Thousands attended the 44th annual March for Life in Washington, D.C., Jan. 27 to show support for the sanctity of life and to advocate for those who can’t speak for themselves.

Vice President Mike Pence made March for Life history as he became the first vice president to speak at the event. “Life is winning in America, and today is a celebration in that progress,” Pence told the crowd. He urged the pro-life community to speak with gentleness and to show kindness to those who oppose efforts to save unborn lives.

“Let this movement be known for love, not anger; for compassion, not confrontation,” he said. “We must restore a culture of life in America for ourselves and our posterity.”

Lauren Green McAfee, a third-generation member of Hobby Lobby’s Green family and a Hobby Lobby corporate ambassador, said her presence at the march was an extension of her family’s involvement in the pro-life movement.

The Green family made news in 2012, when Hobby Lobby filed a lawsuit over the federal mandate to provide life-terminating drugs through employee health plans. As Christians, they felt it was a violation of conscience to follow that mandate. The case made its way to the Supreme Court, which in June 2014 ruled in favor of the company.

“My family has always held to Biblical principles, which means we value life inside and outside the womb,” McAfee said. “I’m happy to be standing with March for Life, not only because we support life in the Supreme Court, but because we support life every day.”

Many of the faces in the crowd were those of millennials. One college-age woman, Claire, told Decision: “I’m here to stick up for all walks of life—the born and unborn. This has been going on for 44 years too long. Every person deserves the right to life. Not only do I believe life begins at conception, but even the U.S. Constitution says we have a right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”