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New Year Fundraising Appeal - Day 9
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Dear Supporter,
This month it is our 55th birthday.
SPUC was formally launched in January 1967 to oppose the Bill which became the Abortion Act, making the Society the world’s first and longest established pro-life group.
SPUC is also Europe’s largest pro-life membership group.
Often, when we look back at history, it’s the powerful and wealthy who win the day.
Now and again the tables get turned and the underdog wins.
Below you will see what the money donated by 18,000 caring and dedicated SPUC supporters has achieved in the past 12-months.
Many precious lives have been saved thanks to the generosity of caring people, like you.
Our relatively small budget is dwarfed by that of our opponents, yet I think you’ll agree that your donations have had a real impact.
YOUR financial support made these pro-life successes possible
Crisis Pregnancy Support
The Alma Mater Fund is a SPUC initiative which provides support to pregnant and parenting students in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
(“Parenting students” because we recognise that new mums - and dads - often require help with paying the bills AFTER the baby arrives).
Caitlin, 21, (pictured below) found herself pregnant while at university. A grant from the Alma Mater Fund is helping her support her daughter while she pursues her degree.
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A growing number of student mothers like Caitlin have been helped by the Fund in Scotland, and we have launched it also in Northern Ireland.
Now there are plans to extend the project to the rest of the UK in 2022.
Spreading the pro-life message online
With Covid restrictions limiting face-to-face interactions with the public, politicians and schools, SPUC has invested more into expanding its online presence.
In 2021:
- Individual users of the SPUC website more than doubled (138% increase)
- People “following” SPUC on Facebook reached 17,000
- The “10,000 barrier” was broken on Twitter and we now have 10,809 followers
We are now on Telegram and a presence on TikTok is to follow soon.
Grassroots Development
The first SPUC Pro-life Mission took place in the Middlesbrough area in October.
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SPUC Development Officer, Terry Graham (l) and Education Manager, Emmet Dooley (r) were among a team of SPUC staff and volunteers who spoke in schools, presented to church groups and engaged with the public on the streets of Teesside.
A further 7 missions are planned for 2022.
Pippa Knight RIP
When a court ruled last January that doctors could lawfully stop little Pippa Knight’s life support in a London hospital, SPUC supporters funded a legal challenge.
SPUC’s lawyers fought for Pippa (pictured below) to be given the portable ventilator she needed so that she could die naturally at home when the time came, surrounded by her family.
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On 1 April, the Supreme Court (the UK’s highest court) refused to hear Pippa’s appeal. Her ventilator was switched off and Pippa sadly died in hospital on 6th May, two weeks after her sixth birthday.
The truth is, that without YOUR support, none of these pro-life initiatives could have been achieved, and I cannot thank you enough.
It’s so important that we continue working to save lives in 2022, because the attacks on life do not let up.
It’s thanks to you, and others like you, that SPUC is celebrating its 55th birthday this month.
This year SPUC has put detailed plans in place to combat anti-life threats on THREE different fronts:
- Abortion coercion is a major concern about which we are working hard to raise awareness
- Assisted suicide proposals are at an advanced stage in the Scottish parliament
- Defend pro-life speech on UK campuses.
But fresh funding is urgently needed if we are to turn plans into ACTION that saves lives.
Will you help by donating £20 TODAY to restore justice for unborn babies, so that many who would be killed otherwise can also celebrate a birthday this year?
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John Deighan
Chief Executive Officer
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