Bob and Mary Schindler, and the pro-life community, were unprepared for the fight to save Terri. They did not then understand what they were up against. Today, the Schindlers, through their newly reorganized Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation are working to educate people on these issues. They are working with right-to-life organizations to promote and lobby for legislation that would offer greater protection to those whom some in our society would deem unworthy of continued life. They, and many others, are working to create a network of doctors, lawyers, and clergy who are knowledgeable about the legal, medical, and moral issues involved in end-of-life cases and who can be trusted to approach them from a "reverence for life" point of view.

It is clear now that the battle to protect the lives of people like Terri is best won at the very outset - by amassing the best scientific and medical evidence to support the position that even lives that seem profoundly limited are nonetheless worthwhile and human. Ultimately, this is a battle for people's hearts and minds: Once people understand that there is hope in life, even when that life is limited or entails suffering, they will be unwilling to embrace death as a solution to problems.