This document is published in tribute to
Katie Farrell
June 21, 1988 - March 12, 2012
Devoted mother of Tyler Kathan Farrell

Preface by Katie's Twin Brother Brian

I would like to emphasize Katie's life as a martyr for single mothers who struggled with the question of abortion during pregnancy and ultimately chose life. Katie had lived a life of suffering up to the point of her becoming pregnant; she was sexually assaulted at a young age, she had many drug related issues as well. Her son, Tyler Farrell, saved her from the life she for so long tried to escape. The love for her baby brought her from the depths of misery to the heights of complete and utter happiness.

Her message is one of profound hope and inspiration: if there are single mothers out there who chose to struggle for the life of their child, and have no regret, they should look to my sister as a source of strength. For her story is one filled with utter despair and sorrow, suffering and struggle, hope and salvation. My sister was also a strong advocate for the pro-life movement; she had been told by so many during her pregnancy to either abort the baby or give it up for adoption. She was the only one who knew she could handle the child, raise the child, and love the child as he so deserved to be loved. When a family friend asked her to look into giving up Tyler for adoption, she responded with: "I can't because I've already given him a name."

So many told her she would be wrong, and that she would regret choosing to be Tyler's mother. But in the end, we were all wrong. Katie was right in every sense of the word, for she turned out to be so instinctually maternal. Her interaction with Tyler for their short time together was truly a sight to behold. Her connection with him was genuine, pure, and filled with endless love.

Katie had just started to take classes at a community college about two months before her death. In her English class, she was assigned a paper, a meditation on something important in her life. She chose to write her paper on abortion and her personal struggle with that question during her own pregnancy. The paper is so beautifully eloquent and so peacefully concise. It is truly her last testament to the world, and it behooves us, as a community, to spread her message.

Katie Farrell's College English Essay
"Meditation on Abortion"
February 10, 2012

I got pregnant at 21, unwed, young, and with a minimum-wage paying job. All my options were laid out in front of me, messily, like an opened bag of bird seed scattered out onto the bare ground. To keep, adopt, or abort. I knew abortion wasn't the choice for me, but like adoption, the choice crossed my mind. Abortion would have been the easiest route; I could've gotten rid of my son like he was just an insignificant flu symptom. I had health professionals insisting I have an abortion and that raising my child was simply something I couldn't do at this point of time. Abortion was convenient, but I rejected the idea. I had no support, but I stood my ground to keep and raise my child; I chose to continue my baby's life, what I believe he should inevitably have the right to. Abortion is chosen everyday by women, unwed and even younger than I, with health professionals everywhere promoting this idea that abortion should be used as a form of birth control. You made the "mistake", now let's abort the "consequence", is what I hear when these professionals are telling confused women that abortion is the most logical choice. I don't believe getting pregnant with my son was a mistake; it may have been unplanned, but that is no reason for me to kill the unborn child growing inside me that I had yet to meet.

Mother Teresa said, "We must not be surprised when we hear of murders, killings, of wars, or of hatred... If a mother can kill her own child, what is left but for us to kill each other?" I hear truth in every syllable of the previous quote. If a man kills his wife or a mother drowns her 2 year old son, it is no different than if a mother kills her unborn, yet living, baby. At 24 weeks gestation (time since conception), a baby has eyes, ears, hair. He begins to feel tapping or massaging occurring on the exterior of the womb, and hears the voices that he will soon familiarize as his mother and father. Also, at 24 weeks, abortions can be performed. The living being that was once kicking at his mother's stomach and tossing to become comfortable has been executed by the hands of health professionals that specialize in abortions. All people favorable towards abortion are obviously alive; their parents chose to give them life. We should pass life along as our parents did for us. Unborn babies don't have that voice to speak and object to an abortion, so the people speaking up for them deserve to be heard. That has yet to happen since January 22, 1973 when Roe V Wade was passed, making abortion legal in the United States. The US Constitution states that all human beings are created as equals-man and woman, black and white. I will make the assumption that the Constitution excludes the unborn, living human being.

A mother creates a bond with her baby, and it is that strong, indestructible bond when the two are connected. However, pregnancy is terrifying when you future stands uncertain and a little shaky. I had wondered if I could give my baby everything he needed and if I was enough. But I like to believe I soared through the fog, despite the odds going against me. The aftermath of keeping my pregnancy was not a disaster, although is wasn't easy. No trees fell on top of me nor did the earth break in two: I just had my son. Seven pounds, three ounces, and born on January 22nd, 2011; his birth and the 38th anniversary of Roe V Wade had fallen on the same day. A coincidence or perhaps a sign? My son is the opposite end result of an abortion. A situation may not be ideal, but it's no cause for termination of the life one created. My son is healthy, happy, and a little chunky. He's rebellious and lives to be the center of attention. If I had aborted my child, I wouldn't have known any of this. I would question for the rest of my life what the "mass of cells" (as many pro-choicers will argue that thing inside your belly is) would have turned out to be. As far as I know, a "mass of cells" doesn't have the ability to kick my stomach.

Everyone has a right to their own personal opinion, and I'm not debating that women who get abortions are scared, confused, and ashamed, just as I was, but that doesn't justify abortion. A woman could be poor and homeless, or have a medical and /or mental condition, but that is too no fault of the child growing inside the womb. I plan to go to the March for Life next year on my son's second birthday, and show everyone the beautiful outcome from not choosing abortion. Nonetheless, as a single mother, I'm still fighting to swim through the waves not letting me or my son go under. It's neither easy nor pretty all the time, but when you see your child reaching his arms out to you, it all seems worth it.