Hi John,

Father's Day has taken a new meaning since my first daughter was born five years ago.

Few relationships are as rewarding as the ones I share with my children.

Fatherhood is a role that consists of overwhelming love, worry, and joy. It is one of my greatest callings and top priorities.

A father’s role doesn’t begin when the child is born, but at the moment of fertilization when the child is most vulnerable and weakest—and a father’s chief responsibility is to protect his child. 

Our communities are filled with amazing men who take their job seriously as fathers and serve their families with love, compassion, and sacrifice.

Whether that was your father or not, we all know examples of these types of dads, and we are all grateful for them.

Over the last couple of weeks, we asked our followers to share stories of why their fathers are incredible, and here is one of the most amazing stories we read:

"It is my husband, father to 8 babies under the age of 11. Including 3 sets of twins in less than 4 years. Our first set of twins were 24 weeks, 1 lb each, and in the NICU for 5 months. Besides work, he lived in the NICU. And then when we got pregnant with our second set of twins and had them 18 months later(2 sets in 18 months), he praised Jesus. And then when our third set came within 4 years...he praised Jesus. He took care of all 6 of them with such joy and perseverance. We then had two more.  He makes sure to pray as a family nightly. He is very selfless and loves to be home with his family. One of our oldest has cerebral palsy and he makes sure to help him and teach him that he is exactly the same as his brothers...that he can do anything he wants to. He is open to more babies and God's will, which is hard to find in a man/father. His main goal is to make sure our babies make it to heaven. I praise Jesus that he is the father to my 8 babies!" 

We were also inspired by the warriors who fight for and defend LIFE:

"My dad was a pro-life attorney who used to go to abortion clinics and bury the aborted babies.  He always wore the golden precious feet pin… now I do."

"My dad is an absolute hero — and an incredible champion for life! I’m the oldest of four, and my two youngest brothers are identical twins who are severely disabled. Through many grim prognoses from many doctors who gave my brothers little chance of life past the age of one, through the incredible care, love, and perseverance of my parents — and the abundant grace of God — my brothers just celebrated their 35th birthday! My father, who turns 70 this year, along with my mom who is 68, continue to care for my brothers, Adam and Aaron, in their own home. In their ‘carefree’ retirement years, my parents wake up at 5:30 am to get them ready for the day, they feed them, bathe them, dress them, and, above all, love them — if anyone deserves hero status as a father, it’s my dad, who has changed diapers for 43 years and counting!"

We recognize that Father's Day may be difficult for some due to the hurt they have experienced from their biological fathers. In these times, we recognize the role that father figures — like uncles, step-dads, grandfathers, and other courageous men — may play in our lives. Here's another story we received about an incredible father figure named Tom:

"My real father abused my mom, and my oldest brother and sexually abused me. My mom finally got away from my biological dad and went on to meet this guy named Ben. He was super nice and my mom was with him for 3 years and she ended up getting pregnant with my brother Brayden. Long story short, Brayden suffered from shaken-baby syndrome from Ben. My mom had to depart.

Ben put me and my oldest brother through foster care together and it was so depressing and traumatic. I was abused in foster care and mistreated.

Not long after, a man named Tom came into my mom's life and he changed it.
He became a dad to me and my oldest brother and stuck by our sides even when my oldest brother showed severe behavioral issues due to trauma we experienced as younger children. 11 years later, he and my mom are together married and have 2 more kids together and a rainbow baby.

Even after being molested by my father and going through everything that I went through-- weight issues, struggling with being gay, and suicide attempts, and feelings of worthless-- Tom came in and cleaned it all up and I'm now in a happy marriage with my husband and have an 8-month-old daughter and I'm healing every single day. I'm so grateful for the love Tom has shown me since I was 8 years old. He changed my whole view on men and made me feel worthy of love and appropriate care that a dad gives." 

Abortion is not just an issue for a mother and the child. Abortion destroys families — the same families men have a responsibility to protect.

I want to encourage fathers to take responsibility for their actions and their children, born or preborn. And I call on all men to see their critical role in this issue. I believe that if men across our nation stepped up, we will see an end to abortion. 

This Father’s Day, we send a sincere “thank you” to all the dads who serve as an example for other men to follow. We also challenge all men, whether a father now, or one to be in the future, to recognize their roles and their responsibilities to protect and to take accountability for their decisions.

May we all be inspired by the above examples of heroic fathers and recognize the fact that fatherhood is a profound gift!

For Life, 

Josef Lipp

Chief Operating Officer