Organizers for an anti-abortion rally held each year on the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision said they wanted to draw a younger audience.

So yesterday’s March For Life event on the grounds of the state Capitol featured for the first time a Keiki Fun Fair, as well as a healthy dose of music and speeches by young people.

"For the first time, we had a theme: "Celebrating Life for Generations to Come," said Janet Grace, executive director for Hawaii Right to Life. "We designed it for (young people) to really be more active in the pro-life movement."

Gracie Cockett, a member of the youth group Generation Joshua, spoke to the crowd about the need to try to make a difference.

"Even though we may be the minority with government officials here at the Capitol, it doesn’t mean that we as Christians can’t make an impact in the fight to protect life," said Cockett, 16, of Hawaii Kai, after her speech.

Generation Joshua is a national organization that encourages youths to stand up for Christian values through the political process. A local chapter was started two years ago, said Haley Hobson, 17, of Ewa Beach, the Hawaii president.

Alicia Bonifacio, a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Hawaii-Manoa, won a poster contest sponsored by the Foundation of Hawaii. A rendering of an adult reaching out to pull the hand of an infant out of water dominates the poster along with the words "Take my hand, not my life."

Bonifacio said she got the saying off a bumper sticker. Bonifacio said yesterday’s rally and march was the first she’s attended. "It’s encouraging," she said.

The March For Life event is held nationwide annually on the anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which established a woman’s right to an abortion. In Hawaii, abortion was decriminalized three years earlier.

Sheriffs estimated about 1,000 people attended the event.

On Friday, a smaller group of abortion rights supporters headed by the American Civil Liberties Union and Planned Parenthood of Hawaii gathered at the Capitol.