In 2000, the first license plate with a Choose Life message was offered to residents of Florida. Today, 33 states and the District of Columbia offer Choose Life license plates. But not Minnesota. JoAnn Marshall is trying to change that.
JoAnn Marshall
Marshall, president of the nonprofit, volunteer organization Choose Life, Minnesota, recently joined “Practicing Catholic” radio show host Patrick Conley to describe her cause, steps taken so far and how pro-life Minnesotans can support the efforts.
A Minnesota state representative and a state senator introduced legislation for a Choose Life license plate in the past year, but “it didn’t make it through” into law, Marshall said. “But they’ve already agreed to reintroduce it next year.”
Marshall, a parishioner of Annunciation in Mayhew Lake in the Diocese of St. Cloud, knows of “numerous support” from state representatives and senators. “I know the Holy Spirit is involved in this effort because what seemed to be mere coincidences, I’ve been put in contact with people, individuals and organizations, who are just totally in support of this Choose Life plate in our state.”
If the Minnesota Legislature passes legislation for a Choose Life plate, the bill’s language calls for $25 per plate and tab renewal directed to support nonprofit, life-affirming organizations that help mothers in crisis pregnancies who choose to make an adoption plan for their preborn baby, Marshall said. The money would provide assistance including food, clothing, shelter, medical bills and transportation, she said.
Money would be directed toward those needs because, of mothers in crisis pregnancies who visit pregnancy resource centers and see ultrasounds, more than 80% choose life for their baby, Marshall said. “We want to reach out to those who do not wish to raise their baby,” she said. “We want to offer positive alternatives. And this alternative is adoption. It’s a choice everyone can live with.”
Two million U.S. couples are waiting to adopt, Marshall said. “Having this plate on the road in Minnesota and raising funds promotes awareness and gives potential adoptive parents a reason to hope.”
To learn more, including what a Minnesota license plate would look like, visit chooselifeminnesota.org. While there, Marshall suggests completing a one-question survey (“Choose Life Plate Survey”) about support for a Choose Life license plate. Responses would show legislators that Minnesotans support the license plate, she said. And above all, pray that the license plate becomes available in Minnesota, Marshall said, “and we can save lives of the unborn.”
To view the status of the plates in each state, visit chooselifeamerica.org.
To hear the full interview, tune in to the 9 p.m. July 8 “Practicing Catholic” show, which repeats at 1 p.m. July 9 and 2 p.m. July 10 on Relevant Radio 1330 AM. Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the latest show also includes interviews with Nancy Bandzuch from Catholic Sprouts, who offers ideas for summer activities and resources that can help children grow in faith, and Father Tom Margevicius, director of worship for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, whose “Mass Class” topic this week is the Liturgy of the Word.
Listen to their interviews after they have aired at:
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