STATE RIGHT TO LIFE MEETS AT FRUITLAND

FRUITLAND -- Nationally known motivational speaker Penny Lea will keynote the annual Missouri Right to Life Convention to be held April 11 through 13 in Fruitland.

Several hundred people are expected to attend convention events. Programs are open to the public and registration is open at the door.

The convention will be held at the Bavarian Halle. The state convention was last held in Southeast Missouri in 1988.

Unlike many conventions, the Right to Life Convention is open to anyone who wants to attend, said Teresa LeGrand of Right to Life. It is an opportunity for people to see what the anti-abortion movement is about, she said.

Lea, who lives in North Carolina, is a 15-year veteran of motivational speaking. She talks about challenges to today's youth, including peer pressure to be sexually active, and the dangers of drugs and alcohol.

Lea was in Cape Girardeau for a prayer vigil in August 1996, the same day President Bill Clinton visited the city.

During this trip Lea will be speaking at schools and to church groups from Tuesday through April 12.

On Friday she will speak at 6:30 p.m. at LaCroix United Methodist Church for a gathering of teens and parents. The event is open to the public.

On April 12, Lea will speak from 9 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. during a Youth Track. And at 7 p.m. Lea will keynote a banquet. Gospel singers Terrie Rose from Marble Hill and Kenna Cossin from Branson will perform.

In addition to Lea, a variety of other speakers are planned. The Rev. Paul Schenk, chief of operations at the American Center of Law and Justice, will discuss legal ramifications of picketing, sidewalk counseling and school prayer. Tom Marzen, general counsel of the National Legal Center for the Medically Dependent and Disabled, will discuss assisted suicide. Dr. Henry Clever will discuss new developments in chemical abortion, including the morning-after pill and RU-46.

On April 13, two church services, a Catholic Mass and a Protestant service, will be held. Both groups will gather for a final prayer and closing song. The church services will begin at 9 a.m. at the Bavarian Halle.