Helen Zubalik's walk from San Francisco to Washington, D.C., an eye-opening chance to reflect, pray and witness to sanctity of life

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STEUBENVILLE, Ohio — All journeys take you from one place to another.

In almost all cases, it’s a physical destination. A person starts at Point A, and they end up at Point B.

Helen Zubalik’s journey did take her from one physical destination to another, but it also took her on an emotional, mental and spiritual trip. 

For Zubalik, 20, now a non-traditional freshman at Franciscan University of Steubenville in Ohio, her journey started when a former boyfriend told her about Crossroads Pro-Life Walk Across America, a summer program in which people sign up to walk across the country — literally — giving talks and witness to the pro-life cause.

So, in the summer of 2018, Zubalik set out on foot from San Francisco with a group of nine people headed for Washington, D.C. — a 2,818-mile trek. 

“Even though (my boyfriend and I) broke up, I thought, I’m going to do this because it’s a great cause, a great spiritual journey and why not?” said Zubalik, a member of SS. Cyril & Methodius Parish in Sterling Heights. 

Zubalik signed up for the cross-country challenge in November 2017, and set out for California in mid-May. Before the journey began, walkers stayed with a host family — the Haddads, who have been hosting Crosswalk pilgrims for 20 years — getting to know their fellow travelers and discussing theology. 

It was then time to set out and walk, up to 40 miles a day, going from town to town, giving pro-life witness as they went.

“While we walked, we’d pray rosaries, the Divine Mercy Chaplet,” Zubalik said. “Sometimes, people would stop along the way and talk to us, and we’d do some street evangelization. It is really interesting to see people stop and talk to us, because they are really interested in what we’re doing. So many people were super supportive and excited to see people our age standing up for the pro-life movement.”

Crossroads walkers take one of three routes to Washington, starting from either Seattle, San Francisco or Los Angeles. A fourth route starts in Vancouver, B.C., and ends at the Canadian capital of Ottawa. Upon entering a major city, walkers typically stop to give presentations at a local parish to raise money for the trip. 

It was during one of these stops in Reno, Nev., that Zubalik had a profound experience after Mass, when a woman approached to tell her about the pain and regret of an abortion she had when she was younger. 

“I hadn’t been in the heart of the movement before that moment,” Zubalik said. “I knew abortion was wrong, biologically and theologically, but the part that really hit me was when she said how much she has since regretted it. She was trying to reverse the guilt by being super involved in the pro-life movement,” Zubalik said.

After the woman relayed her story, the woman asked Zubalik to forgive her. 

“I was like, ‘Well, of course I forgive you; God forgives you, too,’” Zubalik said. “I felt really compelled to give her a hug.”

Hearing others’ stories of redemption and forgiveness brought a new perspective for Zubalik not only about what it means to be pro-life, but how giving witness can offer a liberating sense of mercy to the people around her.

“The personal witness you bring and give to people, and what they give to you, is really touching,” Zubalik said. “It really brought together the calling of why we’re in this movement.”

Along with the opportunity to witness to her faith, Zubalik said the Crossroads walk offered her plenty of time to think and reflect upon the person she wanted to be.

“Being together with lots of people for three months straight really brought up a lot of stuff you don’t usually talk about,” Zubalik said. “The trip taught me how to be patient and how everyone is on a journey.”

Crossroads walkers break up the day into two, seven-hour shifts, with individuals walking half of one of the shifts each day. The 2,818-mile journey is completed by the team as a whole, with each walker averaging more than 1,000 personal miles. 

During the week, the walkers stay with the support vehicles, including an RV, and on weekends the team stays with a host family. 

“We do our fundraising on the weekends, giving talks after Mass,” Zubalik said. “There was a family we stayed with in St. Louis who had this really nice story about how they met and we really hit it off.”

The physical aspect of walking more than a thousand miles over the summer has given Zubalik a sense of confidence walking around the Steubenville campus.

“Aside from having massive calves, which are really helpful for walking around a very hilly campus, I feel like I've gained a lot more social skills,” Zubalik said. “Being able to talk to people I don't know, opening up to people and discussing important issues and not being afraid of the outcomes of those conversations.”

Physically walking such long distances, putting in the miles for cause, is what makes Crossroads such a unique experience, Zubalik added.

“Praying in front of abortion clinics, going to protests, and giving talks is all well and good,” Zubalik said. “But doing a walk across the country goes to show you how dedicated people are to the sanctity of life. (People) will do and go to great lengths to prove that. You don’t see pro-choice people doing walks across the country.”

Zubalik is now at Franciscan University, majoring in theology and catechetics and writing for the campus newspaper, The Troubadour.

Since completing the walk, she feels more confident in debates regarding life issues and offering a personal witness that goes beyond the theoretical and enters the practical.

“Before, I was really afraid of people ‘yelling’ at me online, but people need to know the pro-life message,” Zubalik said. “I’m considering doing the walk again, doing the northern walk in a couple of years, but I want a summer in between with my friends again.”

Zubalik was pro-life before she began her journey, but after having completed it, she is more sure than ever of her conviction. 

But even more so, Zubalik says, she better understands that the pro-life movement is about the journey of life, accompanying people through difficult situations — sometimes even their darkest days — knowing that in the end, God is there to offer strength and support.

“Going on the walk caused me to reflect on what was going on in my life and how I should have been handling things,” Zubalik said. “It caused me to go into a lot of deep, prayerful reflection at one point, begging God for the answers. And I did get the answers at one point, eventually, at the end of the walk.

“I wanted a spiritual journey from this. And that’s what I got.”