Anti-Abortion Walk Raises $55,000 : March: The event draws about 1,500 for peaceful 12-mile trek. Money will go to pregnancy centers.
About 1,500 people carrying teal, pink and gray balloons walked peacefully for 12 miles along the sidewalks of Victory Boulevard on Saturday morning in the sixth annual Walk for Life sponsored by the Crisis Pregnancy Center of the San Fernando Valley.
The walk-a-thon raised about $55,000 for the Valley center and for the Santa Clarita Pregnancy Center, said Greta Coe, the Valley center’s executive director.
The Van Nuys walk was one of several similar anti-abortion events held Saturday in Los Angeles and Orange counties.
The Valley event began with an 8 a.m. ceremony at Woodley Avenue Park in Van Nuys. Speakers talked about abortion experiences, and 38 women released balloons bearing the names of babies they said would have been born had the women known there were alternatives to abortion.
After cutting a ribbon to begin the walk, participants marched about six miles to Reseda Park and Recreation Center, and then six miles back to Woodley Avenue Park.
The words “Alive and Kicking” were written on double balloons for sale during the march. They were meant to symbolize a baby in the womb, Coe said.
The Santa Clarita center provides free pregnancy tests, a 24-hour hot line, counseling, housing referrals and information about churches, community agencies, parenting and child-rearing. Midwives and doctors donate their services for clients who cannot afford to pay.
The Valley center will open in June, Coe said.
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