Plymouth — If anyone knows the value of love, it’s the daughter of a saint. Especially this saint.

“I wouldn’t be here without love. Life is the most sacred, precious gift anyone can give up. And I’m so happy I have the chance to speak with all of you,” said Dr. Gianna Emanuela Molla, speaking to the Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish community Feb. 1, where more than 1,000 people gathered.

“God loved her very much, and she responded to that love,” Dr. Molla said. “She is a model for all of us. It’s so great to hear of all the graces received through her intercession.”

Dr. Molla’s mother, St. Gianna Beretta Molla, was pregnant with Gianna Emmanuel in 1962, her sixth pregnancy after having three children and two miscarriages.

During her pregnancy, St. Gianna developed a fibroma on her uterus. After choosing to remove the fibroma without endangering the unborn child, St. Gianna gave birth to Gianna Emmanuel on Holy Saturday, April 21, 1962, but died seven days after giving birth.

“My mother was proclaimed a saint, first by how she lived, then by what she did,” Dr. Molla said. “Gianna is a saint of everyday life. She’s an example of pursuing a professional life, while devoted to family and living a simple life of holiness.”

Our Lady of Good Counsel Deacon Dave Carignan said it’s important for people to hear Dr. Molla’s testimony because it puts a face on what it means to be pro-life and cherish God’s gifts.

“Having Dr. Emanuela come and talk about her mother and the great witness he is to faith and virtue is something not only Our Lady of Good Counsel but everyone needs to hear,” Deacon Carignan said. “People need to hear this story to come to understand what it means to truly love, and it means a lot of us that we can host her.”

Dr. Molla grew up hearing stories about her mother through her father. She grew up and pursed a medical career in geriatrics before ending her medical career to become a speaker and advocate for the pro-life movement and give testimony to the life and will of her mother, St. Gianna Molla.

During the presentation, Molla highlighted what life was like without her mother, and how her father, who died in 2010, raised her with stories about her mother and how he was the first husband to see his wife canonized in 2004.

“People ask me, do I feel guilty about taking my mother away from my brother and sisters?” Dr. Molla said. “I tell them, my mother decided I had the same right to my life as my older brother and sisters. My dad told me, my mom’s choice was dedicated to her conscience.

“Life is the first of God’s gifts; it’s precious and nobody has the right to take away God’s gift. The human creature is a sacred creature, already full as soon as it’s conceived.”