A Woman and Two Children

A woman in her twenties came out of Dr. Emily abortion clinic and we struck up a conversation. She had decided to keep her baby - mostly because she had discovered that she was already 18 weeks pregnant. Praise God!


After I referred her to our pregnancy centers for help and began going through common sidewalk- techniques like fetal development, the harm abortion may cause, and the fact that there is a way around the obstacles facing her pregnancy, I began to get to know her a little bit.


Her young son, who she had actually brought with her to the clinic, overheard her talking about her 'husband' with which she has been for 11 years. He was quick to interrupt her and inform me that, "She isn't married though."

I'm not sure why the child said that, but perhaps in his innocence he could sense the immorality of the situation. Maybe, in the same way, he had a similar influence on his mother's decision to keep the baby. I've found that many times, the youngest women we see are most receptive to our message because I think there may be a more innocent conscience working on them.

God only knows the ultimate reason why she changed her mind and decided to keep her baby, but I'm sure her son will be welcoming of their new family member.

Talent WELL Wasted.....

Hello Readers,

It is with Great excitement that I write to you all! My name is Megan and I am the latest intern with EMC Frontline. I come from the rolling hill and farms of western Kentucky where I grew up as the third of nine awesome children. Needless to say, the very lifestyle of our family radiates a deep respect for life and a passion for putting belief into action. As a 22 year-old with a Bachelor's of Science degree in Chemistry with an emphasis in medicine, I feel that I have a unique responsibility to reveal the truth about the human person with in the womb and to speak out against medical treatment that is degrading and detrimental to women's holistic health.

My past experiences in the pro-life movement have truly shaped and illuminated God's call for me to commit this part of my life to learning to minister with EMC Frontline. With the help of many dear friends, I was able to start and grow a campus pro-life group at Murray State University. We participated in conferences, set up demonstrations and educated campus with speakers and events that engaged and challenged the apathy that often runs rampant at college.

These first days at EMC Frontline have consisted of sidewalk counseling at Dr. Emily's abortion clinic in the Bronx. I have been blessed to be mentored by my fellow interns and I am confident that with God's help I will become His instrument on the streets... speaking love and hope.

It was on the streets that I was engaged in conversation with a clinic escort. She asked about where I was from and how I ended up in New York. When she found out that I had a B.S. in Chemistry she was appalled that I was not teaching or furthering my education in this field.

"It is such a waste of talent to spend your time here when you could be making a REAL difference...," were her words to me.

Her words did not shake me. I am making a difference in a real and tangible way with EMC Frontline. I am learning how to love and counsel parents in crisis pregnancies. I am growing as a person of prayer and courage. And most of all, I am taking part in God's great work of defending LIFE! Though I am only just days into this experience, I consider my work here with EMC Frontline as... Talent WELL wasted !

Talk You Through This

I have been doing a long-term Internship with Expectant Mother Care, I can honestly tell you that it has been the most worthwhile year and a half of my life.

What is the best thing about the EMC Pro-life Internship? Oh that's easy! So many people from all over the world come to this one house, in this one organization, in this one city and learn to save lives from certain death! Wait, that's not the best part! The most fantastic part is that when they leave EMC, and return to home, these well trained young pro-lifers are equipped to save lives in their own communities. Imagine the implications!

I sat on the couch on a mild winter evening, I was home in California visiting family for Christmas. Suddenly my phone range, it was two dear friends, one was frantic and in tears. “Heather, my friend just texted me, she made a mistake and now she’s pregnant. She says she has to get an abortion! What do I do?!?” Right away my EMC training kicked in. “Calm down! Everything is going to be ok, but you need to be calm because she is scared and panicking and she needs you to be her rock…don‘t worry I‘ll talk you through this!” went the conversation.

We made a plan, her friend was to visit her at her apartment the next day and I would stop by. I counseled her at my friends dinning room table and everything went really well! I am more than happy to tell you all that my new friend chose LIFE for her unborn child on that day in California! Where before there was fear and shame, there is now joy and anticipation. She has already had her first sonogram and will start her prenatal care shortly.

I am so grateful for all that I have learned from EMC. To think that my training in NYC, has saved a life on the other side of the county! All Glory to God!

Help to Others Goes a Long Way

Two weeks ago, a woman came into our center in Brooklyn, who is married with three children. She came for a sonogram. Her spirit portrayed a stressful individual screaming for help. Her husband had just lost his job and was still waiting for money for unemployment. Which meant that they were behind a full month in rent and utilities.

This is a strong and ambitious woman. After talking with her for I discovered she has dreams of her own and is taking being a mother seriously. She is trying her very best at life.

