A Fitting Eulogy
Two weeks ago, information suggesting that Founder’s abortion clinic was closing first surfaced with news that the building had sold, and the last remaining licensed physician was retiring. Last week, a historically reliable source indicated that the clinic’s last day would be June 30th. Yesterday, a small group of our volunteers gathered to pray, observing that no patients entered or exited the building. Last evening, I encountered an employee of LabCorp who indicated that there would not be any more pickups at this location. Today, an employee of Founder’s confirmed that the clinic has closed permanently and that all patients would be referred to another location.
Thus, after 47 years in operation, 30 of them at 1243 E Broad Street, Ohio’s first abortion clinic is out of business. This closure is both a real and a symbolic victory for the unborn children of our community and the pro-life advocates who have been steadfast in their efforts to bring prayer, witness, and real help to the sidewalks outside of Founder’s.
Before we celebrate this wonderful news, we should pause for a few moments to remember the unborn children who have died at Founder’s and those who mourn them. While we cannot know the numbers, a reasonable calculated from available reports suggests that between 75,000 and 100,000 abortions were committed at the current location and perhaps as many as 25,000 to 50,000 (or more) at previous locations.
Each person, including the unborn, is of infinite value, and any effort to quantify a loss of this magnitude will fall short. At the same time, we– to one degree or another – have become so complacent and numb to the reality of abortion that perhaps we need to contemplate that number a little more. Let it rest on your heart for a moment that in one building, in one town, in one state, 75,000 to 100,000 unborn babies were intentionally brought for the purpose of causing their death. We have much to mourn, much to remember, and much to change.
I have struggled to find the words to mark this occasion – one that bring such disparate emotions. I am still a bit speechless, but I have found inspiration in the words of two men whose pro-life legacy shines brightly today. Twenty-five years ago, Pope St. John Paul II, addressing an audience primarily of women who had undergone abortions, said, “Certainly what happened was and remains terribly wrong. But do not give in to discouragement and do not lose hope. (EV, 99).” Ten years prior to that, former President Ronald Reagan wrote a eulogy for the fetal remains of 16,433 aborted babies that were found in an abandoned waste drum in Los Angeles, CA. After an intense legal battle, the babies were given humane burial. In his eulogy, Reagan wrote, “From these innocent dead, let us take increased devotion to the cause of restoring the rights of the unborn.”
In our time and in our context, I can give no more fitting eulogy than what has already been written:
What happened here was and remains terribly wrong, but do not give in to discouragement and do not lose hope. From these innocent dead, let us take devotion to the cause of restoring the rights of the unborn. Amen.
Founder’s is Closed: Thanks be to God.
This did not happen by accident or good fortune; it happened because we are doing good work in Ohio. Read more about our crazy, naive, and impossible plan to close Founders.
A final note: If we estimate as many as 150,000 abortions were committed at Founders, we know that means there are countless men and women who are mourning the loss of a child lost to abortion. For all who struggle, especially those who received abortions at Founder's, there are many places that you can access free and confidential post abortion support. Find many of them on our website.
Thus, after 47 years in operation, 30 of them at 1243 E Broad Street, Ohio’s first abortion clinic is out of business. This closure is both a real and a symbolic victory for the unborn children of our community and the pro-life advocates who have been steadfast in their efforts to bring prayer, witness, and real help to the sidewalks outside of Founder’s.
Before we celebrate this wonderful news, we should pause for a few moments to remember the unborn children who have died at Founder’s and those who mourn them. While we cannot know the numbers, a reasonable calculated from available reports suggests that between 75,000 and 100,000 abortions were committed at the current location and perhaps as many as 25,000 to 50,000 (or more) at previous locations.
Each person, including the unborn, is of infinite value, and any effort to quantify a loss of this magnitude will fall short. At the same time, we– to one degree or another – have become so complacent and numb to the reality of abortion that perhaps we need to contemplate that number a little more. Let it rest on your heart for a moment that in one building, in one town, in one state, 75,000 to 100,000 unborn babies were intentionally brought for the purpose of causing their death. We have much to mourn, much to remember, and much to change.
I have struggled to find the words to mark this occasion – one that bring such disparate emotions. I am still a bit speechless, but I have found inspiration in the words of two men whose pro-life legacy shines brightly today. Twenty-five years ago, Pope St. John Paul II, addressing an audience primarily of women who had undergone abortions, said, “Certainly what happened was and remains terribly wrong. But do not give in to discouragement and do not lose hope. (EV, 99).” Ten years prior to that, former President Ronald Reagan wrote a eulogy for the fetal remains of 16,433 aborted babies that were found in an abandoned waste drum in Los Angeles, CA. After an intense legal battle, the babies were given humane burial. In his eulogy, Reagan wrote, “From these innocent dead, let us take increased devotion to the cause of restoring the rights of the unborn.”
In our time and in our context, I can give no more fitting eulogy than what has already been written:
What happened here was and remains terribly wrong, but do not give in to discouragement and do not lose hope. From these innocent dead, let us take devotion to the cause of restoring the rights of the unborn. Amen.
Founder’s is Closed: Thanks be to God.
This did not happen by accident or good fortune; it happened because we are doing good work in Ohio. Read more about our crazy, naive, and impossible plan to close Founders.
A final note: If we estimate as many as 150,000 abortions were committed at Founders, we know that means there are countless men and women who are mourning the loss of a child lost to abortion. For all who struggle, especially those who received abortions at Founder's, there are many places that you can access free and confidential post abortion support. Find many of them on our website.
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