If you know Carl, you know he loves to sit down and have a meaningful conversation over coffee (and a cookie). I had the chance to do the same, and I’d love to share some of the things we talked about.
You always carry yourself with such positivity; what keeps you going?
“I learned it from my mom; she lived to be 102. I only saw her cry two times in my life. She could fall into the biggest mess and come out like a rose. She was in control of how she saw herself in the world. I just gravitate toward like-minded people. The worst thing is to have friends who can only see the glass as half-full.”
Looking back, what moment confirmed for you that Vitae’s approach was making a real impact?
When we decided to put an 800 number at the end of our Vitae ads, we thought that might help women because it shows that we care. When a donor heard the idea, he said, ‘I’ll give you a million dollars.’ We ran the ads in Colorado and abortions dropped measurably, 57% during the four years those ads ran and live births also went up measurably.
What would you like to tell Vitae supporters?
“Life will be victorious; hang in there. Believe that God has destined this organization and ones just like it to further the kingdom, to give hope to a world that desperately needs hope. I go back to Carl Sandburg, one of my favorite poets: ‘A child is God’s belief the world should go on.’ ’’
What’s a favorite memory with someone in our Vitae family—staff, donor, or volunteer—that still inspires you?
“This is an experience I’ll never forget. 15 years ago, I got a postcard from a lady wanting to know more about the abortion issue. So, I went to visit with her and her husband. And when I arrived at the address, I thought this can’t be it. It was a little house with a leather shop at the front. So, I thought, I came all this way; I can’t go home. There’s got to be more to this story. So, I went in to see a man behind the counter that was crafting a leather belt. After I introduced myself, he said, ‘You’ll want to talk with my wife,’ and he pulled back a cloth curtain to a living area with a dirt floor. So, I sat down, and she asked me to tell her what I knew about abortion. She started crying. And her tears got bigger and bigger, and they fell to the dirt floor in a little puddle. And I thought to myself, what is the lesson here? I couldn’t let her cry any longer, so I thought it would be wise for me to leave. As I did, she handed me an envelope. Once I was about a mile away, I looked to see what was in there, and it was a dollar. That was the most important money I ever raised in my whole life. If ever there was a question about ‘should we do this?’ or ‘should we spend this?’ I would think about the lady who cried on the dirt floor and her dollar bill.”
Fun Facts about Carl
• Was raised on a dairy farm
• The family farmhouse has been passed down for 5 generations
• Was a Knights of Columbus clown and did magic tricks for children
• Has 4 children, 10 grandchildren and 1 great-grandchild
• Carpentry is his hobby
• Met his wife Carolyn, where they attended a class together and Carl challenged his professor’s position on abortion
• Goes to McDonalds or takes a drive to think
• Loves sweets
• Is writing a book to release later this year
• Loves Civil War history
If you could give pro-life people one piece of advice to help them be more successful in the fight for life what would it be?
Number 1: Learn to fight the culture war. When I look out over the horizon, I see a lot of willing warriors . . . but they’re not fighting the culture war using the right tools.
Number 2: Never stop learning. A lot of people stop learning because they’re afraid of what they’ll face. We need to be better at what we do tomorrow than what we are doing today.
What plans do you have for retirement? Or are you still planning to work in the Movement?
“I have to finish my second book, and I’m so close to getting it done. I have two maybe three other books in various stages. One which is a children’s book, it’s real stories from the 1950’s: what kids did before the era of technology; the other book is The Art and Science of Major Gift Fundraising: Making Your Donor’s Dreams Come True ; and the other one is about the Civil War.”
Above: Carl sitting in a rocking chair with a hat on that says “loving life.”
Above: Carl in his carpentry shop.
Above: Carl and Carolyn’s children and grandchildren on the “Great Wall of Landwehr.”