She lost her medical coverage and needed to buy milk and food for her children that day.. She was 2 months pregnant. She didn't really want to abort her baby, but she was overwhelmed with where her life was. The stress was too much to take on. She needed help.
That's where Linda and I came in .
Linda worked with her first by giving her the sonogram while talking with her. Then Linda calls me in the back room to further consult with her. We talk for a while and she tells me all her anxieties, fears, and problems.

One by one, I work them out with her. I tell Linda what she needs and Linda immediately gets on the phone to call all the connections she knows personally to help this woman. I make calls as well.

The woman leaves still parent leaning, but not fully. I call her 4 days later to check up on her and she is still scared. Linda and I set her up an appointment with the Catholic Charity. 2 days later I get a frantic call from her telling me she is going to get the abortion. That its all too much.

I call Linda and tell her the situation. Linda calls the Catholic Case workers back and tell them to work with this lady. They get in touch with her. I call her 4 days after that to see how she is, and she tells me that her mother has stepped in and wants to help. And that she is going to keep her baby !

This story is a perfect example of a woman who is trying her best. She is doing her part, but it's still too much for her. She needs others to step in and help. With the work of 3 individuals in her life, look what we all accomplished. This baby's life is spared, cause the mother had help. Help to others goes a long way.

I am so thankful and privileged to work with EMC. I am thankful that Chris Slattery is the founder and keeper of this organization.

A Tragic Decision

Under a tree, in a cemetery, I heard a young lady share of how she was literally forced to have a legal abortion. Her child wasn't given a choice, and neither was she. For her child, there was no funeral, no memorial. Had there been a gravesite with a tombstone, the epitaph would only have the date of death, for her child had never been born.

Her child did not have a memorial, but a few yards away was an indistinct tombstone in Odd Fellows Cemetery in East Los Angeles. That tombstone says that 17,000 people are buried there, but the official count is 16,433. In the eulogy that President Ronald Reagan wrote for the funeral of the 16,433 unborn Americans, he

"recalled President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, saying, 'Just as the
terrible toll of Gettysburg can be traced to a tragic decision of a divided
Supreme Court, here also the deaths can be mourned. Once again, a whole
category of human beings has been ruled outside the protection of the law by a
court ruling, which passed with our deepest moral convictions. Like you, I am
convinced that these decisions cannot long endure." *

The decision that Ronald Reagan was referring to was the U.S. Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade. In 2011, at least three celebrations in New York City marked the endurance of this decision. At Expectant Mother Care, we see compassionate education help women to make a more informed decision than the nine U.S. Supreme Court Justices made in 1973.

*Linda Rapattoni, United Press International, The Modesto Bee, Monday, October 7, 1985 http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1948&dat=19851007&id=tikuAAAAIBAJ&sjid=5NQFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4349,4405546

"I learned so much today"

Her face expressed astonishment. With gratitude in her voice, she said, “I learned so much today,” and then, after hanging on every word that we had shared, she left.

She had come to Expectant Mother Care because she had had intercourse the night before. As soon as I heard her say that she originally came wanting, “Plan B,” a list of terms and brand names used to describe the hormones came to my mind, and how each one was deceptive in its own manner. Oral contraception, emergency contraception, the morning-after pill, back-up birth control, emergency birth control, and the brand names Plan B One-Step, Ella, and Next Choice. Had she walked into an establishment that financially benefitted from selling the drug, they probably would have sold her a mega-dose of hormones, without telling her that oral contraceptives are a risk factor for breast cancer. An abortion clinic might have even given it to her for free, knowing the statistics at which such contraceptives fail.

Thankfully, instead of arriving at an abortion clinic, she had come to EMC. Instead of being encouraged along an uninformed lifestyle of unhealthy choices, at EMC she learned “so much” to help her make truly healthy decisions.

After hearing that her son had repeatedly asked her for a brother or sister, I mentioned that by giving birth to her first child before the age of thirty, she had decreased her risk of getting breast cancer. I mentioned to her that, should any of her friends become pregnant, she should remember to tell them that. If she ever needs to verify that fact, it’s on the American Cancer Society’s website.

