Daughter’s Suicide After Secret Abortion Leads Father to Activism

LifeSiteNews ^ | 2/6/06 | LifeSiteNews

[wagglebee]

CHERRY HILL, New Jersey, February 6, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Stacy Zallie ended her life at age 21, one year after undergoing a secret abortion. Although her family was close, Stacy never told them she had been pregnant and never talked about the abortion.

Her father believes it was pain over the abortion that led her to take her life. He has started a Web portal and foundation in her memory, the Stacy Zallie Foundation, that offers counseling and support to women who have had abortions.

"I knew it was a life event for her," Mr. Zallie told the CourierPost. "It was the most serious issue in that brief life of hers. I know, in my heart, it took a toll on her emotionally and mentally, that she couldn't recover from it. And it just breaks my heart that she didn't open up."

At one point Stacy asked to go in to therapy, but ended the sessions after only three months.

A successful businessman, George Zallie began the foundation after hearing women speak about the pain of living with the fallout from having an abortion, at a retreat following his daughter’s death.

"I heard guilt, remorse, loss," he recalls. "Their frankness was really astounding to me. It was helpful for me in understanding just what Stacy was going through . . . It became important to me to get the message out."

The site offers help to women who are suffering emotionally and spiritually from having ended their babies’ lives. The Foundation emphasizes the need for compassion and non-judgmental care, recognizing the depth of pain caused by abortion.

Dr. David Reardon, a post-abortion specialist and researcher, has collected extensive documentation on the effects of abortion. According to statistics, teenage girls are 10 times more likely to attempt suicide after abortion. 60 percent of women consider suicide and 28 percent attempt it after abortion.

“If I get one girl -- one girl -- to go to that site and realize that she's not alone, then it's worth it,” Mr. Zallie said.

To visit the Stacy Zallie Foundation site, go to:
http://www.stacyzallie.org

For further resources see:
http://www.afterabortion.org/

See related LifeSiteNews articles:

LifeSiteNews.com Interview with Angelina Steenstra: Coordinator of Silent No More Awareness Campaign
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2004/may/040510b.html

[wagglebee]

In retrospect, "wonderful" was probably the wrong word to use. However, I think it is admirable that the father is trying to find a way to turn the biggest tragedy he will probably every experience into a source of hope for others.

[catiwompus]

A very impressive analysis of the passage. Thank you.
I have wondered at the term "yet no mischief follow".
Your explination makes a lot of sense.

[catiwompus]

I meant to add that you can find another analysis of this passage here ;

http://www.errantskeptics.org/Exodus_21_22.htm

[generally]

"I'm not surprised by this in the least. I have long maintained the only difference between most pro-life women and most pro-choice women is their view of abortion."

I wonder if a major difference between them is whether they've ever had an unwanted pregnancy, or an unwanted pregnancy scare or have had a child. It's much easier to be pro-choice if you've never been faced with an unwanted pregnancy. It's harder to be pro-choice if you've known the joys of motherhood.

[Terriergal]

She was depressed after committing an abortion... imagine that! Why you'd think abortion was the most wonderful thing in the world to listen to the demoncrats!

Thank the Lord for what this man is doing. Give him strength and wisdom Lord.

[Terriergal]

To suggest they do in anywhere near the same proportion as lukewarm Christians or those without religion is a stretch,

Granted, they probably do have to go through a few more moments of rationalizing to make their Bible teaching go away.

[Terriergal]

a significant number of them describe themselves as evangelical. I pray they find stronger connections with other Christian women who can help them avoid premarital sex and other actions God would not approve.

Describing oneself as "being evangelical" and "being a Christian" can be two very different things, in this lukewarm laodicean church society we have nowadays. I'm convinced there are far fewer people committed to the Lord than profess it publicly.

Avoiding premarital sex is good, too... however, it's only half the battle because not everyone is going to resist temptation perfectly. Teaching people to avoiding murder to cover up a sin already committed is also good. People also need the character development to realize that covering up sin only makes it worse, no matter how terrified you are of the public humiliation of being exposed, or the hardship that may come from living with the results of your sin.

I've seen many Christians who managed to avoid premarital sex quite well and then have crappy, even abusive, marriages anyway. What counts is not "never stumbling," but learning from having stumbled, and confessing the actions as sinful.