Knights of Columbus and Sisters of Life Unite to Co-Sponsor Fourth Annual Life Fest

Life Fest: A powerful gathering for all ages, will take place the morning of the 2026 National March for Life and include a rally, Mass, dynamic speakers, musical performances and more!

NEW HAVEN, Conn., Dec. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Knights of Columbus and Sisters of Life are teaming up again to bring thousands together for a powerful pre-March for Life rally on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. Life Fest will kick off with live music from the Sisters of Life's band, 'All the Living,' with Fr. Isaiah, CFR, Damascus Worship, followed by a Eucharistic procession and ending with Holy Mass. The morning event will also include opportunities for confession, first-class relic veneration, and powerful witnesses, including renowned speaker Lila Rose.

Life Fest is an opportunity each year to gather together, celebrate and give thanks to God for the gift of life and receive the truth of His mercy. This year's event will be held at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, located at 201 Waterfront St., in Oxon Hill, Maryland. Doors open at 6:00 a.m., and seating will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.

Archbishop William E. Lori of the Diocese of Baltimore, who also serves as the Supreme Chaplain of the Knights of Columbus, is the main celebrant and the Most Reverend Bishop Joseph Espaillat, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of New York, is the homilist. 

2026 marks the fourth year of the Knights of Columbus and Sisters of Life hosting the annual event.

"We are honored to partner again with the Sisters of Life, and we hope many will join us as we prayerfully prepare our hearts to march for life in our nation's capitol," said Patrick Kelly, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus. "Blessed Michael McGivney founded the Knights with a vision to serve the most vulnerable, which in our society includes unborn children and their mothers. Today, Knights work tirelessly to carry out this mission and proclaim the dignity of every human life. Life Fest is a powerful opportunity to find solidarity with thousands of others who share that belief and draw strength from our common faith, especially the Eucharist."

"We look forward to a fourth Life Fest in collaboration with the Knights of Columbus," said Mother Mary Concepta, S.V., Superior General of the Sisters of Life. "Coming together to praise and give thanks to the Lord of Life is always powerful and reinvigorates our hope. We are living in a culture that is hurting and divided, where the goodness of the human person is questioned. Every human heart needs to know that they are good, that they matter and that God desires a relationship with each of us. Every woman who is pregnant needs to know that she is not alone and support is available to her. Every woman who has experienced the suffering of abortion needs to know that Christ knows her, loves her, and longs to forgive and make all things new. We must offer a witness to a broken world: that life is possible. Love is possible."

Life Fest attendees will have the opportunity to venerate first-class relics of Pope St. John Paul II; St. Teresa of Calcutta, St. Carlo Acutis, Blessed Ulma family, Blessed Michael McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus; and more.

Musical performances will feature 'All the Living,' a group composed of Sisters of Life, Damascus Worship; Father Isaiah, CFR, and dynamic speakers including Lila Rose and Bishop Espaillat.

For more information about Life Fest or to register, visit lifefestrally.com. Clergy should register separately at lifefest2026clergy.eventbrite.com. Join the Knights of Columbus and Sisters of Life to prepare your hearts and stand for life, together. Love is the answer.

About the Knights of Columbus
In 1882, Blessed Michael McGivney, a young parish priest in New Haven, Connecticut, founded the Knights of Columbus to serve the needs of a largely immigrant Catholic community. What began as a small fraternal benefit society has since grown into the world's premier lay Catholic men's organization, with more than 2.1 million members in over 16,800 local councils. As members of one of the world's leading charitable organizations, Knights donated more than 48 million service hours and over $197 million for worthy causes in their communities in 2024. The Knights of Columbus also offers a range of life insurance products to members and their families. Knights of Columbus Insurance has more than $124 billion* of life insurance in force. In addition, the organization offers investment services in accord with Catholic social teaching through its wholly owned subsidiary, Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors, which holds more than $29 billion** in assets under management. Guided by the principles of charity, unity, fraternity and patriotism, the Knights of Columbus is committed to strengthening Catholic families and parishes, by enabling men to grow in their faith and put that faith into action through service to all in need. To learn more or to join the Knights of Columbus, please visit kofc.org/join.

*As of June 30, 2025
**As of June 30, 2025

About the Sisters of Life
The Sisters of Life is a Catholic religious community of women founded in New York in 1991 by John Cardinal O'Connor. Consecrated to Jesus, the Lord of Life, they commit themselves to the protection of human life and to the promotion of new life in Christ, acknowledging the sacredness of every person, and sharing the good news of God's abundant mercy. In this way, they seek to help reveal to each person their own innate goodness, the particular love God has for them, and the call to a life of abundant truth, joy and hope. Immersed in Eucharistic prayer within a vibrant community life, their missions include caring for vulnerable pregnant women and their unborn children, inviting those wounded by abortion into the healing mercy of Jesus, fostering a culture of life through evangelization, retreat works, spiritual accompaniment of college students, and upholding the beauty of marriage and family life. For more information, visit sistersoflife.org. 

SOURCE Knights of Columbus