“God will use people from every walk of life, every profession, every business background, no matter what it is. He doesn’t call the equipped; He equips the called.”
The above quote came from Heartbeat International’s Board Chairman and former longtime President Peggy Hartshorn upon her receiving the esteemed People of Life Award from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) over the summer.
The 2023 People of Life awards were announced at the July 17 annual Diocesan Pro-Life Leadership Conference in Toledo, Ohio.
The award recognizes individuals who through their personal or professional efforts show a lifetime commitment to pro-life work, promoting respect for human dignity, and working to end the culture of death in the U.S.
These criteria correspond with the call Saint John Paul II in his 1995 encyclical Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life). Recipients are particularly recognized for pursuing this calling with humility and without fanfare or looking for recognition.
From the Gospel of Life document:
“We are the people of life because God, in his unconditional love, has given us the Gospel of life and by this same Gospel we have been transformed and saved .... Interiorly renewed by the grace of the Spirit, "who is the Lord and giver of life", we have become a people for life and we are called to act accordingly.”
This is the second time for a member of the Board for Heartbeat International, the largest network of pregnancy help in the U.S. and the world, to receive the People of Life award.
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Another Heartbeat Board member, Chuck Donovan, was honored with the award in 2019.
Donovan is the president of Charlotte Lozier Institute, the research arm of national pro-life group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. He has an extensive history in pro-life work as well.
Tweet This: This is the second time for a member of the Board for Heartbeat International to receive the prestigious People of Life award.
Heartbeat International President Jor-El Godsey applauded the work of both Hartshorn and Donovan, and their receiving recognition of such by the national Bishops’ Conference against the backdrop of the Heartbeat Board being infused by such prodigious commitment to pro-life work.
“With their decades of experience, Chuck and Peggy both bring a powerful perspective along with wisdom and discernment necessary for today's dynamic environment,” Godsey said. “As part of our history and our current board, they help accelerate all Heartbeat is doing to advance pregnancy help around the world."
Among Hartshorn’s efforts cited by the USCCB for honoring her were her and her husband’s dedication to the pro-life movement since 1973. The Hartshorns worked with the educational, political, and legislative segment of the movement and started housing pregnant women in their home in 1974. They also opened the first pregnancy help center in Columbus, Ohio, in 1981. Hartshorn had previously received many awards for her pro-life work. She is also co-founder of Heartbeat International’s Option Line, a 24/7 bilingual contact center connecting women in need with resources and assistance.
The USCCB referenced Donovan as “a guiding force in the pro-life movement for four decades.” His background in this area included having been Legislative Director of the National Right to Life Committee from 1979-1981, serving in leadership at the Family Research Council, and as co-chair of the Heritage Foundation’s Religious Liberty Working Group. Donovan, also an author and speaker, received the award the USCCB said, “for his tireless dedication to developing critical public policy protections for conscience rights and the rights of unborn children.”
Godsey remarked further on the magnitude of Hartshorn and Donovan’s contribution to the pro-life cause, stating, "Heartbeat is truly blessed to have two of the giants of the pro-life movement serving in our midst.”
Editor's note: Heartbeat International manages Pregnancy Help News.
