Creative inspiration comes in so many forms and I was recently introduced to a very special pro-life work of "art" that is unlike any I've seen...And touched me deeply.
Rosemary O'Connor and Ron Van Tassel of Kankakee, Illinois are the creators of the "Little Soles" display of 3500 baby shoes representing the number of innocents slaughtered each day by legalized abortion. Originally inspired by a display of shoes of the victims of Auschwitz, Rosemary and Ron have been presenting their work for the past eight years throughout Illinois churches, schools, and conferences as a "Project of Love, Forgiveness and Healing".
The goal of Little Soles is:
... to bring about changes to not only the hearts of women who may be contemplating an abortion, but also the hearts of men who may be encouraging them to have an abortion. We are interested in affecting people of all ages with a greater respect for life. In addition, we also reach out to women who may have been misled and are now struggling after having an abortion. We want them to know that there is hope and forgiveness through Jesus Christ.
How does one come up with thousands of baby shoes? Each pair of shoes has it's own history and have come from all over the United States. They have come singly and in groups and Rosemary and Ron have been privileged to know the learn about many of the little ones who wore them.
One sad grandparent donated two sets of shoes – a pair for a girl with a girl’s name tucked inside and one for a boy with a boy’s name tucked inside. She related that her grandchild was aborted and these were the names that had been selected for the child.
This donation included a shoe for a handicapped child with a brace...
Many of the shoes tell of generations of family history...
Although Rosemary and Ron do not travel outside of Illinois with the Little Soles display, it is their hope that others will be inspired to take a similar work in their own communities. Other ways to help this effort can be found on the Little Soles website.
My gratitude to Arlene from the Coalition on Abortion Breast Cancer for introducing me to this beautiful effort.
The many different ways in which God uses us to get His messages out! So creative and inspiring and yet so sad in that there are so many shoes in the display.
ReplyDeleteVery vivid display - I pray that it touches the hearts of everyone who sees it in person or on line!
ReplyDeleteWhat an extraordinary site you've got here. Beauty will save the world and plenty of babies, too.
ReplyDeleteGod bless you.