A STORY OF HOPE

Growing up, my family was very pro-life and involved with the local Chilliwack Pro-Life Society. Little did I know that along my travels, the knowledge that I collected would come in great use, time after time. After being married and having 3 kids who were all in school and independent, a troubled family friend came for a visit with his girlfriend. She left again soon after they arrived, but I thought I noticed something familiar. After chatting with him and catching up, I asked him how many months pregnant his girlfriend was. He looked at me with surprise and told me she was 6 weeks pregnant and they had an appointment for an abortion in 2 days. I asked him to cancel the appointment and wait. After talking with his girlfriend, they made an appointment for a later date. This allowed time for me to educate them on what an abortion was and the ramifications it would have. With all the information and a lot of prayer, they chose to parent their baby, and I promised that my family would come alongside and support them, not knowing what that would mean at the time. I was relieved. I kept in touch with them over the next months, encouraging them and helping to prepare for the baby. When the day came to deliver, they were as prepared as they could possibly be, thanks to the Chilliwack Pro-Life Office assisting them with diapers, stroller, crib, formula and clothing. A beautiful baby was born on a sunny day. Healthy and strong and perfect! The story did not end there. As an avid pro-lifer, my job was not done. The day after the baby was born, the mom and dad were overwhelmed, exhausted, young and not sure what to do, and they showed up at my door. That little one spent the first night and many more nights with us. I was not prepared but knew that I needed to help! Over the next three years that baby was with me often. I taught the mom how to feed, change diapers, bathe and love that little one. This was truly one of the most rewarding jobs I have ever done. God was so faithful. That baby changed lives and changed my perspective on what being pro-life really was: that we always have room to do more for moms/families that made the hard choice to keep baby, and that life is important from conception to natural death. That beautiful baby is now 14 years old and flourishing! I just get to see glimpses into the family’s life. At the baby's 3-year mark, the parents and baby were doing awesome and moved out of town. People asked if I was broken-hearted when they left. While I did miss that little one, I knew it was time - time to sit back and reflect back to that day I stuck my foot in my month and asked, “How many months pregnant is your girlfriend?”