Bella’s Gift With Sen. Rick Santorum

This is family policy matter program is produced by the North Carolina family policy Council of profamily research and education organization dedicated to strengthening and preserving the family enough in the studio.

Here's John Rushton, president of the North Carolina family policy Council and thank you for joining us this week for family policy matters. It is my pleasure to welcome to the program.

Former US Sen. from Pennsylvania and 2012 presidential candidate, the Hon. Rick Santorum. In addition to being a husband and father of seven children and a former member of the United States Senate.

Santorum is a champion when it comes to promoting and defending the sanctity of human life, religious liberty and the freedoms we enjoy as citizens of the greatest nation on the planet.

He is cofounder and cochair of patriot voices are grassroots and online community of Americans who are working together to affect positive change in our culture. Sen. Santorum recently released a brand-new book, which he co-authored with his wife Karen entitled Ella's gift how one little girl transformed our family and inspired a nation and we will be talking with Sen. Santorum about that book today. Before we begin, I want to take a quick moment to mention how excited we are to have Sen. Santorum as the keynote speaker at the North Carolina family policy Council's upcoming major speakers dinner in Raleigh the evening of Thursday, March 26. You can learn more about this dinner event on our website@ncfamily.org again. FNC family.org and with that introduction Sen. Santorum. It is a great honor to speak with you today. Thanks much for being with us on family policy matters. Thank you very much appreciated.

Thanks for all the great work you do and there is a pleasure working with you folks are the last election a stronger fit Sen. down well. We appreciate your leadership role in our country and just how outspoken you are is set in promoting the sanctity of human life, religious liberty interest freedoms that we enjoy in this country is, we begin Sen. Santorum tell us about your precious six-year-old daughter Bella and talk if you would little bit about what inspired you and your wife Karen to write the book that you did about Ella, well Dallas area is comprised of initiatives that will was born at the time they are youngest was seven years old.

We had six other six children at the time and we were last surprised that we really expect another child in that late pregnancy. They start to fail. The right to something wrong and of course that what they do is baluster they said well you know you have an abortion at now.

They'll know who I am and they say what we just have to tell you that we just cover our tracks actively outline my responses course while we knew she was there was a girl that point with my daughter was a trouble why what why would Killinger help and an inner just as someone who you don't know to you live you live through something quote you, having lived through that and just from scratch or anything. Why, why is it that 20 to children who are 10 years old have a problem.

We do everything we can to save them that if the little child of the home does he have the radio thing as well.

We can get rid of this child and we welcome Belle into our arms and she was a little thing to 3 pounds and she was in the intensive care unit at four days afterwards they did came back to us with genetic results. They told her she was going to die.

She had a disorder called trisomy 18 which was code incompatible with life and they told us to prepare for that and not we have a weed did everything we could, and I would rather pray and pray with during and Yoshi didn't die. She actually was doing very well so we took her home on hospice care and not we just decided not to wait for her to die, but to celebrate her life that to do whatever we could, she would welcome your family. Appreciate every moment we had with her. 6 1/2 years.

Beautiful, beautiful story and a great testament you will stand for life in him in killing his will in the book you describe. And I really appreciate your transparency and invulnerability. In doing so, would you describe how during the first several months of Bella's life.

You didn't really feel like you were loving her the way that you should talk about that. If you would, and what changed your perspective and how you viewed and responded to her things going… Along was a little bit of history. Eventually, at six children. We actually have a set of child before Bella Gabriel at a similar situation where he was diagnosed in the world is having a condition it was code incompatible with life and so we we did everything we could to save it but that he was born prematurely and he did die and it was a guy for psychic gut wrenching, it was still the worst thing that ever happened and it is very very tough slog for both parents and meet you want to to pull ourselves out of having a child born and live just a few hours and then have to signify you while you're holding your ears on your arms and that I thought I was you hit the reply but and part of it was I didn't want to walk down that path that I had walked down and and feeling that pain and hurt that they know from the love that you have for that child itself. Part of me was still saying okay hold back a little bit here will hurt so much, and then another part was how I healed from that and way healed from buffer.

Gabriel was really to put up put my life in a it is here will probably want to order great force of my life that you have to think of things not just from the standpoint of what's going on your butt from the eternal perspective that it was a comfort to me knowing that my son was in heaven and that and that he was with the Lord in that ultimately that's what every father once for every one of his children knows our life. Your no matter whether it's two hours or or 100 years is brought up with.

In the end, and in at the expanse of time and and and so what matters the most is eternity and SOI II started to think just in terms of well okay I'm okay if she dies because I know she's can it be okay, and though she still be with the Lord.

It and and what I found was that holding back that love was not going to help me hurt any less and that while we do think in terms of eternal still human and we have to live in the world.

We can't we can't remove ourselves from that world is. It's not healthy to do so. If you have to lived as Chrysler you know with only God fully human, but we live fully human and and as well as keeping our eye on 23rd. Well I'll tell you personally. I can relate to that of my wife and I have two precious children in between the board for our daughter and her son.