She had been shown how her risk of getting an STD could increase exponentially if she had multiple partners. She seemed to like the idea of living without the risk of getting an STD or getting pregnant outside of marriage. All of the facts pointed in one direction, and so I summarized them in a simple statement. “Wait until you get married…”

My prayer is that she will find a man whose love is selfless and a man who loves her like Christ loved the Church. Also that he would marry her before having sex with her. My prayer is that one day she will be able to announce the coming of a brother or sister to her son, and a son or daughter to her husband.

http://www.all.org/article/index/id/MjQ1Mg/

http://americanlifeleague.stores.yahoo.net/conguidtopil.html

http://www.cancer.org/Cancer/BreastCancer/DetailedGuide/breast-cancer-risk-factors

With Life There is Hope

I was following up on a girl I had spoken with about a month ago and thank God she was doing excellently! She has moved back to New Jersey and is receiving prenatal care, and she was also in great spirits when I talked with her. This is in great contrast to when we originally spoke and she was crying, holding a fetal model of a 16 week baby, which is how far along she was.

I met her when she was very fragile, but over our phone conversation I could sense an entirely different person - one full of confidence and life. Her relationship with her boyfriend was even much better than it was before.

In the choice for life, very few times does everything work out perfectly the way it has for this young lady in terms of relationships and material welfare. But we are assured that when we make decisions that we are right and in line with our own conscience - those are choices we can live with joyfully, even if it makes life more difficult. We can not promise that everything will be easy for the mother, but we can promise that if she does what God wants (and most often they know what God wants), He'll take care of her.

Teenage Pregnancy

Today I want to talk about pregnancy on teenagers. It is really hard talking to 14, 15 or 16 year old pregnant girls who are experiencing situations that they shouldn't. Every pregnant woman, is a women in state of need. Women need the man’s support and the children need a solid family for a stable growth. Pregnancy should be within a formed family, as so does sexual intercourse.

Once I was counseling a 15 year old girl and I had to remind myself her age because her appearance, dress and make-up made her seemed older. Sometimes they are girls in an adult bodies, or girls trying to look people who are not. Many of them are led or misled by men older than themselves and so on. The danger in them is maturity, far away at these ages.

We live in a society where pleasure has a leading role. Where everything seems to be easy and okay. Teenagers are having sex for pleasure forgetting responsibility behind. The fact of a growing percentage of teenage pregnancy alerts that there is something we are not doing well. And we’ll pay this in the future.

Christian and human values are needed to be taught , as well as sex education. Family has a really important role for not letting these girls unescorted in the savage society in which we live.

Behind the make-up face hides a girl who needs to be loved and educated, so she can grow up and mature, and when that happens, form her family and give the same to her children. Transmitting values and love among generations.

Obligation

Last Wednesday I was working in front of Emily's abortion clinic, in the Bronx. I was surprised when the security guard approached me to chat. I see him weekly and he doesn't show great sympathy on me. We spoke for 2 minutes about the Football Club Barcelona (it often happens when you are living in the city where the best soccer team in the world plays) and for 20 minutes about abortion. Before we had that conversation, every time I saw him I thought that he may not had that many opportunities in his life and needed to work there for the salary despite the activities of the clinic. Terrible mistake.

He explained me that he was a volunteer in the clinic and that he didn't earn money by doing this. He worked there because he believed in abortion on women as a right. I wonder if it's true information but is not relevant. He argued his views saying that when abortion was illegal women practiced it in their homes, killing the babies and being exposed to death too. He also said that an unwanted children condemned women.

I answered him exposing all my believes and left him with no arguments. It was a peaceful conversation and there was no disrespect with each other. I was more aware than ever of the importance of looking at the face of God instead of giving Him the back. People are forgetting the importance of life and society is becoming selfish and without values.

Nowadays they don't easily show you the importance of human life and the real way to love others, the opposite. Since I had been showed all of this I feel obligated to help others as others helped me, it's an obligation for all catholic.

Trouble in the Bronx’s center

Few weeks ago we had an unpleasant incident in the EMC office located in the Bronx. A woman was talking about her pregnancy with the director of the center while her boyfriend was sitting in the waiting room.

The trouble began when the boy heard something of the conversation his girlfriend was holding . He was surprised by what he had heard and started asking the couple sitting next to him about the center. They told him we were not an abortion facility and that we were showing his girlfriend the importance of human life.

Straightaway the boy walked into the room and forced the girlfriend to leave the place. He did not allow her to say a word and got her out of the room. A 23 year old man full of hate and aggression. The director tried to stop them so she could re-enter and keep the conversation going, but she was terrorized and dominated by the violent reaction of her boyfriend. After several threats and obscene phrases, he left the office with his girlfriend and closed the door, leaving his stamp identity by hitting the door glass with his fist and breaking it.

It was a reality check for woman, a reality check for truth, a reality check to the training and education, a reality check for life and definitely a reality check to all those values that we fight for every day.

