Reflections of a College Kid
Meetings, Mentoring, and Grooming the Next Generation of Pro- life Leaders

By Derrick Jones

When I was growing up, my life was full of meetings. With my mother working nights my entire life, my grandmother, who had retired before I went to kindergarten, was my babysitter and first teacher.

What an example she set for me! My grandmother was constantly heading off to the Right to Life Center for a meeting or envelope stuffing or to the State Fair booth. In second grade, I joined grandma as a volunteer for a local congressional campaign stuffing envelopes and going door to door doing lit drops.

Over the past 12 years, as I became involved in Teens for Life, and College Students for Life and came to National Right to Life, she's been my sounding board and my mentor. Her words of wisdom and experience, and her gentle nudging, have been a tremendous source of inspiration and support as I have continued my work in the pro-life movement.

Most of that work has centered on youth outreach: educating my peers on the dangers of abortion. More and more of us who are members of the "abortion generation" realize the enormity of Roe v. Wade's direct impact on us.

We were raised with abortion on demand as the law of the land. Over 40 million of our peers have been aborted. Annually, over 40% of all abortions are performed on teenage and college-age women.

We are also a generation that seems especially targeted by the abortion industry. From high school "health" classes and counselors to television and radio ads to rock music fairs and festivals, the abortion industry has set its sights on further tearing our generation apart.

What pro-abortionists don't realize is there is a firestorm of activity growing against their blatant attacks on our generation. This firestorm had its origins in people like my grandmother--pioneers of this great movement--who had the foresight to know that the battle to restore respect for life wasn't going to end overnight or even in a matter of decades.

They saw the need to educate and train the next generation to take up the reigns of leadership in the 21st century.

Through the simple act of mentoring, the pro-life movement can make use of the vibrant energy of the "abortion generation," and at the same time properly prepare the new generation of pro-life leaders. Mentoring the next generation is a task all pro-lifers should assume.

Mentoring addresses the "I don't have enough time to breathe, let alone start a new project" dilemma head on, since it need not preoccupy your time or your energy. When you decide to mentor young people, you are including them in your activities and meetings and sharing with them the history of the movement and your expertise. You are also, at the same time, making use of their own unique energies and talents to accomplish the task at hand.

Teenagers have spent most of their lives in school. They understand the idea of classwork.

Listed below are just a few "classes" that I've had the opportunity to take, many of which were under the supervision of my teacher/grandmother. They are listed to illustrate just a portion of the pro-life curriculum that the next generation of leaders should take.

* Under the initial guidance of my grandmother and two other members of the board, the Illinois Federation for Right to Life (IFRL) started to sponsor a right to life booth at the Illinois State Fair. For years, I worked by her side, shift after shift, educating thousands of fair-goers and potentially saving lives. To this day, each year, the IFRL sets aside a day for the booth to be entirely staffed by teens and college students with the assistance of an adult advisor.

* Stuffing envelopes for the monthly chapter mailing was less than glamorous work but it taught me patience and creative ways to address any time-consuming activity. I can now finish a mailing to the NRLC state offices in 45 minutes flat! [It helps if, at the end, there's some sort of food incentive. This makes the victory of finishing a mailing that much sweeter.]

* Once a month, grandma and I would hop in the car and head over to St. Monica's Center--a home for young moms--and drive sometimes up to three girls to their pre-natal doctors' appointments.

* When I became of legal age, I helped work Bingo games with both my mom and grandma. The money raised at these weekly games went to support the work of St. Monica's. (This was a great family-bonding experience, and also kept me in shape running the floor whenever someone yelled "BINGO!")

* Of course election time is a virtual cornucopia of activity for pro-life volunteers. I've done lit drops in parking lots; walked door to door with grandma on behalf of individual pro-life candidates; stuffed envelopes in campaign offices; and answered phones and made phone calls. These are just examples. You, more than anyone, know the chapter and verse of your chapter's activities. Use these simply as " brainstorm starters" to discover what you can do in your community to mentor a young person.

Derrick Jones is NRLC administrative assistant, advertising coordinator, and youth outreach coordinator. He is also a senior at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. For more information on how high school and college students can become more involved in the pro-life movement, or to contact Derrick, call (202) 626-8800, ext. 153 or e-mail: jonesy77@aol.com.