Ken Hiegel, a parishioner with Our Lady of the Holy Souls Church in Little Rock, received the Bishop Andrew J. McDonald Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Arkansas Right to Life Sept. 13. The surprise presentation coincided with the organization’s annual luncheon at Christ the King Church in Little Rock.
Hiegel, just the fourth person so honored, has devoted 40 years to the pro-life cause and is one of the founders of the Arkansas Right to Life organization, for which he served as both its president and vice president.
Other activities have included sidewalk counseling, volunteering at the annual March for Life and Arkansas Right to Life booth at the Arkansas State Fair, spearheading letter-writing rallies, pro-life dinners and giving countless pro-life presentations. He’s also lobbied on behalf of pro-life candidates at the state and federal level. He still serves on the board of directors of Arkansas Right to Life representing the Second Congressional District.
Jacki Ragan, state organizational development director for National Right to Life in Washington, D.C., and former diocesan respect life director, presented Hiegel the award. Ragan was herself a lifetime achievement award winner in 2003.
Other recipients include the award’s namesake, the late Bishop McDonald, in 2000 and former diocesan respect life director Anne Dierks in 2005.
