Lynn Grandon will never forget the day that Roe v. Wade was overturned — a historic decision that she wasn’t sure would even happen in her lifetime. She was at a Passion Play in Germany with her husband, Father Doug Grandon, when she got the text from her daughter: “Roe is overturned.”
“My husband and I grabbed each other in this sea of people that’s trying to get out of this theater,” she recalled. “There were like 5,000 people there, and we were like stones, and they were passing us, looking at us like we were crazy. And we cried for like 20 minutes, just cried and cried and cried.
“I would often say to my students — I’ve had thousands of students through the years — I would often say, you have to understand these things because Roe may not end in my lifetime, but I sure hope that it will end in yours,” she said through tears. Of the many moments she can remember during her tenure as the Respect Life Denver director, “for it to have happened in [my life], before I died, was the most memorable.”
The end of Roe seems a fitting capstone — providential, even — as Grandon steps down from her post June 2 to turn her full attention from the pro-life family to her own family.
Over the years, Lynn has been a strong advocate for pro-life issues across Colorado. As the Director of the Respect Life Denver office since 2011, Lynn has led the effort to create and spread educational information on all life and bioethics issues; faithfully promoted a culture of life; successfully organized the annual Celebrate Life Rally & March in Denver attended by thousands; held annual Gospel of Life conferences and made hundreds of presentations to churches, schools and organizations covering a wide range of topics for people of all ages.
“Lynn’s leadership as the Director of the Respect Life Denver office has catapulted our efforts to the front of the national conversation about life issues,” said Darren Walsh, President & CEO of Catholic Charities of Denver. “With her unwavering and steadfast leadership, thousands of Coloradans have been touched by her dedication, vast knowledge and commitment to life.”
In today’s culture, standing up for the dignity of life often feels like an endless, uphill battle. Grandon has dedicated nearly her entire life to this cause, and she knows the feelings of discouragement and sorrow that come with undertaking such a cause well. However, if the last 11 years have taught her anything, it’s that God is always in control and he always emerges the victor.
“We have to look back on human history and on biblical history because we have to remember that we are all in this continuum and we are not able to see because we have mortal eyes,” Grandon explained. “What we have to remember is God always wins.He always triumphs, he always does things for our best, even though we can’t see it. Sometimes we just have to say, ‘God, I want to see around the corner, but I know sometimes you just don’t let me.’ We just have to trust him, that he will lead and guide us according to his plan.And his plan is always best.”
Most of the time, doing the right thing is synonymous with doing something that is hard. This is especially true of the pro-life movement. Grandon encourages those who may feel beaten down to trust that this good work is not and will not be fruitless.
“If he asks us to do really hard things, if they’re the right thing and they’re the moral thing in our lifetime, we do them,” she said. “And maybe you won’t see your reward in this life, but you’ll see it in heaven. And that’s our goal anyway. Our goal is to be with God in heaven. And he says that if we do great things for him, that we’ll have a great reward.”
Lynn started at Catholic Charities of Denver and served as the founding executive director of Lighthouse Women’s Center, which was later renamed Marisol Health, and was instrumental in growing it to two clinics. Lynn helped launch Respect Life Radio, 40 Days for Life Denver, Prayer in the Square, respectlifedenver.org and created a 200+page manual for parishes who want to begin a Respect Life ministry team. She has also appeared on EWTN and FORMED and has spoken to an international pro-life conference in Europe.
Prior to coming to Colorado, Lynn pioneered one of the first medical pregnancy centers built directly across from an abortion facility in the nation. It also became the fourth in the nation to offer perinatal hospice to families facing an adverse prenatal diagnosis. Lynn launched the Office of Respect Life and Human Dignity for the Diocese of Peoria and championed human dignity issues for college students and hospital staff members in Moscow and Vladivostok, Russia.
As perhaps the most pro-abortion state in the country, Colorado hasn’t been without its hurdles for Grandon, either — which is why her presence and work with Respect Life Denver for the past 11 years has been so instrumental in advancing the pro-life movement in the Mile High City and beyond. There’s still work to be done here in Colorado, but Grandon has laid a solid foundation and paved the way for a pro-life future.
“May our Lord find us wide awake and with our ‘lamps burning’ as brilliant witnesses in this current darkness. We’ve read the end of the book — and even though these are challenging times — God has called us to be here,” Grandon concluded. “He is still on the throne and will gain the victory.”
Lynn has agreed to continue lectures and presentations on a request basis as Catholic Charities of Denver’s “expert in residence” on Life Issues for the Archdiocese. As a result of Grandon’s decision to retire, the Celebrate Life Rally, previously scheduled for June, will not move forward. The Colorado Catholic Conference and Pro-Life Colorado will host a Colorado March for Life next April 2024 at the Denver Capitol.
Respect Life Denver is currently searching for the next director for this important ministry. If you — or someone you know — have an interest, please review the job description and requirements here and apply today!