Obedience

I stand outside of the abortion clinic, Dr. Emily's, here in the Bronx on Mondays,Tuesdays, and Fridays to let girls going in know that they have other options. Cold weather is most definitely a challenge for me. I can lifeguard in over 100 degree heat with no problems or complaints. But dealing with the cold is an extraordinary task to ask my body.

That said, I would stand outside of and have stood outside of this abortion clinic during a downfall blizzard for the sake of communicating to these precious girls that they don't have to get an abortion. There are other alternatives. There is help. There is support. And that is through the Lord Jesus Christ and his EMC centers. He has called me to be there at 7:30 in the morning, rain or shine.

This particular day last week, it was snowing and cold. But standing outside of Dr. Emily's I got to meet a girl coming out of the clinic. She tried to get an abortion but they wouldn't accept her insurance.

Because I was already standing outside of the gates, I caught her as she came out and she was very,very upset. She yelled at me. But when she did, she interrogated me about our center. I began to tell her she can get help. As I was speaking to her, her anger turned to tears. Big ones. I gave her the Bronx Center number. As well as my cell. I talked to her 2 days ago. She is going to come in for a sonogram.
It's just a matter of being obedient to what God has called me to do. No matter what it may be.

Being His Hands

I worked in our Center in Brooklyn yesterday. Linda is the director. She is literally, the most "hands on" person I know. She is also one of the most Christ-like persons that I know.

A Brooklyn girl came in with a friend who wanted an abortion. The reason being because her grandmother told her she didn't want the child. Also, the girl doesn't have a job. So there were 2 problems with this pregnancy, in the girl's mind. Linda loses no time.

With the girls permission she gets the her grandmother on the phone, to simply talk with her and let her know more about the pregnancy. Linda was gentle and patient with this woman. They talked on the phone for about 20 minutes. By the end of the conversation, the grandmother was open and willing for her daughter's pregnancy. Linda communicated to us that she was simply scared. It seems all the grandmother needed was for someone to out of love tell her what's going on, and to be in support of this baby.Next, Linda loses no time.

She gets on the phone with a connection she has near where the girl lives for a possible job. She talks to them on the phone. She gives information to the girl. She tells the girl she is going to have to work, and work hard. The girl agrees and understands.

Both girls leave our center together, with the most hopeful energy. They seemed lighthearted and full of excitement, like they were ready for the next thing. Linda brought about that energy. She took something that was already there, and brought it to light. She is a prime example of how we all need to be. How I need to be. Christ was shining all throughout her in this particular scenario. To Him be the glory.

Baby Stanley

I couldn't help but stop by and share a picture of baby Stanley. I met his mom at Linda's office when she was six months. By that time, she was totally decided about keeping Stanley. However, she still needed encouragement and the free services of EMC. I have truly enjoyed getting to know this strong woman and we keep in touch nearly every day. Her son is so cute, and I can't wait to see him when I come to New York again. Thank you Linda, thank you EMC, thank you God, for giving me the chance to work with this wonderful woman and her baby Stanley <3

She Made It!

Last Sunday, this beautiful baby girl was born. Her name is London, and her mom wrestled with the idea of abortion for almost her entire pregnancy. From text messages from her mommy saying she was on her way to the abortion clinic to weeks without answered phone calls, I was never done worrying about this little one. The power of prayer and goodness of God prevailed against death, and one happy mommy chose life for one precious soul. May all the glory go to God our Father, for His goodness knows no end, and He alone saves the weak and conflicted. Baby London is with her mommy, daddy, and sister, as well as with us, instead of a waste bin at an abortion mill. May God bless and keep her all the days of her life. May all the praise and glory be God's alone!

Pregnancy Isn't the Only Issue with Being Sexually Active

On Monday, January 10th, a young woman came into our Brooklyn office and wanted to get an abortion. She was about 5 months pregnant. She no longer wanted to keep her baby because she didn't "want to raise the baby by herself." Her ex-boyfriend is heading to jail for 10 years due to illegal activities such as selling drugs and guns illegally. She has no job to support herself, nor are her parents involved in her life. She can't work because she is Jamaican and doesn't have her papers as of now. She is currently living with a friend whom she claims will "kick her out of the house" if she finds out she is pregnant. She has not yet started her prenatal care.

Pregnancy however, is not the only thing she has to worry about. She and her boyfriend have been sexually active since they met, however, she wasn't the only girl he was having a physical relationship with. Prior to coming to our office, she got tested for STIs and found out that she had genital herpes. She said to me "I got treated for it and now it is all gone." She was misinformed because she wasn't aware of the fact that Herpes is a virus and she will have it for the rest of her life. She was also unaware of the complications this could cause for her baby.

