.

These events are social and fun to prepare for and to participate in. They allow you to bring the pro-life message to where the people are.

We are pro-life because we love life. So as a chapter, embrace the life of your community and celebrate the sanctity of life with your friends and neighbors.

If there is not a chapter in your local community, we urge you to consider starting one. It is not nearly as difficult as you might think, and we promise to help you every step of the way.