Instead of pouring milk into baby bottles, parishioners at St. Anthony of Padua Parish in Falls Church filled them with change, cash and checks to raise funds for the Diocese of Arlington’s Gabriel Project, and the parish-sponsored Mary’s House in Falls Church, which serves as a home for women in crisis pregnancies.
In about a month, the parish raised more than $8,000 through the unique fundraising effort. After Mass on Mother’s Day, 500 empty baby bottles were distributed among parishioners and collected filled with donations on Father’s Day one month later, said Lucy Gonzalez, co-chair of the Respect for Life Committee at St. Anthony Parish, which sponsored the project. With only half the bottles returned, Gonzalez noted that the amount raised should increase in the next few months.
“We’re just blown away with the amount of money they were able to collect,” said Sarah LaPierre, director of the diocesan Gabriel Project and Project Rachel. Calling the project a “labor of love,” LaPierre noted that the donations will be enough to pay for pre-natal care for at least two expectant mothers.
The rest of the funds will go toward Mary’s House, which is currently home to three pregnant women, said Gonzalez. The funds will pay for new beds in the house, among other needs, she said.
In the committee’s effort to raise awareness of the dignity of life and the human person, LaPierre said, “they are being Christ to moms.”
Training for prospective Gabriel Project volunteers will be held Sept. 8 at St. James Church in Falls Church following the 8:30 a.m. Mass. For information call 703/841-2755.

(c) Copyright 2007 by Arlington Catholic Herald