Moms who have received help from pregnancy resource centers are counteracting false and misleading attacks on pro-life charities with their real-life stories of hope.
Speaking with Fox News, Alana Jenkins said she thought she needed an abortion to succeed in life when she walked into the Life First pregnancy center in Manassas, Virginia.
Pregnant with her first child, Jenkins said she was afraid of being unable to financially support a child or keep up with her career as a professional athlete. But her perspective changed completely after visiting the pro-life organization.
“I had already decided of having an abortion, but my husband and I decided that we wanted to get more information and a sonogram at the time to confirm I was pregnant,” she told the news outlet. “… when I came in, I really, firmly believed for my success, I needed an abortion. The place I was in my life, financially as a professional athlete back then, success and my plan ahead did not call for a kid.”
But the staff and volunteers at Life First reassured her of their support and offered information about her unborn son that caused her to rethink her decision. Jenkins chose life, and her son is now 11. She and her husband since have had four more children, according to the report.
“When I was given the support, the education, the resources, all that, it was just amazing to see a different perspective,” Jenkins told Fox News “… So I challenge women to get out there and get educated, and go to a center, take advantage of centers that offer their services.”
Another mother, Niya, who received help from Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center in Washington, D.C., told a similar story after witnessing abortion activists attack the center first-hand during its annual banquet in December.
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Several abortion activists sat with her and listened to her story during the banquet. She remembered one even remarking about how cute her baby girl was. Then, they began to stand up and yell, disrupting the event by screaming false accusations and profanity. One accused pro-lifers of “judging” women, saying they have “blood on your f—— hands, every last m—–f—— one of you a——!” Another man screamed, “You don’t give a f— about pregnant people.”
Niya said her experience with the pro-life organization was the exact opposite. They did not judge her, they simply offered her information and support. And because of them, she said she chose life for her daughter, Amara, according to the report.
After visiting the pregnancy center, Niya said her counselor followed up to check in on her. Later, she said the woman sent her a baby gift, and they remain in contact.
“Don’t be scared!” she said, encouraging women in similar situations to visit pregnancy resource centers.
“Nobody changed my mind on anything like that,” Niya told Fox News. “I changed my own mind because I knew deep down inside that I wasn’t built for abortion. I really didn’t want to, but I also wasn’t ready at the same time. So, don’t be scared. Do what you want to do. Don’t let nobody tell you what’s right for you.”
The pregnancy centers provide their services for free to pregnant and parenting mothers and children, including information and counseling, pregnancy tests, parenting classes and material resources such as baby clothes, diapers, formula, car seats, cribs and playpens. First Care Women’s Health also employs a registered nurse who provides ultrasounds, pregnancy tests and STI tests, according to the report. And both work with other community organizations and charities to make sure families have what they need to thrive.
“We want to be that safe place, that nonjudgmental place, that caring place that she can come and learn about all her options,” said Pam Dudley, director of the First Care center in Woodbridge. “She may feel like abortion is her only option when she first comes in, but we can explain that she has does other options and how that would work.”
Pregnancy resource centers exist to support mothers and babies and save lives. Most are small, local organizations that operate with a small staff, volunteers and private donations. They serve millions of people every year across the U.S., but their work has been under increasing attack by politicians like U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, and radical pro-abortion activists.
According to an analysis by the Charlotte Lozier Institute, pregnancy resource centers have helped save more than 800,000 unborn babies from abortion since 2016. The research found U.S. pregnancy resource centers served about 2 million people in 2019, providing more than 730,000 pregnancy tests, nearly half a million ultrasounds, 1.3 million packs of diapers and more than 2 million baby outfits, all for free.
