In the wake of Pennsylvania pro-life advocate Mark Houck’s arrest by the FBI, a young couple is publicly thanking Houck for his role in saving their preborn child. Their story is a testament to the power of the countless sidewalk counselors who have reached out to women and men in crisis and saved children from abortion.
In a heartwarming interview with The Pro-Life Union of Greater Philadelphia, the young couple explained what happened.
“I had one hand on the door about to go into Planned Parenthood, and then Mark stopped us and he was like, ‘You guys don’t have to do this,'” she recalled.
The couple praised Houck for his kindness when speaking to them.
“He was really just trying to get to know us on a deeper level than, you know, us just getting an abortion,” the woman said, adding, “It wasn’t like a judgmental thing.”
“When I first found out I was pregnant, I just felt shame and guilt,” the mother said. “I just felt like I wasn’t ready.” The couple explained that they faced pressure to abort and had the abortion scheduled, even though they felt uneasy about the process and she felt “disgusted” by it.
The father also praised Houck. “He made sure, he told us and made us feel like we got it like, you got it… He opened my eyes to a lot of stuff.”
The couple decided to cancel their abortion appointment and later gave birth to a little girl named Nevaeh, which is Heaven spelled backward. “We named her Nevaeh because she is heaven-sent, a gift straight from God himself,” they said.
“Thank God he [Mark] was the extra push because she wouldn’t be here, we probably wouldn’t be together, I probably wouldn’t be here living on my own… I couldn’t even fathom it, honestly,” the young father said. “And it’s like, that’s how much he means to me.”
The couple also praised the work of the pro-life community at large for helping them through their difficult time. “The pro-lifers definitely were there for us every step of the way.”
This testimony and praise of Houck is timely, as he was the focus of a high-profile arrest on September 23, when 15-20 FBI agents arrived at his home with guns drawn, reportedly traumatizing his wife and seven children. Houck’s alleged crime was pushing a pro-abortion activist who had been harassing his young son, simply to get the man out of his son’s space; he has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The heartwarming thanks of this young couple, who credit their child’s life to the work of the pro-life movement, isn’t unique, either. Live Action News has previously shared some of the stories of babies who have been saved thanks to the help provided by sidewalk counselors. The international organization 40 Days for Life, which organizes prayer vigils outside abortion facilities, knows of over 20,000 babies that have been saved thanks to the presence of vigil participants throughout the world.
As there are numerous attempts to crack down on sidewalk counselors who are peacefully praying and offering help to abortion-minded women, stories like these are an important reminder that these pro-life advocates are simply trying to provide life-saving help to women and families who are in dire need and who view abortion as their only option.