The first and most important thing that I learned within the first week of interning is that teenagers that come to our office only think about pregnancy. They do not consider all of the other risks such as life threatening STIs that can change their lives or even be fatal to them if left untreated. Many of them have yet to realize that sex has a price tag!

Just Another Statistic

I was with a woman a few days ago in one of our centers when she uttered the phrase that she did not want her child to become another statistic.

She was referring to her child becoming 'another lost child' so to speak - relegated to a life of poverty, strife, and possibly crime. Besides the fact that adoption is always an option for those who think their child may fare better in another family, this sort of thinking ignores the fact that society doesn't constrain us or our children to any specific fate before we are born.

In addition she was unaware that she was considering making her child the worse type of statistic: in NYC 60% of black babies are aborted. There are more abortions than live births in the black community - and this is precisely what we are called to stop. The pregnancy care centers are the only ones that are fighting this evil curse and we need the help of everyone. Lets work to make sure noone becomes another statistic.

http://www.savethelifecenters.com/

There's Something to Say About That

I had the privilege of attending the big pro life rally this past Monday. There were many speakers. They all said things that stood out in my mind. However, the tone of one of them was an emotion I am still thinking about.
This woman had been a former board member for Planned Parenthood for 5 years. She supported abortions. She talked about what happened when she was working there. She realized the day that she said to one of the other board members "this is very traumatic for the girls" referring to abortion. She then lead on to say the other board member coldly reacted back saying "No. it's . not."
As soon as this happened, she said to herself "I've got to get out of here".
To me, this symbolizes what I see day after day with these abortion clinics. Girls will come to our centers,not really knowing what we do, and once they find out, they tell us the inside of what happened to them when they went to an abortion clinic.
They say the abortion clinic workers were cold and mean. They say to us that it doesn't feel right when you are in there. They feel comfortable enough with us that they can speak freely about these things.
There is something to be said about that. There's something to say about the fact that girls trust our EMC centers. They feel that they can confide in us. However, at these abortion clinics, they report that it's hostile. These are the girls speaking, not us.
There's something to say about that.

Snow offers new professions

On December 28 I was with my co-workers in front of one of the largest abortion clinics located in the Bronx (as you know, working on the sidewalk trying to talk to women who are heading into the clinic). It was the day after the big snowfall, NYC was collapsed because the snow. It was a great satisfaction for me to see how the parking lot that the "clinic" owns was completely covered in snow and the cars could not enter. But even the Christmas season and such a heavy snowfall didn’t deter girls from coming to the center. Even though they arrived later than usual, they were there anyway.

But a most unusual thing happened during the time from 10 to 11.30, maybe for lack of work,we saw the "doctor" with his impeccable suit, with a shovel to clear snow surrounding his fantastic BMW. It really hurt to see how people get rich through work that degrades man to the lowest level. I wish the “doctor” would devote himself to clearing snow from the streets, a much more honest living and profession useful to society.

The importance of feeling loved

The results of irresponsibility, selfishness, and the loss of values that society is suffering at a more and more accelerated and disturbing pace lead us to deal daily with pregnant girls who think of abortion. When you ask them, is your partner your husband? The answer is usually no. In many cases, even pregnancy comes from a crazy night or an affair. What’s happening with us? Each one of us is unique and we value ourselves so we should give ourselves only to the person who we believe is unique to us, the ideal wife or husband that we believe will accompany us throughout our lives. If we neglect ourselves and give ourselves away to the first woman or man that comes along, we will be on our way to an unwanted pregnancy.

These and similar messages are among those we try to convey at EMC. We try to help the women we meet really think about what their daily choices say about how they see themselves and what their choices are telling the man in their lives. We try to help them consider their futures instead of enjoying the pleasure of one moment. Obviously most generally, our advice runs in direct contrast to the advice they receive at school, in their homes, on the television and radio. We hope that they will consider our message and be guided by truth, not only in their abortion decision but also in their daily lives.

30 minutes, a life less

I would like to comment today on the brevity of the abortion experience compared to the longevity of the abortion decision. A woman can go to have an abortion, enter, stay 30 min waiting, 30 more in the operation, pay $350 and forget the "problem". But In this moment, the lady doesn't know that this decision will follow and torment her for likely the rest of her life.

Maybe her decision has ended the life of a future doctor, architect or simply the person who will go with her to the supermarket or who would cook for her when she is sick. All lives are important, only God should decide about giving or taking a life.