A 'living wall' memorial for unborn children is planned in Arkansas, designed by artist Lakey Goff. The memorial will be on state property, but funding is being raised through public donations. A 5K race was held to kick off fundraising efforts, with participation from various local and national groups. The project's budget is estimated at $1 million, with nearly $30,000 raised as of November 2025. The memorial aims to provide a place of healing for women who have had abortions, inspired by the artist's faith.
20 days ago
Arkansas artist Lakey Goff has designed a unique "living wall" monument to honor the unborn, selected following a 2023 state bill mandating such a memorial on public property.1 2 The structure aims to provide a space for healing, particularly for women who have experienced abortions, amid ongoing pro-life efforts in the state.1 2
The memorial integrates natural elements like plants, birds, and recorded sounds of Arkansas waterfalls to symbolize life and vitality.1 2 It features hexagonal stone pavers where visitors can inscribe names, dates, and Scriptures related to lost children, fostering remembrance and repentance.1 2
Goff's concept emerged from a personal spiritual encounter, where she felt guided by the Holy Spirit to create the wall after praying about the 2023 legislation.1 2 She describes the design as divinely inspired, drawing from biblical imagery like the "sound of many waters" for Jesus' voice and Isaiah 61 for themes of healing shame and freeing captives.1 2
Though not previously active in pro-life advocacy, Goff views the monument as an act of national repentance for 50 years of abortions, positioning Arkansas as a leader in honoring life.1 2 The living wall is intended to be the first of its kind in the U.S., blending art, nature, and faith to create an immersive experience of vitality rather than death.1 2
Funding for the $1 million project must come from private donations, as it will sit on state land without public funds.1 2 Efforts began in May 2024 and have raised nearly $30,000 so far, supported by groups like LIFE Runners, Caring Hearts Pregnancy Center, and Arkansas Right to Life.1 2
On November 22, 2025, the first annual Living Wall 5K race launched at sunrise in Little Rock's Two Rivers Park, drawing participants to boost awareness and funds.1 2 Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders proclaimed November as a month to remember the unborn, aligning with these initiatives.1 2
Goff envisions the site as a place of encounter with Jesus, offering healing, repentance, and freedom from guilt for women, families, and communities.1 2 She emphasizes that even during planning, participants have begun experiencing emotional restoration, underscoring the project's spiritual purpose.1 2
The memorial serves as a pledge against future abortions, honoring innocent lives lost while promoting a culture of life through its dynamic, living elements.1 2 Goff hopes visitors leave transformed, recognizing Jesus as the "risen King" who seeks the lost.1 2
Investigate Catholic teachings on abortion and memorials for the unborn
The Catholic Church's teaching on abortion is rooted in the unwavering affirmation of the sanctity of human life from the moment of conception. This doctrine, consistently upheld across centuries, declares that direct abortion—willed either as an end or as a means—is a grave moral evil and an intrinsically illicit act that no circumstance, purpose, or law can justify. As articulated in the encyclical Evangelium Vitae, human life is sacred and inviolable at every stage, including the initial phase in the womb, where the unborn child is already a person under God's providence, as echoed in Scripture: "Your eyes beheld my unformed substance" (Ps 139:16). The Church has condemned abortion since the first century, viewing it as contrary to the commandment "You shall not kill," extended logically to the innocent unborn.
This teaching draws from natural law, Sacred Scripture, Tradition, and the ordinary Magisterium. The Didache, an early Christian text, explicitly prohibits abortion: "You shall not kill the embryo by abortion." Vatican II's Gaudium et Spes reinforces this by stating that life must be protected with utmost care from conception, labeling abortion and infanticide as "abominable crimes." Popes from Pius XI to John Paul II have reaffirmed this without variation. In Casti Connubii, Pius XI decried the taking of life in the womb as a "very grave crime," rejecting justifications based on medical, social, or eugenic grounds. John XXIII emphasized life's sacredness from its beginning due to God's creative activity, while Paul VI declared the doctrine "unchanged and unchangeable." John Paul II, in Evangelium Vitae, invoked his authority to declare direct abortion a "grave moral disorder," the deliberate killing of an innocent human being, entailing automatic excommunication for those who procure it (Canon 1398).
The gravity of abortion stems from its nature as murder of the most innocent, obscuring the moral sense in society and signaling a crisis where evil is called good. It harms not only the child but also parents and society, though the Church extends mercy, urging conversion and emphasizing that formal cooperation incurs grave penalties. Civil law must protect the unborn's right to life, providing sanctions for violations, as failing to do so undermines justice. Prenatal diagnostics, if used eugenically to enable selective abortion, are reprehensible, promoting an inhumane mentality that devalues fragile life. The Church supports women facing post-abortion trauma, welcoming them to seek forgiveness and reconciliation, recognizing their pain while defending life's right.
While Catholic teachings do not prescribe specific "memorials" like monuments or dedicated rites exclusively for aborted unborn children, the Church's broader doctrine on the dead, particularly infants who die without baptism, emphasizes prayer, remembrance, and dignified disposition as acts of mercy and hope in God's salvific will. These principles apply to the unborn, affirming their personhood and entrusting them to divine mercy.
The Church invites trust in God's mercy for children who die without baptism, including those lost to abortion or miscarriage, encouraging prayers for their salvation. The Catechism notes that God's desire for all to be saved (1 Tim 2:4) and Jesus' tenderness toward children (Mk 10:14) ground hope for their path to salvation, even without baptism. Liturgical developments post-Vatican II reflect this: the Roman Missal includes a Funeral Mass for unbaptized infants whose parents intended baptism, and special prayers in the Ordo Exsequiarum entrust them to God's care, expressing cautious hope rather than despair. This lex orandi, lex credendi shapes the Church's faith, avoiding the outdated limbo theory—which was never dogmatic—and focusing on mercy. The Holy Innocents, unbaptized yet venerated as martyrs, exemplify this remembrance.
Respect for the dead extends to bodily remains, including fetal remains. The Church recommends burial or cremation in sacred places to foster ongoing prayer and communal remembrance, as the faithful departed remain part of the Mystical Body. Cemeteries become sites for spiritual works of mercy, like praying for the dead. For miscarried or aborted fetuses, especially those under 17 weeks, cremation is permissible if burial is impracticable due to reasonable causes, such as medical or social necessities, without moral reprobation. This ensures the remains are not scattered but treated with dignity, allowing families to grieve and remember.
In cases of prenatal loss, the Church promotes accompaniment to process mourning as part of a shared journey of love. Prenatal hospice care and comfort measures help parents hold and love their child, even briefly, leaving an indelible mark and affirming motherhood. Such support counters cultural pressures toward abortion and aids healing, turning grief into advocacy for life. Annually, January 22 (or 23) is a day of penance in U.S. dioceses for abortion's violations, with a Mass for Peace and Justice, fostering communal prayer and restoration of legal protections.
Theological reflection, as in the International Theological Commission's document, connects these practices to core truths: God's universal salvific will, Christ's mediation, and original sin's effects, while hoping for coherence in affirming life from conception. Though sources do not detail public memorials like "living walls," they underscore private and liturgical remembrance—prayers, funerals, and visits—as essential for healing and justice.
Catholic teachings unequivocally condemn abortion as a grave offense against life, upheld by Scripture, Tradition, and Magisterium, while calling for mercy and societal protection of the vulnerable. For the unborn lost to abortion, the Church offers hope through prayer, dignified rites, and accompaniment, entrusting them to God's mercy and encouraging remembrance as a path to reconciliation and pro-life witness. These doctrines invite all to cherish life in its frailest forms, promoting a culture of encounter over discard.