The gift of Lilah
People
It’s nearly 14 years since her precious daughter Lilah Sophie died, but a day doesn’t go by without Andrea Bishop giving thanks that she was part of this world for 20 months.
Alongside husband Nic and daughters Jemima and Madeline, Andrea made the most of every second spent with Lilah.
They took the opportunity to have birthday parties once a month knowing she wouldn’t have years and made sure she experienced outings to the playground, shopping and gatherings with family and friends.
Lilah had an impact on everyone she met with her cheeky smile, her giggle and her ability to defy medical odds.
That’s what makes it so hard for Andrea to understand why it is legal in South Australia for an unborn child to be aborted up to full term.
Andrea Bishop at her local cafe recently.
Andrea was 23 weeks into her pregnancy when Lilah was diagnosed with a brain tumour and given a five per cent chance of survival beyond her birth.
Seven times she was “offered” an abortion and on one occasion she was told it would be a “blessing” if she miscarried.
“We would have given anything for Lilah to be born healthy and of course we ignored every offer to abort her pregnancy,” Andrea told The Southern Cross.
“And she lived a blessed, happy life and gifted us with the greatest joy.”
Andrea first shared Lilah’s story with The Southern Cross in November 2020 when a bill to extend the legalisation of abortion to full term, provided two doctors consent, was being debated in Parliament.
As a member of the Catholic Women’s League – Next Gen group and actively involved in Our Lady of Dolours Church, Kingswood (part of Emmaus parish), Andrea has continued to advocate for changing the current laws which passed by only one vote in the Upper House.
The critical point for her is termination up to 40 weeks.
“I cannot fathom the reasoning for taking the life of a perfectly healthy baby whose delivery offers no medical harm to the mother,” she said.
“While in utero you can kill that baby and yet if you do that same thing when the baby is born you’re incarcerated, it’s nonsensical.
“How can it be that in some cases the most dangerous threat to a baby’s life is to be inside it’s mother’s uterus?”
Andrea said as well as fighting for the rights of the unborn child, particularly in the third trimester, her CWL group also supports women and babies who are struggling through financial aid and donations of items to places such as Catherine House and Louise Place.
Andrea and Nic with their daughters.
Underlying everything she does is Lilah.
“Her name is mentioned every day in our home,” Andrea said.
“She is testament to the joy that a baby brings, let alone a terminally ill baby.
“People made assumptions saying ‘that’s so sad’…Yet Lilah didn’t frown, didn’t cry, her face just radiated. I never met a person who didn’t meet Lilah and smile.
“I think she’s a symbol of hope for children in palliative care and for people carrying a child who might have a serious illness.”
A teacher and leader in Catholic education for 24 years, including at Mercedes College, Our Lady Queen of Peace Alberton and St Raphael’s Parkside, Andrea’s empathy for the sick and vulnerable has led to her training to become a pastoral care consultant in the aged care sector.
Her mother, Barbara Boyle, a Catholic convert who was parish secretary at Semaphore parish for 26 years, instilled her deep faith and love of the Rosary in Andrea.
When Barbara was diagnosed with a terminal illness in 2018 and given only a few weeks to live, Andrea converted Lilah’s nursery into a bedroom for her mother.
Like Lilah, her mum defied the odds by lasting nearly six months and, like Lilah, she died in Andrea’s arms.
