A Louisville, Ky., pregnancy help organization is helping pregnant women in need to focus not only on a pregnancy decision, it’s also empowering them for a brighter future.
BsideU For Life Pregnancy & Life Skills Center offers a variety of educational and life skills classes for the people they serve, said Executive Director Monica Henderson, from classes on parenting and cooking, to GED test prep and addiction support programs.
Parenting classes are court approved and meet standards required by the state’s Department of Family Services, according to Henderson, and therefore, open to the community. BsideU also offers anger and stress management classes, healthy relationship and Celebrate Recovery addiction support programs, job-readiness and Bible study classes, along with many other types of classes and programs.
A licensed professional counselor teaches some of the courses, including the parenting classes, and leads the addiction support program.
“We have always offered some type of therapeutic counseling in this ministry,” Henderson said.
In addition to offering academic support classes by which a person can receive a GED, BsideU for Life provides a computer lab and study rooms.
“We’ve had an LPN student work on her classes and study for her nursing board to get her LPN license,” she said.
Serving and caring
Prior to the COVID pandemic, the organization provided lunch in between the morning and afternoon classes, with courses ending in time for those women who had older children in school be able to pick them up. Henderson said she and her team plan to re-implement that offering in the near future. During the pandemic, BsideU kept the doors open and provided pre-packaged food items, as well as fruit to class participants.
The organization provides childcare while the mothers attend classes so that women can participate in programs that will improve futures for themselves and their children.
“We all are looking forward to going back (to preparing lunches) because the clients appreciated the hot meal and time to fellowship,” Henderson said.
BsideU plans to become a licensed public food service by the health department, she added.
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The cooking classes offered are done so through a community partner, Henderson said. The agency brings in packages of food for each participant, which “the enrollee can take home and repeat the class,” she said.
“They’ll come to class and learn how to fix (the meal). The instructor brings a package with all the ingredients, and they can recreate that meal at home,” Henderson said.
Class participants with perfect attendance are taken on a shopping trip to a local grocery store where they learn how to shop wisely; the bill is paid for them.
New classes are planned, including with officers from the local police department who will teach self-defense techniques, situational awareness, and domestic violence prevention, Henderson said.
The number of women served through these classes and programs varies, she said.
“On one day we could have six or eight in a class, and the next day have two,” said Henderson. “It depends on the need of the mom at the time and their schedule... and if their kids are on break.”
And while the number of participants fluctuates, according to Henderson one thing remains constant - women return after their pregnancy because of the diverse class and program offerings.
“We have relationships with our clients for years,” she said. “Some of them like to repeat the classes. We also partner with different programs (and agencies), community partners.”
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Kelly’s story
“Kelly” is one of those women who returns to BsideU. Homeless at age 30, she ended up at the ER where she learned she was pregnant. Attending medical staff suggested Kelly take the abortion pill, but she refused. She came to the pregnancy center the next day, Henderson said. Kelly also went to the life skills center.
“During our orientation, I told the group it was on them to show up,” Henderson said. “They could benefit from the program, but only if they showed up. Whatever I said resonated with her that day, and she started showing up.”
Although Kelly lodged at the homeless shelter, she often didn’t sleep well, so she would lie down in a vacant room at the life skills center and sleep.
“Over time, she gave birth to that baby,” Henderson said.
“She’s a seamstress, and she has sown crazy amounts of clothes and designed them herself,” she said. “She has a side-gig in the sewing and design business … Her own daughters model them down the runway of fashion shows.”
Kelly’s life totally changed from her encounter at BsideU.
“She’s one of those that exhibits resilience – never gives up,” Henderson said. “From the time we’ve known her, which is seven or eight years, she went from being totally homeless to actually having her own place and getting a good job with a local employer on the tech team (and having her own business).”
Kelly continues to connect with Henderson and the BsideU team, and when her schedule permits, she returns to participate in programs.
“She’s one of those people who is a joy to be around,” Henderson said. “She’s just an example of how we don’t know how greatly we can impact a person’s life. That’s why our name is BsideU for Life. That’s the kind of thing that keeps me going.”
