The passing of a staunch pro-life advocate — who dedicated her life to the cause — leaves a void both locally and beyond.
Helen Gohsler, a longtime Scranton resident, died April 30 at the age of 95, according to her obituary published in the Times-Tribune.
Gohsler served as the president of the Scranton Chapter of Pennsylvanians for Human Life for 37 years until her retirement in 2019.
Helen Gohsler, President of the Scranton Chapter of Pennsylvanians For Human Life for the past 27 years, received the 2009 Pennsylvania Pro-Life Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2009 Pennsylvania Pro-Life Conference and Banquet at the Hilton Scranton and Convention Center.
Helen Gohsler and Frank Germain stand next to an anti-abortion poster in Scranton on Nov. 6, 1999.
Helen Gohsler hugs Dolores Lavelle during Pennsylvanians for Human Life 45th anniversary celebration retirement dinner.
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Helen Gohsler, President of the Scranton Chapter of Pennsylvanians For Human Life for the past 27 years, received the 2009 Pennsylvania Pro-Life Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2009 Pennsylvania Pro-Life Conference and Banquet at the Hilton Scranton and Convention Center.
Her tenure with the organization began in 1975 when she held the role of public relations director. She was elected as vice president soon after, and in 1982, the president position fell into her lap when the organization’s third president, Denise Neary, resigned.
During her tenure with Pennsylvanians for Human Life, Gohsler helped orchestrate protests against at least three presidential candidates, including Al Gore, Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale and his running mate, Geraldine Ferraro.
Maria Gallagher, executive director of the Harrisburg-based Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation, recalled Gohsler’s strength and conviction.
“Helen Gohsler was a true champion of the most vulnerable among us,” Gallagher said. “She empowered women with her farsighted ideals and the Pennsylvania pro-life movement is much better off as a result of her leadership. She was quite a spitfire and a great influence on me in terms of her writing. She was a great communicator and she will be greatly missed.”
Gohsler received the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Achievement Award in 2009, a decade before retiring — an honor Gallagher stressed was more than deserved.
“She really could have won that award more than once because she had more than one lifetime of service to the pro-life movement,” Gallagher said.
Gallagher remembers being inspired by Gohsler’s leadership when the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation held a convention in Scranton
“I looked at (her) and thought to myself, ‘I want to be Helen when I grow up,’” Gallagher said. “She was that kind of person.”
Gohsler also possessed a knack for connecting with women and providing sound advice to make a positive difference in the lives, Gallagher noted.
“I think she was ahead of her time in a lot of respects,” Gallagher said. “She understood that in order to achieve the cause of life, you really had to reach out to pregnant women and empower them so they could make life-affirming decisions for themselves and their families. She was a trailblazer as far as that was concerned.”
Gallagher believes Gohsler provided a shining template for other pro-life advocates to follow.
“Helen left a tremendous legacy for Scranton, and for Pennsylvanians for Human Life,” she said. “They’re following in her footsteps, and there are new generations of leaders dedicated to preserving life and working toward the day when all human life is cherished and protected in Pennsylvania.”