Babies Go To Congress to Defend Pregnancy Centers

National   |   Virginia Cline   |   Oct 5, 2011   |   5:25PM   |   Washington, DC

There’s nothing that captures people’s attention in a more positive way than the happy sounds of a baby. Today on Capitol Hill, those sounds – translated by moms in some cases– will declare: “Pregnancy Help Centers are good for America!”

Pregnancy help centers are a model for informed choice, giving women complete information about adoption and parenting, as well as all the risks associated with abortion and the details of human development. But pregnancy centers are under siege. Planned Parenthood, NARAL, and their cronies have been working hard to discredit the lifesaving work of pregnancy centers.

Abortion advocates, who lose money when a woman chooses life for her child, claim that centers trick women into having babies. In a recent “report” NARAL claimed that billboards that read: “Pregnant? Scared? Need Help? Call 800-395-HELP” are deceptive because the women answering the hotline do not refer for abortions.

Every woman should have all the information she needs to protect her child. No woman should feel so alone, coerced, or hopeless that she ends her child’s life through abortion. Women have been thanking pregnancy centers for this life-affirming help for four decades and we wanted to give these women an opportunity to tell their stories to Congress. These are real mothers with real names and real appreciation.

Heartbeat’s Babies Go to Congress® gives women and babies who were served and saved by pregnancy help centers an opportunity to share their gratitude for the services they received which helped them welcome new life.

This will be Heartbeat’s eighth time on Capitol Hill with a group of moms and babies. Heartbeat has facilitated meetings for moms and babies with more than 150 congressional members and staffers since 2009. These women, who are so grateful for the pregnancy centers, want everyone to know, and nobody says it better.

Kathy Cornell is coming to D.C. to talk about her untimely pregnancy when she was a teen. Kathy was counseled strongly by a government-based clinic to abort her son.  She wants to tell Congress that she wished she had known about pregnancy centers in 1975. Twice she was scheduled to abort her son, and twice the abortion facility failed to end his life – which greatly relieved Kathy. She discovered later that her first pregnancy would be her only pregnancy. Kathy’s son, Gary, has joined Heartbeat’s Babies Go to Congress to tell Congress that he is grateful for his life.

Kelly McKown also struggled with a teen pregnancy in 1995. Pressured by her boyfriend to abort her baby, she wished she had known about pregnancy help centers. Fortunately, Kelly had a family who rallied around her and welcomed her son.  Now as a successful professional, and knowing that not everyone has a supportive family, Kelly wants to give back, so she volunteers at her local pregnancy center. She recently told her son about her nonprofit work and he responded by saying, “Thank you for not aborting me.” Kelly and her son will tell Congress that “Pregnancy Help Centers are good for America.”

Susan Thibault immediately regretted her abortion. She felt strongly that the abortion clinic counselor gave her no other choice. During her second pregnancy, she sought out the help of a pregnancy center. “I was amazed to see my baby’s heart beating steadily at almost 7 weeks, and I also realized that my previous abortion had really taken a little life,” she said. “I needed emotional support to choose life for this baby and I found that in the compassion, encouragement, and unconditional love at Tender Care.” Susan will share her firsthand account of the invaluable work of the pregnancy center with her elected officials through Heartbeat’s Babies Go to Congress.

Heartbeat International is a nonprofit Christian association of about 1,200 pregnancy centers, maternity homes, and adoption agencies that operate with private donations from individuals, churches, and foundations. These charitable organizations are made up of thousands of compassionate people with a passion for life. Their loving service to women facing an untimely pregnancy made it possible for these mothers to share their happy stories on Capitol Hill.

LifeNews.com:  Virginia Cline is the Director of Public Relations & Public Policy for Heartbeat International.