How One Brother’s Sacrifice Saved Baby Gabriel

Many of you have heard the story of McKenna West. She is the surrogate mother who recently fought against the biological parents of the baby she was carrying in order to save his life. After discovering a heart condition at her 20-week ultrasound, the biological parents demanded an abortion. West refused. A literal fight for the baby’s life ensued. By the grace of God, West was successful. The baby she fought to carry to term has since been born alive and is receiving the care he needs.

There is one detail to this story, though, that didn’t make the headlines. It’s a seemingly small detail, but it stopped me in my tracks. And it’s quite likely one of the biggest reasons why baby Gabriel is here today: the quiet but profound actions of West’s brother.

In an interview with Live Action, West shared that after learning of the parents’ request to terminate the pregnancy, she felt overwhelmed. She knew she had signed a contract that included a termination clause. She was also a single mother in a difficult financial situation. She believed she had no choice but to follow the wishes of the baby’s biological parents.

That is, until she received a call from her brother. He knew she had been struggling with the decision to abort. He knew she did not believe it was right. And he didn’t believe it was right either. Without any biological connection to the baby in his sister’s womb, he offered to adopt the child. If that gave her a way out, he was willing to step up and raise a stranger’s baby as his own.

It was at that point in her retelling of the story that I got chills. He set one of the most beautiful and sacrificial examples of what it means to be truly pro-life. It was not just a slogan on social media or a “babies’ lives matter” sign at a march. Her brother embodied the cause by living it out.

He knew baby Gabriel’s life had value, and he was willing to do whatever he could to protect it. And in that circumstance, he found something he could physically do to save the baby’s life.

As of now, baby Gabriel is in the custody of his biological parents, not West’s family. But that offer from her brother gave West the courage and confidence to keep fighting and to find a way to save the baby.

The actions of West’s brother should be a lesson for all of us. If we believe in a mission or a cause that is bigger than ourselves, sometimes living that mission means taking action that costs us something. Sometimes it means getting involved in someone else’s crisis and being willing to carry a burden that is not ours.

His selflessness helped save a life, and it convicted me. What am I doing locally for moms who find themselves unexpectedly expecting? What am I doing for the woman who is scared after receiving a fetal diagnosis in an already fragile moment of her life? There are pregnancy centers in cities across the country that need help. They need volunteers. They need donations. They need people willing to show up and serve. They operate in a mission field that never stops, much like the role of parenthood itself.

We can learn a lesson from the actions of West’s brother and become the hands and feet of this mission. There is perhaps no stronger way to encourage the pro-life movement than to actively support not only the cause, but also the mother carrying the burden. Be the village these mothers need. Be willing to live out the pro-life message when the moment arrives.

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