She had three miscarriages and so we experienced the loss of three children that we look forward to meeting someday in heaven and I know a lot of our listeners have gone through similar circumstances. I think the message you and Karen have so graciously provided with the story ends in the book Bella's good after such an important thing that the so many of our listeners I think would be able to relate to one of the many stories that I love in the book Karen talks about the data. Bella was released from the hospital when the doctor went through the laundry list of risks associated with children who have trisomy 18 Bella's condition and then as it says in the book. He leaned forward and told you that despite all of that, there was still hope and that Bella would very much write her own story how important was that moment for you and for Karen in terms of giving you a vision and a hopeful, Bella's future alert. What sets our lives. Just as medical care and all the things that that we can't provide. Her but but loving her and committing to being hopeful and optimistic with this little girl. I mean even though she's she's impaired.

She knows a minute I can tell you. And when I walk in and see your online up with a smile before she responds right away and what you know that feeling for God or for little down. She's good-looking, what's wrong she admits it's it's it's like it. It's those basic human emotions to feed off somebody. And when you have hope in your committed in love. You just you just injected into that we were injecting into our daughter. The medicine she needed to help fight in and story arc. What do you and Karen hope the readers will take away from Bella's story, particularly other parents who have special needs children, but I would say one like us it earlier. You have to attend your marriage. We got referred numbers aside 87% of all marriages of what you have severely disabled child at the divorce. You have to care for your marriage because if your marriage is a strong, then, that all the other things that are going on regular are going to be much, much, much harder at and that doesn't mean that it's easy and and that's a very raw because we don't sugarcoat it. Week we let folks see probably more unlucky was I can't believe you let people hear you speak itself. Some people do things that went on in your family but we really wanted to be really wanted to be authentic so people could actually see that it's not easy. It's always you. You look at these photos guys run for president and a senator everything start right now know it's not great it's not easy.

It's hard and but it's worth it. And naturally the kids. It is hard to his work.

That is a cost, but it is a blessing. It is a gift and aunt Bill wanted to write a book to encourage people to fight for their children and fight for their people learn the medical system when that went to work quickly if they have severe cognitive or physical disabilities and in many will just write the boxes, not your soil, not a life worth living.

We heard that over again. Although she won't have a life worth living. That's just well as a amazing life, then it is they start much more work with a powerful powerful statement about the sanctity and value of every human life Sen. unlucky switchgear for just a moment before we conclude men thank you so much for sharing about the budget so I know our listeners will be very interested in in getting a copy of that but I will talk with you, just very briefly about what has inspired you to serve in public office. Of course she served two terms as a US senator from 1995 to 2007, you served in the state legislature before that in you also course ran for president 2012. You are now involved in a national grassroots effort to repatriate voices in your known for your tireless grassroots campaign style. In fact, I can testify personally to that is you will not have an opportunity to do some door-to-door canvassing together know there's a lot of the day before the 2014 general election and I'll have to admit is energized as I was about that whole experience. I had a tough time keeping up with you what has inspired you to serve in public office, and what motivates you to continue to do so even seeking the highest office in our land, president of the United States. Well, I'm very blessed are the greatest in the family of immigrants like that was limited to this country in ER reminded me on more than one occasion the privilege it is to be an American and more that I grew up and saw how special America was an and I just felt like I had to be a part of making sure that this great country was listing to continue on for for future generations that I was the first generation of American in Oxford felt like a little special responsibility to make this country even stronger and is I'll be honest, this is is not grown in and seeing this country change. It is the it puts a lot of my steps to know that things are not going the way they should be going with our culture. The opportunities for people economically are not what they used to be. I and you look at it and were America is in its whether it's on an ascendancy or defend our heart to be sending an and that's that sympathetic?

Right now and I just I personally just can't stomach the idea that on my watch America with would not continue to be on the rise in America would not continue to be that shining city on the hill and so I guess your God motivates us to do certain things and calls us to do certain things in each is always put that on my heart that this was this was a big responsibility.

For me this was something that that I felt personally responsible to do something about an and worked very hard throughout my life the Trotta make a difference.

Thank you for doing what you do and were nearly out of time for this week. Please coalitions where they can go to learn more about and get a copy of Bella's gift we can go to a Bella's gift book.com you can also just go to any local bookstores or Amazon and get it there night courage year that this is a great book for healing for great book for marriages. But the great book to understand the love that that we need to share in an note what will transform this country.

Again, I do that if you have a doctor or pediatrician or obstetrician or somebody cares for children after you read the book please show that copy of the book without election Tom, thank you so much for being with us on family policy matters and for sharing the story of your amazing gullibility, and please pass all gorge along to bellow into your life Karen and your family were so grateful for you and the leadership that you take in our nation and again just so much appreciate your time with us on family policy matters that is looking for to back North Carolina wonderful well. We look forward to seeing you two and before we conclude. I just want to mention one more time that Sen. Santorum is speaking up north Carolina family policy Council's major speakers dinner in Raleigh on March 26 if you'd like to learn more about this exciting event in attend, please visit our website@mcfamily.org again@ncfamily.org or you can contact our office by phone at 919-807-0800 again@198070806 family policy matters is information and analysis, future of the North Carolina family policy Council join us weekly discussion on policy issues affecting the family you have questions or comments, please contact 91 907-0800 visit our website and single-family.org and