America’s largest pro-life event is an epic 5,000-mile relay race

(LifeSiteNews) — On this episode of The John Henry Westen Show, Dr. Pat Castle, founder of LIFE Runners, joins me to discuss plans for the upcoming 2024 A-Cross America Relay, stories from past events, the organization’s mission, and more.

LIFE Runners is a pro-life organization that holds national races, relays, and more to help promote pro-life values. I began the show by asking him about next month’s annual A-Cross America Relay, which is the world’s largest spanning pro-life event, with participants across the globe highlighting the importance of defending the unborn.

“It’s the largest spanning because it’s from coast to coast and border to border. Over 5,000 miles of people wearing their witness with a shirt or jacket that says, ‘Remember the Unborn,’ to just pierce the culture of death,” Castle said.

Participants can run (or walk) in one or more 5-kilometer segments either on the official course or in their own neighborhood. The course has four starting points, and the relay lasts 43 days before culminating at Roe Park in Overland Park, Kansas. “No association to Roe v. Wade, but coincidence, I think not, that we celebrate the conclusion of this largest spanning pro-life event in Roe Park.”

Castle then spoke a bit more about the impact of the event. “Praise God for this pro-life faith in action that matters. We know that messaging matters, these images matter, and encouraging people matters. To get them thinking, to bring that thinking to their heart and their soul and realize their true identities, our identities in Christ for life and life eternal.”

I added that the LIFE Runners’ message is so beautiful because it’s a huge sign that they wear, “Remember the Unborn.” I asked Castle why the race kickoff cities, San Francisco and New York City, were specifically chosen. He said they chose San Francisco because of their heroically pro-life life runner bishop, Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone.

Including Cordileone, 24 bishops are LIFE runners and wear the “Remember the Unborn” jackets and shirts. Cordileone specifically gave LIFE Runners a great statement of support: “LIFE Runners is an outstanding witness to the dignity of motherhood and of every person. We run in solidarity with the unborn and shine a bright light on the importance of the family. God bless all those organizing and participating in the A-Cross America Relay for Pro-Life.”

Castle added they had also previously picked San Francisco to start the relay on the iconic Golden Gate Bridge, in order to contrast secularism with faith at an iconic landmark. But this year they will mix it up by starting in front of the city’s Planned Parenthood and walking one mile with an eight-foot “Remember the Unborn” banner to Union Square, the Times Square of San Francisco. “Picture the scene. All that commerce and modernism and secularism, we’re going to contrast that with a big blue can’t-miss-it ‘Remember the Unborn’ banner.”

New York City had originally been chosen so the group could kick off the relay on the Brooklyn Bridge for the same reason of contrasting the modern world with faith at an iconic landmark. But last year the starting point was moved to the Planned Parenthood Manhattan office, formerly known as the Margaret Sanger Planned Parenthood.

“We walked from the Manhattan Planned Parenthood with an eight-foot ‘Remember the Unborn’ banner, not one of them but two of them with Sister Hope from the Sisters of Life and probably 25 or 30 heroically pro-life New York and New Jersey LIFE Runners. And, of course, as you can imagine, [We were thinking,] ‘Oh, what’s going to happen? Are we going to get shot? Are we going to get run over?’ But we went 4.3 miles through the city to Times Square and stood in front of the Father [Francis] Duffy statue in the middle of Times Square.”

Watch or listen to my full interview to hear more from Dr. Pat Castle about LIFE Runners’ 2024 A-Cross America Relay, the organization’s mission, stories from past events, and more. 

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John-Henry is the co-founder and CEO of LifeSiteNews.com. He and his wife Dianne have eight children and they live in the Ottawa Valley in Ontario, Canada.

He has spoken at conferences and retreats, and appeared on radio and television throughout the world. John-Henry founded the Rome Life Forum, an annual strategy meeting for life, faith and family leaders worldwide. He is a board member of the John Paul II Academy for Human Life and the Family. He is a consultant to Canada’s largest pro-life organization Campaign Life Coalition, and serves on the executive of the Ontario branch of the organization. He has run three times for political office in the province of Ontario representing the Family Coalition Party.

John-Henry earned an MA from the University of Toronto in School and Child Clinical Psychology and an Honours BA from York University in Psychology.