Recently at a funeral luncheon of Mary Lois Kubat, while sitting at a table with my mother and re-connecting with cousins, I received a tap on my left shoulder. After turning, I saw an older woman named Mary Clare Mendick who asked, "Do you remember your third grade teacher?" With a funny feeling inside I said, "No…" She replied, "I was your third grade teacher!" I remember hoping she wouldn’t tell my mother what kind of boy I was in class. Let bygones be bygones, I figured. I asked, "Wasn’t I a good boy?" She answered, "Yes, but I never thought that you would be a priest!"
Having successfully dodged the bullet, I invited her to dine at our table. Over the next few minutes she began talking about her 13 children and the sorrow of losing two more, one at 5 months. She said, "Many people tell me I shouldn’t feel bad having lost two children since I have 13 others!" She always rejected that logic, saying all babies are created in the image and likeness of God and are precious in His sight. "Oh, how I miss them!"
Yes, every human life is precious and created in the image and likeness of God. Ironically, at the very time she was speaking, I received the call I was hoping and praying for. The previous evening I talked to a woman who discovered that a fellow co-worker was scheduled to have an abortion in the morning. Her mother suggested calling me.
I told her friend that Catholic Social Services would help her find a safe place to live, a doctor, literally everything needed to save her baby, for this child was created in the image and likeness of God and is precious in His eyes. I immediately started a prayer chain asking for prayers and penance. I later discovered a 5-year-old girl gave up her snacks for the day while telling mommy, "Tell that woman I’ll take the baby!"
Sadly, I learned that when her father discovered the woman was pregnant, he reacted with anger, calling her names that cannot be repeated. She was given a choice: an abortion or eviction. Not having the means to pay for an apartment, she scheduled the abortion. Sadder still, an aunt agreed to give her a ride.
The very next morning while in chapel, I received a text message from her friend informing me she went to the abortion mill but while on the table, changed her mind. Thank God for our prayer warriors, supporters, and for St. Gianna’s Women’s Homes!
While meeting with Curt Krueger, the woman asked him, "Where is Father Kubat? I want to show him the pictures (ultrasound pictures) of my little baby!" At St. Gianna’s she will be given the love and support that was lacking in her life.
Finally, remember to always be on your best behavior because you never know when you might run into your third grade teacher!
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