The 21st Annual Respect Life March is scheduled for Sunday, beginning at noon.
The event will begin with a prayer service at St. Matthew Church in Tyrone.
Participants will then walk the 1.25 miles to Oak Grove Cemetery to the grave of Baby Agnes Doe for another short prayer service.
Individuals are encouraged to bring a sign; if you are unable to walk this distance, feel free to join in by driving at the end of the procession.
A hot luncheon will be served at the parish hall after the march.
St. Matthew Parishioner Pete Kreckel gave The Daily Herald an in-depth background of why participants annually walk to the gravesite of Baby Agnes Doe.
He said the remains of a female infant were discovered in an abandoned dump on Kerbaugh Road near Bellwood on February 5, 1987.
After months of investigation, the remains of the baby were turned over to the Knights of Columbus.
A “Mass of the Angels” was celebrated on June 20, 1987, giving the child the dignified Christian burial that she deserved. She was then given the name Baby Agnes Doe, after Saint Agnes, the patron Saint of little girls.
Her remains were then buried in a plot of land set aside by St. Matthew Parish that would serve as a focal point for Pro-Life activities.
The march is sponsored by the St. Gregory Council No. 1218 Knights of Columbus.
For more information, contact Kreckel at 684-2898 or email pharmcanoe@aol.com.