Terri Schiavo

Family members and friends of a brain-injured Florida woman who died after U.S. courts allowed her husband to deprive her of food and water are launching an effort to observe "Terri's Day" each March 31, in recognition of the anniversary of her "death by deliberate dehydration," says a priest who is a pro-life activist.

"This third anniversary should be an occasion for all of us to both remember the injustice done to Terri, and reach out to others with prayer and concrete action when they need the kind of help Terri needed," said Bobby Schindler, Terri's brother.

Schiavo, on whom WND reported extensively, died of starvation and dehydration in March 2005, two weeks after a federal judge ruled her husband could order doctors to withhold food and water.

Her parents, Robert and Mary Schindler, battled unsuccessfully through Florida's state courts and federal courts to spare her life. She was not on artificial life support but needed a feeding tube to eat and drink, a measure her husband opposed.

Congress got involved by allowing the Schindlers to argue their case in federal court after their appeals in state courts failed. The Senate approved by unanimous consent a compromise plan that the House later endorsed and President Bush signed.

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Father Frank Pavone of Priests for Life told WND his organization is working with the Terri Schindler-Schiavo Foundation to gain recognition for the day.

"Terri's death was not the end of her fight," he said. "It was the beginning of a new chapter in the pro-life movement. I call upon all those who were moved by Terri's death to continue their courageous activism in the cause of life, and never to be silent."

"Our family continues to be consoled and uplifted by the many ways in which people honor my sister, learn from her story, and grow in compassion for all the disabled," said Suzanne Vitadamo, Terri's sister.

The organizations are encouraging churches, families, organizations and individuals to observe Terry's Day with prayers, memorial services and community outreach.

Pavone, who spent the day this year with the Terri's family, told WND today Terri's story highlights the importance of recognizing life and its value.

"In this case they took a disabled person who was not dying and said in our judgment and according to some kind of standards, this person doesn't measure up [and can die]," he told WND.

"But the fundamental question is who gets to set the standard," he said. "That's what led to the Holocaust – the idea was that there is such a thing as a life not worth living. And it's the same in Roe v. Wade."

"A human being is a human being always, not matter what," he said.

Pavone said even healthy people, if brain-injured, are in danger under the current case precedents.

"Terri left no indication that she wanted to be deprived of food and water. Yet the courts insisted that this happen. Nor was Terri lacking a family ready to care for her, without complaint. Yet they were not allowed to," he told WND earlier.

"Many people fear that they will be given all kinds of machines and medicines against their will," Pavone told WND. "What they should fear is exactly the opposite, namely, that even when they indicate that they want appropriate treatments, these will be denied them.

"Laws vary from state to state," he said, "but one of the most dangerous flaws in the law is that which considers food and water to be 'medical treatment' rather than ordinary human care. When we return from a meal, we don't say that we just 'returned from our latest medical treatment.'"

Those who advocate a "right to die" needn't worry, Pavone said. "You won't miss out on it."

Diana Lynne, who authored "Terri's Story: The Court-Ordered Death of an American Woman," reported that Terri's husband, Michael Schiavo, said his wife was suffering from bulimia nervosa at the time of the still-unexplained 1990 collapse that left her brain-injured.

Terri's family, however, in 2002 uncovered a report of a full-body bone scan done on Terri that indicated she had sustained several broken bones and led the interpreting radiologist to conclude she was the victim of abuse.

WND also reported during the case that Michael Schiavo's testimony about Terri's collapse varied from day to day. While telling the police he found her body lying face down, he later testified he found her on her back. He stated in interviews over the years she collapsed at around 5 a.m., but he told the medical examiner it was 4:30 a.m. In some versions of his account, he was awakened to the thud of Terri hitting the floor, in others he was already awake and getting out of bed "for some reason."

Michael Schiavo was awarded a judgment of $750,000 for continuing care for his wife, but WND reported court records show he spent $456,816 of the total on lawyers pursuing her death.

Terri's death, however, was lauded by Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in recent days.

Asked in a political debate to name a regret, Obama said he would like to take back his vote authorizing Congress to intervene to save the life of the brain-injured Florida woman Terri Schiavo.

"When I first arrived in the Senate that first year, we had a situation surrounding Terri Schiavo," Obama said. "And I remember how we adjourned with a unanimous agreement that eventually allowed Congress to interject itself into that decision-making process of the families. It wasn't something I was comfortable with, but it was not something that I stood on the floor and stopped," he said.

"And I think that was a mistake, and I think the American people understood that that was a mistake. And as a constitutional law professor, I knew better," Obama continued.

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Related stories:

Obama regrets intervening to save Terri Schiavo

Dad, mom fight over starving brain-damaged daughter

'No such thing as a worthless life'

WorldNetDaily has been reporting on the Terri Schiavo story since 2002 – far longer than most other national news organizations – and exposing the many troubling, scandalous, and possibly criminal, aspects of the case that to this day rarely surface in news reports. Read WorldNetDaily's unparalleled, in-depth coverage of the life-and-death fight over Terri Schiavo, including over 150 original stories and columns.