She held a sign that read "Adoption: The Loving Option" in her left hand, and a rosary in her right.

A Catholic missionary from Vietnam, MaryClare has been holding her sign at that corner every year since she moved to Lincoln in 1995.

She was among thousands of pro-life demonstrators who lined miles of O Street for an hour as part of the Lincoln Life Chain.

About a block away from MaryClare, Charles Yost's sign read "Abortion kills children." He's also a regular at the Life Chain, and demonstrated Sunday next to a Greek Orthodox priest who held an icon of Jesus.

Drivers mostly ignored or supported the protesters, with an occasional honk or thumbs-up breaking up the flow of traffic on a sunny afternoon. In his 20 years of pro-life demonstrations, Yost said he's seen a change in reception. Fewer passersby now offer middle fingers to the sign holders, who range in age from toddlers in strollers to the elderly in wheelchairs.

Robin Keralis distributed protest signs at the corner of O Street and Lyncrest Drive, next to the Lincoln Public Schools District Office site.

A member of Capitol City Christian Church, Keralis' pastor and other congregants turned out for the demonstration.

She thinks the sheer quantity of protesters and the focus of their message makes the Life Chain meaningful.

"Even if it changes one person's mind," Keralis said, "it's worthwhile."