The Impact of Choose to Wait

Yesterday was our last day in the classroom presenting Choose to Wait for the 2009-2010 school year. We are blessed by the many lives we were able to impact through our message of truth, encouragement and empowerment. Here are a just a few of the comments students made on their anonymous feedback forms after the presentations.

"Seeing this tells me that I am showing love the right way and becoming more of a man of God." 'I feel like I am more strong in staying abstinent." -16 yr old male

"It was very helpful. I have totally changed my mind about everything. I'll never watch porn again because it was that informing to me." -16 yr old male

"It opened my eyes to wanna' wait 'til I'm married." -16 yr old, male

"I told my friend about your talk. She stopped having sex with her boyfriend and they broke up. She says it's her best choice ever." -16 yr old, female

"I never though of believing that I'm worth it. I've never thought of myself or others that way." -16 yr old, female

" Thank you for opening my eyes" -15 yr old, female

"I had been thinking that this couldn't happen to me, [pregnancy and STD's] but I know the truth now. Thank you." -unidentified student

"My boyfriend and I have been talking about it [having sex] but he said I must get on the pill, I said it wasn't worth it. Thanks" -15 yr old, female

"I feel like I'm worth actually waiting for everything." -16 yr old, female

"Thanks for changing my life." -16 yr old, male

Privacy of Clients of Utmost Importance

We at the Bartholomew County Center are most appreciative to Ray Turner and his son, Richard, who recently installed a door between the waiting room and client service area at the Center. Ray is our volunteer handyman who comes in each week to do various jobs that help with the upkeep of the center.

Prior to the installation of the door, there was no barrier between the waiting room to the client services area where the counseling rooms, ultrasound room and office areas are located. Often, our receptionists’ jobs take them away from the window which overlooks the waiting room. Receptionists are not always able to intervene at times when parents or boyfriends would walk from the waiting room to look for the client in the counseling room. This diminishes the privacy and confidentiality of our clients. Now, those in the waiting room will not be able to enter the client services area or office areas unless the door is opened and they are invited to come by PCC staff or volunteers.

Many thanks to Ray and Richard for donating their time and expertise to install the door!

Judy Snow, Bartholomew County Center Director

Coming to a Yard Sale Near You!

There are so many yard sales in the community right now and some of our volunteers have been attending to pick up clothing in the sizes we are in desperate need of here at the center. Upon leaving the sale, they hand the owner of the sale our business card, inviting them to bring anything they don't sell to the center.

Not only are we getting many donated items, but more people are finding out about the Pregnancy Care Center and what we do!

Marge Miller, Jackson County Center Director

United States Abortion Facts

Abortion in the U.S.
• About half of American women have experienced an unintended pregnancy.[1]
o 69% of pregnancies among black women were unintended
o 54% of pregnancies among hispanic women were unintended
o 40% of pregnancies among white women were unintended
• Of these unintended pregnancies, 40% are aborted. [1]
• About 1/3 of American women will have an abortion by age 45. [1]
• 90% of all abortions occur during the first trimester. [3]
• In 2005, Medical, non-surgical abortions (using drugs such as Mifepristone, also known as RU-486 or the abortion pill) accounted for 13% of all abortions, and 22% of abortions before nine weeks’ gestation. [1]
• 1.21 million abortions occurred in 2005. From 1973 when abortion was legalized through 2005, more than 45 million abortions have occurred in the U.S.[1]

Who is having abortions?
Age of women in the U.S. who are having abortions: [1]
• 0.4% are under the age of 15
• 6% are 15-17 years old
• 11% are 18-19 years old
• 33% are 20–24 years old
• 24% are 25-29 years old

Nationality of women in the U.S. who are having abortions: [1]
• 30% are black women
• 36% are white women
• 25% are hispanic women
• 9% are of other nationalities

Religion of women in the U.S. who are having abortions: [1]
• 37% identify themselves as Protestant
• 28% identity themselves as Catholic

For women who have abortions, about 61% have one or more children [3] (including 34% who have had two or more children [2]), 67% had never married [3], 57% are economically disadvantaged[3] and 88% live in metropolitan areas[3].

Why U.S. women have abortions[1]
• 75% say they cannot afford to have a child.
• 75% say having a baby would interfere with work, school or other responsibilities.
• 50% say they do not want to be a single parent or are having problems with their husband or partner.

Adolescents and Sexual/Reproductive Trends[4]
• 15-24 year olds in America acquire nearly ½ of all new Sexually Transmitted Diseases/Infections, even though they only represent 25% of the sexually active population.
• 9.1 million of new Sexually Transmitted Disease/Infection cases each year are acquired by 15-24 year olds.
• In 2006, 27% of pregnancies among 15-19 year olds ended in an abortion.

_______________________________________________________________
[1] “Facts on Induced Abortion in America,” Guttmacher Institute http://www.alanguttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html, May 2010.

[2] “Characteristics of U.S. Abortion Patients, 2008,” Guttmacher Institute
http://www.alanguttmacher.org/pubs/US-Abortion-Patients.pdf, May 2010.

[3] “An Overview of Abortion in the United States,” Guttmacher Institute http://www.alanguttmacher.org/media/presskits/2005/06/28/abortionoverview.html, January 2008.

[4] “Facts on American Teens’ Sexual and Reproductive Health, “Guttmacher Institute
http://www.alanguttmacher.org/pubs/FB-ATSRH.html, January 2010.

Happy H'ers Make PCC Smile

Recently, 21 students and parents from the Happy H'ers 4-H Club came to the Administrative Office and Bartholomew County Center to clean and do some much needed yardwork. Each year the club picks an organization to do a service project for and this year they chose the Pregnancy Care Center.


The families who participated include:

• Scott, Laura, Jacque, Jessie, Joy, Julia, Jen and Jaden Decker
• Deb, Nate and Emily Walker
• Allie and Nate Shoop
• Angie, Ashley and Anna Miller
• Stephanie Fuller
• Christen Bosley
• Hannah, Rachel and Samantha Klein

Thank you for your hard work in making our centers clean and inviting. We so appreciate your service!