Home » Northern Illinois Life Task Force
2024 March for Life
This year’s March for Life will be held on Wednesday, April 17, 2024 in Springfield, IL. The day’s schedule is as follows:
The Illinois Capitol in Springfield, IL is the current site of the March for Life.
10:00 a.m. Matins service held at Trinity Lutheran Church, 220 S. 2nd St., Springfield, IL 62701. Rev. Tim Scharr (President of the LCMS Southern Illinois District) will serve as preacher. Overflow seating will be available in the ballroom of the State House Inn (101 E Adams St).
After the service: Light lunch will be served to churchgoers (for a donation of $5/person) in the ballroom of the State House Inn, 101 E Adams St., Springfield, IL 62701.
Noon Rally/Program in front of the Lincoln statue on the front lawn of the State Capitol
1:00 p.m. Illinois March for Life
Participants are encouraged to look up their state representatives’ offices and pay them a visit after the March to express your support for life.
Here is a map which shows the locations of the rally and March:
Illinois March for Life Site Map 2024
Some notes on the map:
- Trinity Lutheran Church, where the Matins prayer service will be held, is in the NE quadrant (where it says “East Monroe,” one block away from the rally start).
- The State House Inn & Conference Center (offers overflow seating during the Matins service and serves as the lunch location) is located on the N section of the map (where it says “E Adams St,” two blocks directly north of the capitol building). If coming by car or van, parking is available at the State House Inn (use the lot just west of the inn, across First Street from the hotel building).
For more information and to RSVP your attendance for the days’ events (optional) – Illinois March for Life
Some NID members present at the 2023 March for Life
Transportation: No organized group transportation is planned for the NID at this time. If there is localized interest in traveling together, there may be opportunity to rent a couple of full-sized passenger vans or simply caravan down in personal vehicles. Please reach out to Pastor Cory Estby ASAP at pastorestby@yahoo.com with your interest in a carpool/rideshare opportunity.
Consider bringing a bus to the 2024 Illinois March for Life! By removing the hurdle of transportation, you may enable many more people to attend than would have been possible otherwise. If your group plans to bring a bus, some additional information is provided below. Please make note: the link in #2 below is a “public” option (which will go on the Illinois March for Life website in order for ANYONE to add themselves to the list), The link in #3 below is a “private” option (intending NO information will be shared publicly – schools, children, etc.
- Click HERE to view the bus packet for the 2024 Illinois March for Life!
- If you are bringing a bus and would like people from your area to be able to join you on it, Illinois March for Life would love to help you advertise it! You will want to fill out this form.
- If you are bringing a bus from a school, or you would prefer that your bus information is not shared on the the Illinois March for Life website, please fill out this form.
As you make plans and reach out to schools and parents, it may be worthwhile to note that as of January 2023, public school students in the state of Illinois are allowed one excused absence per year to spend on civic engagement! What better way to spend this day than at the 2024 Illinois March for Life?
Lutherans were among the thousands who peaceably gathered to march around the Illinois State Capitol in 2023.
Unable to attend the March for Life in person? Consider tolling the bells instead! Churches across Illinois will be tolling their bells for either 56 minutes or 56 tolls to mourn the 56,000 children whose lives were ended by abortion in Illinois, beginning at 1:00 p.m. (the same time the March for Life is scheduled to begin). If you can’t make it to Springfield, please consider asking your church to participate in this way!
If you’re looking for ways to promote the 2024 Illinois March for Life, promotional graphics are available HERE.
Rev. Cory Estby Serves as Chair of NID Life Task Force
With the guidance and recommendation of District staff along with Life Task Force members, a District Vice-President serves as triennial chair (with the other three regional VP’s serving as advisory helpers) in rotation for the LCMS Northern Illinois District Life Task Force. Pastor Estby serves in the role of chairman into 2025. Read more at nidnews.org/nid-life-task-force. Pastor Estby serves at Zion Lutheran Church in Grant Park, IL. He may be reached at pastorestby@yahoo.com.
Looking to the future
Life ministry has become an established ongoing mission of the LCMS Northern Illinois District. Educating people about life issues and providing opportunities to put faith into action is the dual focus. Established in 2015 by District President Dan Gilbert, the group was given the broad assignment of creating a pro-life climate within the NID over an initial two-year period and then establishing a continued presence moving forward.
The Life Task Force utilizes District communication vehicles (NID website nidlcms.org, NID Email Newsletter and the LCMS Northern Illinois District’s Facebook page).
“Our success over the initial two-year assignment has moved us to continue our efforts,” the NID Life Task Force shared. “We’ll be educating pastors and their congregations about current topics, such as the dangerous trend by institutions to not allow health professionals to ‘conscientiously object’ and abstain from tasks that violate their Christian beliefs. We’ll be sharing helpful resources and issuing calls to action to LCMS members throughout the district.”
Additionally, the Life Task Force is calling on Lutherans to support their local crisis pregnancy center. The following websites are offered for locating faith-based pregnancy resource centers by zip code:
The NID Life Task Force has formally accepted the following mission statement:
Affirming God’s will to create and sustain mortal life in the anticipation of life in Christ, the Northern Illinois District Life Task Force’s mission is to engage and equip congregations in the NID to be witnesses for life, enabled to speak, care, and educate.
