Heather Lawrence, a senior at Concord’s Carondelet High School,
holds Gianluca Mammola, 3, during a post-walk rally at San Francisco’s
Marina Green. Mammola’s father, David, teaches religion at Carondelet.
FATHER SCOTT RIED PHOTO |
By Sharon Abercrombie
Staff writer
Heather Lawrence is only 18 years old, but she is already
a staunch pro-life defender.
Lawrence, a Carondelet High School senior, has been attending the Walk
for Life West in San Francisco since its beginning three years ago. This
year, during the fourth event, held Jan. 19, the young woman walked in
the company of a little friend she has known since he was just a few months
old — three-year-old Gianluca Mammola, the son of her religion teacher,
David Mammola.
“Gianluca is a perfect example of everything I stand for,”
Lawrence told The Voice. “It has been a privilege to watch him grow
into the lively and free spirited Catholic prodigy he is today.”
Lawrence, who hopes to become a campus minister, said that she “stands
in awe at the innocence and intelligent design of each and every child.”
Lawrence credits her pro-life stance to the influence of Carondelet teachers,
in particular Mammola and Mike Murphy, “whose English with a dash
of theology class is not only aimed at God’s plan for human life,
but more dynamically, at how we as students and citizens of the world
can utilize every aspect of human life and expand our horizons as a global
society.” She praised both men “as wonderful examples of Christ’s
mission for preserving and honoring the sanctity of every human life.”
Gina Heitkamp displays a sign while sitting on the shoulders of Ben
Fortkamp during the 35th annual March for Life rally in Washington
D.C., Jan. 22. The two attend St. John’s Church in Maria Stein,
Ohio. The demonstration protested the 1973 Supreme Court decisions
that legalized abortion in the U.S.
CNS PHOTO/BOB ROLLER |
At this year’s Walk, Lawrence was deeply touched by the testimony
of Gianna Jessen, one of the speakers. Jessen is a survivor of a saline
abortion performed in a Planned Parenthood Clinic in southern California
and suffers from cerebral palsy and didn’t walk until she was nearly
four years old. She now walks unassisted and has run two marathons.
“Jessen captured my heart. Her perseverance and reverence struck
me as the highest form of humanity,” said Lawrence.
Lawrence was one of 40 Carondelet students who participated in the Walk
for Life West. The group marched in memory of Diane Barberini, a religious
studies teacher at the Concord school, who had helped organize the previous
Walk for Life events. Barberini died last summer.
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