March for Life Leader: Catholic Education Instilled ‘Greater Respect’ for All Life

In 2017, Katrina Gallic was a senior at the University of Mary in Bismarck, N.D, who gave a beautiful speech at the March for Life Rally in Washington, D.C. After the speech, Gallic and her classmates had the honor of leading the March.

The year before, University of Mary students found themselves caught in massive snowstorm and stopped traffic on their way home from the March for Life. Their joyful witness while they waited on the bus garnered national media attention for the pro-life cause.

Today, Gallic works for the March for Life full-time. She credits her experience at the University of Mary and attending the March for Life with opening her heart to working in the pro-life movement. We are thankful for her time in responding to our questions as a part of our “Profiles in Faithful Catholic Education” series.

Newman Society: How did your education and experience at the University of Mary help prepare you to become a leader in the pro-life movement?

Katrina Gallic: When students arrive at the University of Mary as freshmen, the first address they hear from President Monsignor Shea can be summarized by the phrase: “your life is not about you.” Your life, he explains, will only find fulfillment when it is given away in loving service to others. Each of us then has a distinct mission, a unique and necessary gift that only we can give, a gift that is not so much about what we do, but about who we are. I can say for my part that his message, which was repeated through all my years there, instilled in me a greater respect for each person’s life. No matter how small, no matter how seemingly “insignificant,” each person is a profound gift made in the image of God. And who is smaller, who is more seemingly “insignificant” than the little one in the womb? It was my experience traveling with the University of Mary students to the March for Life as a junior, and then leading the March for Life as a senior, that opened my heart to God calling me to serve Him by working full-time in the pro-life movement. I am profoundly grateful to the many, many people at the University of Mary who have so greatly impacted my life, and the lives of my classmates.

Newman Society: Can you tell us about the work you do today, and what excites you the most about it?

Katrina Gallic: Today, I am the Director of Development for the March for Life! That means I have the privilege of sharing the life-saving mission of the March for Life with pro-life people across the country and inviting them to join us in our mission. This is an exciting time for the pro-life movement and for the March for Life in particular. We are seeing passion for the cause of life building, as more eyes are opened to the horrible agenda of pro-abortion activists and politicians, and we have responded by bringing the inspirational power of the March for Life’s state march program to state capitals across the country. In 2020, we will march in Virginia on February 13th, in Connecticut on April 15th, and in Pennsylvania on May 18th. I’m excited to see the energy and positive impact that these local marches will bring to the pro-life movement at the state level!