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NRL News
Years of
Experience Help Grassroots Grow Marjorie Higgins wears many hats for NRLC: state organizational development coordinator, bylaws facilitator, and list management specialist, to name just a few. But one of her most rewarding jobs may be den mother to a group of enthusiastic and energetic teenagers each year at the NRL Convention. These teens help make the complicated logistics of the convention possible while gaining firsthand knowledge of the pro-life movement—knowledge they will be able to use in the future as they become the leaders of the fight to protect unborn babies. Higgins began bringing teens to the convention over 10 years ago. “They unload trucks, move, boxes, make packets, help set up, go shopping for supplies, and much more,” Higgins told NRL News. “When they’re not on assignment they can go to a workshop of their choice or a general session. They can also see adult leaders up close and have a chance to speak to them.” The exposure to dedicated pro-life activists is invaluable for growing the new generation of right to life stalwarts. “It keeps us in their memory banks,” Higgins said. “These kids know what’s important, they know why we vote the way we do, and it encourages them to be active in the movement.” Finding ways to help the movement expand and thrive has been a hallmark of Higgins’s 23 years with NRLC. Hired in 1985 as the first employee of the State Organizational Development Department, Higgins had previous experience as pro-life volunteer and lobbyist in Virginia and a staffer in the Reagan/Bush reelection campaign. Her first assignment was to call all 50 state affiliates to find out what their problems were and how the national office could help. “The answer was money,” Higgins said. “So (NRLC Executive Director Dr.) David O’Steen came up with an idea to write a fundraising letter that all states could use, to raise money in a way that wouldn’t be labor-intensive, could be done on a regular basis, and would help build a base for the future.” This communication and cooperation between the national office and states and chapters has continued to grow since then. A major project spearheaded by national helped the states convert their membership lists into computer databases. “States used to have lists on sticky labels or 3 x 5 cards,” Higgins recalls. “We helped transition them to databases, which took two to three years to get it all done.” With the invaluable expertise of Andy Sabak, Higgins helped states organize their lists so they could be converted into digital data. Many names were also gathered from national petitions circulated by NRLC, which also had to be integrated into the whole. Higgins and Sabak continue to assist states with their list management, giving workshops at NRL conventions and staying in constant contact with the affiliates. “We help them build, clean, keep clean, and update the lists,” Higgins said. Managing membership lists is vitally important for the success of the movement, Higgins insisted. “I see it as keeping your weapons clean, keeping prepared so when opposition comes up, you are ready,” she said. “The destruction of unborn human life is systematized, and the other side has big bucks. We have to work smart and be systematic in what we do.” States also call Higgins if they have questions or concerns about their bylaws, which provide the building blocks of the organization. Having bylaws that allow the group to work efficiently is another important requirement for an effective pro-life organization. “The bylaws should be specific enough to keep the group on track, but general enough to let work get done,” Higgins said. “They also need to be updated as times change.” While Jacki Ragan and the rest of the State Organizational Development Department are based in the D.C. office, Higgins works from her home in Florida. “I’m always happy to talk to grassroots people who have questions,” she said. “If the questions don’t get asked, projects don’t get done.” The teamwork between National Right to Life, the state affiliates, and local chapters has helped keep the pro-life movement vital for over 35 years. Higgins’ position working as a liaison between all the aspects of the movement has given her a unique perspective into the movement’s successes and where it needs to go in the future. ”We each have a part and each must function together or the whole thing will fall apart,” Higgins said. “I see it as more than teamwork—it takes discipline to keep working toward our goal: saving unborn babies.” |