The Elevator Speech

The Pregnancy Care Centers of South Central Indiana is really quite a large work encompassing many areas of ministry. Have you ever found yourself struggling to give someone a brief overview of what the PCC is all about or summarize what it is the PCC does? Below is a great tool you can use when talking to others about the work of Pregnancy Care Centers. Often referred to as an elevator speech, it is short and easy to communicate as if you were stuck in an elevator with someone with only that awkward silence. Feel free to use this overview when talking to your friends, family or those you might share an elevator ride about the amazing work of the PCC.

Overview

THE MISSION of the Pregnancy Care Center is to compassionately engage, educate and inspire our communities with the truth regarding sexual integrity and the value of human life.


We do this through Education, Intervention, and Healing programs.


• The school based Choose to Wait EDUCATION program helps students explore the consequences of sexual decision making and empowers them to choose the best, healthiest life-style of abstinence until marriage.

IMPORTANCE? Seventy-nine percent of participants indicate their intentions to remain or become sexually abstinent until marriage.

The faith-based My Best for You and Transformed programs are presented in area churches to students and their parents, opening the lines of communication and equipping them to live out God’s best as it relates to our sexuality and relationships.

IMPORTANCE? Eighty percent of teens say it would be much easier to delay sexual activity and avoid teen pregnancy if they were able to have more open, honest conversations about these topics with their parents.

• Our in-center INTERVENTION services offer pregnancy tests, first trimester ultrasounds, peer counseling for women and men on all pregnancy options, spiritual counseling, and material assistance with baby items.

IMPORTANCE? Those facing crisis/unplanned pregnancies need a place where they can receive factual information about fetal development and the risks of abortion. By revealing life within the womb via ultrasound, many abortion minded clients choose life for their unborn child.

• Our HEALING programs provide support groups, one-on-one peer counseling and Bible Studies to help women and men who have been wounded by abortion to find healing.

IMPORTANCE? About 1/3 of American women will have an abortion by age 45. Sixty-five percent identify themselves as Christian. As a result, there are many women and men in our churches who need to hear the truth that their sin of abortion is not too big for God to forgive.

Spring Volunteer Traning

The Pregnancy Care Center relies greatly on the many volunteers who love and support this ministry. Earlier this month the Spring Volunteer Training concluded with 19 new volunteers ready to get plugged into the work that is being done through the PCC. Those in attendance came from all areas of the six counties in which we serve, with different areas of interest including Abstinence Education, Post Abortion Healing and Client Services.

Each year the PCC takes part in 3 different Volunteer Training sessions to train and equip our volunteers. The men and women that come ultimately serve as peer counselors, receptionists, medical service volunteers and/or educators in the Transformed, Choose to Wait and My Best For You programs.

The 18 hour training takes a closer look at each of these areas of ministry within the Pregnancy Care Center as well as the history of the PCC and the biblical basis of the sanctity of life. It also focuses on the clients we serve and how to best serve them. One attendee said “The training was great! It revealed to me the great opportunity that I could have to impact the lives of others for the cause of Christ.”

We are grateful for these opportunities to meet and work with men and women who also have a passion to uphold the value of life.

Ray Turner...Always Going Above and Beyond

For the past 6 ½ years Ray Turner has been dedicated to serving as a handy man around the Bartholomew County Center. After coming to a banquet years ago he decided he wanted to get involved and help the Pregnancy Care Centers. He then took part in the Volunteer Training and decided he could best be used as a handy man since he is gifted in that area. Judy Snow, Bartholomew County Center Director, says “Ray does a little bit of everything. He changes our furnace filters, replaced our back door and installed a door between the waiting room and counseling rooms. He paints, organizes and repairs the sheds, mounts pictures on the wall and when all our racks for maternity cloths ripped off the wall one day, Ray repaired them and put them back up.”

He is also known for making necessary repairs to items that have been donated that might be missing a few pieces. Ray repairs them so they can be given to clients instead of just thrown away and says they “would be a shame not to use because of a few missing pieces.” Ray is a blessing to the PCC ministry. He always has a smile and is praising the Lord. We are so thankful for all our volunteers like Ray!

iDonate…The Easy Way to Give

Did you know there is a new and easy way to creatively donate to the PCC? That’s right; you can donate noncash items through a group called iDonate. This is a great way to give towards the work of the Pregnancy Care Center that doesn’t involve your cash. Noncash items can be anything from cars and boats to jewelry and real estate. According to the IRS, an estimated $52 billion of noncash items are donated each year.

iDonate works with nonprofits to allow donors to give in different ways while continuing to support the work of charities they personally choose. They assist in arranging all the details of your donation and strive to make the process as easy as possible. To find out more go to our website at www.affirminglifeonline.org and click on the Give in New Ways box. This will give you step by step directions on how to donate your noncash items and answer frequently asked questions.

Handmade Gifts

Many people and various groups have recently walked through our doors with beautiful handmade items to give out to our clients. A lady by the name of Alice Ritchie stopped by to drop off 9 beautiful hand made baby aphgans and one of them has a matching hat. She said she prays over each aphgan and for the child who will receive it. She also said she prays for the center continually. She said years ago her children needed help and received help from us.

That prompted me to go through our donations record for the last 3 months and there have been lots of wonderful blanket donations. They are as follows: Mt. Pleasant Christian Union Church gave us 5 quilts; Columbus Alliance women's group gave 12 fleece blankets; Linda Lehto donated 6 aphgans; Alice Corya donated 3 aphgans; Peggy Koorn donated hats, outfits and blankets; Ellen Bowman donated 10 blankets for layettes; Beth Coffman brought in a large bag of new baby blankets.

We are so very grateful to have these beautiful, new items to give to our clients for their new babies. I remember how much something like that meant to me when my mother crocheted aphgans for my children. We kept them for many years until they were completely falling apart.

Judy Snow
Bartholomew County Center Director

PCC Fundraising Banquets 2011

What a great month February was for the Pregnancy Care Centers of South Central Indiana. We gathered on five different nights to celebrate the Light that is being shined through our centers out of the darkness from our communities. Each night our guests were challenged by our Keynote Speaker, Tim Bond, to make the PCC ministry their own and to step deeper into the life changing work that takes place each day in our centers. Many responded to the challenge by getting involved through volunteering or donating their financial resources. God richly blessed us through the generosity of our guests and sponsors at each banquet and below is a summary of money raised.

• Jackson/Jennings County: $28,161
• Bartholomew/Brown County (Feb. 10): $50,906
• Bartholomew/Brown County (Feb. 16): $43,795
• Bartholomew/Brown County (Feb. 22): $52,011
• Decatur/Shelby County: $31,781
• Total Sponsorship: $67,550

We’ve also received an additional $5,000 after the banquets from those who were not able to attend due to weather, illness, etc. Thanks to everyone who prayed, participated and donated towards the banquets this past month. God has blessed us with wonderful ministry partners and we are so very thankful!