By CatholicVote | Created at 2025-01-25 00:21:14 | Updated at 2025-01-26 07:18:40
1 day ago
CV NEWS FEED // Professional surfer Bethany Hamilton, a mother of four, encouraged thousands gathered at the March for Life rally Jan. 24 to be a voice of hope for women considering abortion, helping them to choose life.
Hailing from Hawai’i, Hamilton greeted the crowds in Washington, D.C. with a cheerful “Aloha!” The surfer’s own story is one of remarkable bravery and resilience. At age 13 and already a competitive surfer, she lost her arm in a shark attack. But within a month, she was back in the water and surfing again.
One of Hamilton’s famous phrases is, “I don’t need easy, I just need possible.” She went on to win a national surfing title two years later, and states on her website that God’s grace has enabled her to overcome a number of difficult obstacles.
She recalled in her speech at the March for Life that losing her arm at 13 turned her life upside down, and made it feel chaotic and confusing. She explained that she didn’t think she could surf with only one arm, until another person gave her hope and encouragement.
“They gave me a hint of inspiration that I could do it, and that gave me the courage and bravery to do what I hadn’t seen anyone else do: surf with one arm. It ignited a desire in me to try, to do something that I haven’t seen anyone else do,” she said.
Hamilton pointed out how important having other people’s support is, and asked those present to consider the woman who does not have such help.
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“She’s struggling to have hope that she can do it. She’s being fed these lies that she can’t do it, and that that life has no value,” Hamilton said. “She’s scared, she’s alone, she’s overwhelmed, she feels like her life is upside down. She’s being told that death is better than life – but who are we to choose death on behalf of someone else?”
Hamilton also shared a story about her first pregnancy test and said that she experienced a similar fear of feeling like she couldn’t do it. She said the feeling was surprising to her, having been raised in a Christian household and being in a happy marriage.
“What made me think that I wasn’t ready?” she said. She explained that at the time, she was at the peak of her career, and remarked that “[w]e so often put a career before our children, our family, our loved ones.”
Later in her speech, she emphasized how her children have shaped her whole world.
“Now being a mother of four, they are my greatest joy, the most beautiful blessing, they are the high of my every single day,” she said. “Yes, there’s challenges, and yes, it’s difficult at times, but the beauty sure outweighs the challenge. And I look forward to every single day, serving my beautiful children, and sharing life with them.”
She emphasized that children are a blessing from God and that God is calling people to stand up for life, love one’s neighbors, and accompany those considering abortion.
“When I lost my arm, someone came alongside of me and gave me hope, they reminded me of God’s love, and that maybe there was more to my life, and who knew what was possible? So these women, they need hope, they need encouragement, they need light in their life, and we as a society need to combat the lies that are being said to them each and every day.”
Hamilton encouraged pro-lifers to have a presence on social media and counter the lies that are circulated there.
“So to all the women who feel like they’re not ready for this, let’s be a reminder to them to be willing to try, to put themselves out there, to do what seems impossible,” she said.
Concluding, Hamilton urged: “Let us send a message of hope and love to the moms and mothers to be, and to the fathers, that they too can say to themselves: ‘I don’t need easy, I just need possible.’”
