Around Wisconsin
... UW-Madison to resume push for domestic partner benefits
... Heart patient in clinical trial using his own stem cells
... Area church exemplifies "salt and light" community
... April 3 spring general election less than three weeks away

Around the Nation
... Presidential $1 coins: the rest of the story
... 2006 report shows increase in number of assisted suicides in Oregon
... California high school student taunted for religious beliefs, accused of "hate speech"
... Amazing Grace in theaters

Around Wisconsin Family Council
... Final reminder for "Reclaiming Wisconsin for Life and Family: A Day at the Capitol"

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Around Wisconsin
... UW-Madison to resume push for domestic partner benefits
Laurie Beth Clark, UW-Madison's vice provost for faculty and staff programs and the campus coordinator for the domestic partner benefits, is contacting administrators asking for stories of people who have left or are considering leaving the university or who have decided not to accept employment at the university because of the lack of such benefits. Governor Doyle's 2007-2009 budget includes provision for health insurance benefits for all state employees, including those in the UW system. The Wisconsin legislature rejected a similar provision two years ago. Read more...

... Heart patient in clinical trial using his own stem cells
Steve Myrah of Middleton, Wisconsin, is the first heart patient in Wisconsin to participate in a stem cell clinical trial using patients' own stem cells to treat their heart disease. University of Wisconsin Hospital doctors have harvested stem cells from Myrah's bone marrow to inject into blood-deprived areas of his heart. Doctors hope that the cells will restore blood flow by stimulating the formation of new blood vessels or expanding existing ones. Read more...

... Area church exemplifies "salt and light" community
Evangel Life Center, a Madison area Assembly of God church with an average 325 weekly attendance, has hosted free medical clinics in 2004 and 2005, has a thriving youth ministry, is home to a French-speaking congregation, a food pantry, a prayer room that is open 24 hours a day, and a state-of-the-art music recording studio. Pastor John Clark believes church membership is about making a difference and calls for a commitment. "You can't be a member of this church unless you're already serving the Lord," he says. "I find that people who have had to sacrifice in life, to get an education or start a business, they are never offended by a message that calls for a commitment. They know what it takes." Read more...

... April 3 spring general election less than three weeks away
Wisconsin voters will go to the polls in less than three weeks to elect a new state supreme court justice as well as local candidates. The general spring election is April 3. FRI-WI has compiled information on the supreme court candidates. Please forward this information to friends and family. And plan to vote!

Around the Nation

... Presidential $1 coins: the rest of the story
The Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005 requires that the newly minted $1 coins with images of past presidents on one side and the Statue of Liberty on the other have "In God We Trust" on the edge of the coin rather than its face. Wisconsin Senators Herb Kohl and Russ Feingold were among the 71 co-sponsors of S.1047, the bill that the US Senate passed by unanimous consent and the House of Representatives passed on a vote of 291 to 113, with 29 representatives not voting. President Bush signed the bill as The Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005 on December 22, 2005. Of the 2005 Wisconsin congressional delegation, US Representatives Tammy Baldwin (D-Madison), Thomas Petri (R-Oshkosh), Dave Obey (D-Wausau) and Gwen Moore (D-Milwaukee) voted for the bill; Representatives F James Sensenbrenner (R-Brookfield), Paul Ryan (R-Janesville) and Mark Green (R-Green Bay) voted against it. Representative Ron Kind (D-La Crosse) did not vote.

... 2006 report shows increase in number of assisted suicides in Oregon
Late last week the Oregon Department of Human Services released its ninth annual report on Oregon's so-called "Death with Dignity Act," that permits assisted suicide in that state. The number of assisted suicides increased to 46 in 2006 from 38 in 2005. The total number of assisted suicides in Oregon since the assisted suicide legislation took effect in 1998 is now 292. Information compiled by the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide shows an overall increase in the number of assisted suicides.

... California high school student taunted for religious beliefs, accused of "hate speech"
A decision in a religious discrimination and harassment lawsuit filed on behalf of a Mormon high school student who was disciplined for saying, "That's so gay" to classmates is expected this summer. In 2002 Rebekah Rice, then a freshman at Maria Carrillo High School in Santa Rosa, California, responded with "That's so gay" to taunts from classmates, asking her if she had ten moms. Rebecca was disciplined after the school's Gay-Straight Alliance club advisor wrote her up for using offensive language. There is no evidence that the students who were taunting Rebekah were disciplined. Read more... [Editorial note: This case illustrates the reason FRI-WI opposes the bullying bill now in the legislature (SB 42). Such bills are all too often selectively enforced and the only students who are protected are the homosexual students. ALL students should be protected from bullying, not just a select group of students.]

... Amazing Grace in theaters
A new movie called “Amazing Grace” opened late last month. The film is produced by Walden Media and The Samuel Goldwyn Company, and it focuses on the lives of William Wilberforce and slave-ship-captain-turned-pastor John Newton, who wrote the hymn "Amazing Grace." Wilberforce spent 20 years the British House of Commons fighting slavery. On Feb. 23, 1807, Parliament banned the slave trade. "William Wilberforce's unmatched determination to end the British slave-trade practice continues to inspire leaders and communities throughout the world," said Sen. Mark Pryor, R-Ark., a co-sponsor of a resolution proposed in the Senate to recognize Wilberforce’s accomplishment. "However, we cannot turn a blind eye to how the slave trade has evolved into trafficking of women and children." The U.S. State Department estimated 600,000 to 800,000 people were trafficked internationally in 2006, Brownback noted. "We must continue to follow Wilberforce's example and fight for the dignity and freedom of every person," he said. "It is intolerable that 200 years after Britain banned its slave trade; there are still hundreds of thousands of victims of human trafficking who are used as bonded laborers, sex slaves, and in other horrifying capacities." "As the 200th anniversary of British slave-trade abolition approaches, we should celebrate Wilberforce's victories and use his legacy as an inspiration to renew our culture." To learn more about the movie, visit the Amazing Grace Web site. The stories can also be heard in a Focus on the Family Radio Theater production also entitled Amazing Grace.

Around Wisconsin Family Council

FINAL REMINDER FOR

"Reclaiming Wisconsin for Life and Family: A Day at the Capitol"
March 15, 2007

Limited number of places still available!

• Breakfast at Monona Terrace overlooking Lake Monona.
• Bring lunch or dine in one of Madison’s many restaurants.
• Hear state legislators, including Senator Scott Fitzgerald (R-Juneau), Senator Joe Leibham (R-Sheboygan), Representative Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa), and Representative Mark Gundrum (R-New Berlin).
• Choose breakout sessions on state issues led by The Family Research Institute of Wisconsin's CEO Julaine Appling and Pro-Life Wisconsin's Legislative Affairs Director Matt Sande.
• Meet your representatives at the State Capitol to discuss issues favorable to life and the family.

Complimentary buses will be coming from Stevens Point with a stop in Mauston and from Goerke's Corners with a stop in Johnson Creek.

Call Pro-Life Wisconsin at 262-796-1111 TODAY for more information!

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