Thousands Gather to Celebrate the Joy of Human Life

W H A T | Annual Cross the Bridge for Life
W H E N | Saturday, June 1, 9 a.m. t-shirt distribution; 10 a.m. walk and festival
W H E R E | Riverboat Row Festival Area in Newport, Ky.
W H O | More than 3,000 Participants

Release Date:  May 29, 2024
Thousands Gather to Celebrate the Joy of Human Life

The 2024 Cross the Bridge for Life will take place on Saturday, June 1, in Newport, Ky. Thousands of people from both sides of the Ohio River will come together for a family festival and to walk along the Ohio River to celebrate the beautiful gift of human life, at all its stages, regardless of age or ability. Bishop John Iffert of the Diocese of Covington will all take part in the festival and walk.

This year, the Purple People Bridge is closed to walkers, but the celebration will continue. T-shirts (while they last) will be distributed at 9 a.m. at Riverboat Row, in Newport. The event will be held rain or shine. Any changes to the schedule will be posted the day of the event on the Facebook page: www.facebook.com/CTBforLife/. The festival will include live music by Easter Rising, free face painting and balloon artists. Free water, refreshments and pizza will be available.

At 10 a.m. the walk begins with a short program of prayer led by Bishop Iffert, the Pledge of Allegiance recited by the American Heritage Girls and the singing of the National Anthem by Grace and Paul Dell Aquilla. The emcee for the event is Anna Mitchell of Sacred Heart Radio. After the program, bagpipers from the Ancient Order of Hibernians and an American Heritage Girls color guard will lead walkers along the Ohio River.

This event is organized by more than 20 area pro-life organizations that work to raise awareness of the value of human life. More information about the event and the coalition of sponsors can be found at www.CrossTheBridgeForLife.org. The Diocese of Covington and Archdiocese of Cincinnati are proud sponsors of Cross the Bridge for Life.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Covington is comprised of more than 90,000 Catholics with 48 parishes and five missions, 37 Catholic primary and secondary schools and one Catholic university. Within the diocese around 11,000 students are under Catholic instruction. 

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati is the 51^st largest Catholic diocese in the country, with around 435,000 Catholics, and has the fifth largest Catholic school system in terms of enrollment with nearly 40,000 students.  The 19-county territory includes 206 canonical parishes organized into 57 Families of Parishes, and 109 Catholic primary and secondary schools.