Photos

 

Kansas City Billboard - This billboard was up through early March 2011 on 18th Street Expressway near Kansas Avenue.  According to the Kansas Department of Transportation, 36,900 cars drive through this section of 18^th Street each day.  This board is very visible going southbound on 18^th Street, and is helping to heal many local families and marriages.  We are praying for more donors to help with this project and to help raise billboards in more areas of NE Kansas, and please click here to help with a donation.

 

Williamsburg, KS billboard

12,000 cars passed through this area of I-35 each day, just south of Kansas City near the Williamsburg exit, and we rented this board from 11/09 - 11/10.  While most billboards are lit until midnight, this billboard company agreed to keep the board lit throughout the night.  We are thankful to generous donors who continue to make these billboards like this possible. Click on the image below to see a larger view of the board:

 

Kansas City, KS billboard - October 2010 - November 2010

We recently rented a board on I-635 which is visible when you are driving south near the ext for Swartz Road, and we are very grateful to our donors for their continued assistance in protecting families from pornography!

 

Kansas City, KS Billboard - September 2010

In September of 2010, this board was on I-70 in Kansas City near the Legends, where over 40,000 cars drive through each day.  We pray that this board helped to shine the light of Christ into the darkness, exploitation and isolation from pornography.  Our sign was one of six advertisements that rotated every seven seconds on one of the best digital billboards in the Kansas City area.  The board projected through the day and night, and we are grateful to generous donors who helped make this possible.  Click on the images below to see a larger view of the board:

 

Click here if you would like to donate for more billboards.  Donations are made to the My House Initiative for the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas and are tax deductible.

Parents and young adults are asked to join together to pray a Rosary and Chaplet of Divine Mercy near Cirilla’s, a pornography store, on the first Thursday of each month from 4:00 – 5:00.  We pray for a renewal in the virtue of chastity, that women and men will be rescued from the pornography industry, and that marriages and families will be protected from pornography.  We also pray for the staff and customers of Cirilla's.  These prayer services are not to judge, condemn, or wag a finger, and please do not come if that is your motive.  The rosary is a safe distance away from the store, and inappropriate material is not visible.  

If you believe that nothing is wrong with pornography, or that it is actually good for relationships, we encourage you watch a short testimony of a ex-Playboy producer and an ex-pornography star, and to read an article called 10 Myths Exposed, which was written by a courageous woman who used to be in the pornography industry.  Women often experience sexual abuse and physical abuse while they are being filmed or photographed in pornography. 

Cirilla’s is located at 7528 State Ave. Kansas City, KS, which is next to Perkins Family Restaurant and the Kansas City Kansas Community College.  Bishop Ward Catholic High School plays its home basketball games at KCK Community College, and it is time to take a stand.  Our archdiocesan attorney has attained permission from a city attorney from Kansas City, KS for this peaceful service on land that is a public right of way.  We have also been granted permission to carry signs.  Here are photos and comments of prayer services at Cirillas:

 

October 2010 - Click on photos for a larger view, and this may take a few seconds to download at first:

It was one of the best days we have had at these prayer services, with nice weather, and a great response from people driving by.  There must have been at least 10 cars that honked their horns and gave us thumbs up, and very few had any negative response.  My parents were in town from Texas, and they joined us for the Rosary and the Chaplet of Divine Mercy.  It was great to be with Phillip and Cathy Cosby and several newcomers as well.  Let's continue praying for hope and healing for the many people who are being affected by pornography, and we look forward to next month.  If you are in the area, and would like to lead a similar prayerful witness outside of "adult" businesses or even a gas stations or bookstores that sell pornography, please let us know, and we can help you get started.  There are some simple steps to plan these events and obtain legal permissions for the locations and the ability to bring signs.  Take care and God bless, Sam Meier

 

September 2010 - Click on photos for a larger view, and this may take a few seconds to download at first:

It was rainy and windy today, and we prayed a Rosary and Chaplet of Divine Mercy together.  A lady walked up to us and said that she did not see a problem with using pornography in moderation, and said that she occasionally watches pornography with her husband.  I used to believe this as well, and I would encourage people who have thought it is not hurting anyone or OK in moderation to spend time with the beautiful teachings on love and sexuality with John Paul II's Theology of the Body, which will gives a vision of the joy and deeper intimacy that we are all looking for.  Another article that has helped with me healing is called 10 Myths Exposed on www.WhoDoesItHurt.com, which was written by a brave Christian woman who used to be in pornographic films. - God bless, Sam Meier

August 2010 - Click on photos for a larger view, and this may take a few seconds to download at first:

It was a very warm day in Kansas, and we were blessed to pray with two people that drove over an hour each way to join us.  We continue to offer prayers for better intimacy and stronger families, and that people will be rescued from the pornography industry. - God bless, Sam Meier

July 2010 - Click on photos for larger view, and this may take a few seconds to download at first:

On July 1, 2010, we were blessed to have Msgr. Michael Mullen and Fr. Scott Wallisch lead us in the rosary.  In the 4th and 6th photo, you can see a sign in front of Perkins that says "kids eat free," and I was reminded of the pain and confusion that my own exposure to pornography caused when I was 12.  I think of the many men I have counseled who started their pornography addiction because of magazines or videos that they found from their parents or at a friend's home when they were small children.  Our world desperately needs the true, good, and beautiful teachings of Theology of the Body to help people experience better joy and intimacy, and let's continue finding ways to provide hope.  - God bless, Sam Meier

October 2009 - Click on photos for larger view, and this may take a few seconds to download at first:

This is the picture from the first prayer service outside of Cirilla’s, a pornography store, on 10/29/09.  It was a steady down-pore of rain, but a good chance to pray for sexual healing.  There were tons of cars driving by, and a few nice waves and honks.  There were four of us that came, and we had a nice dinner afterwards at Perkins.

May 20, 2008 - Thank you for your prayerful support and physical presence, and through God’s grace, “Temptations” strip club has removed their request for expansion.  All together, we had 49 Catholics, both lay and religious, praying a “Rosary for Human Dignity” on our knees in front of the strip club.  We did not gather to wag fingers or judge anyone, but prayed the Sorrowful Mysteries as a witness of the hope of Jesus Christ.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with “Temptations,” it is located less than 100 yards away from the Sprint Center.  In 2009, the Sprint Center is expected to host 20,000 youth from around the country at the National Catholic Youth Conference.  

Through God’s grace and the collaboration of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, the Diocese of Kansas City – St. Joseph, and the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families, we prayed together on the evening of Tuesday, May 20th. 

Before the prayer service started, we heard that “Temptations” was removing their request for expansion, and the next day (5/21/08), we received official word from the City Council that the proposal had been removed.

After three City Council meetings when many signs indicated that the strip club’s request to serve liquor and triple its size would pass, the news on 5/21 was a great initial victory.  We are grateful for the efforts of The National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families and the Alliance Defense Fund in the City Council Meetings.

Though it was a good initial victory, the club is still open and they may attempt to expand their business in the future.  Please keep this cause in your prayers and be on the lookout for future prayer services for human dignity and sexual integrity in our area.

Marty Denzer from the Catholic Key newspaper of the Diocese of Kansas City - St. Joseph wrote a wonderful article about the event, and click here to read the story.