A record number of pregnancy help personnel arrived early for Heartbeat International’s 51st Annual Pregnancy Help Conference to take advantage of in-depth education to benefit their ministry.
Nearly 600 attendees learned about ministering to abortion-minded clients, the post-Roe world, Abortion Pill Reversal, the LOVE Approach, and much more at Heartbeat’s In-Depth Day Mar. 29.
Andrea Trudden demonstrates that going "Onward" in pregnancy help is an adventure/Lisa Bourne
The theme of the 2022 Annual Pregnancy Help Conference was Onward, honoring the first 50 years of the pregnancy help movement, with Heartbeat observing its 51st year, and the theme also looked forward to the future of pregnancy help.
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Andrew Wood, executive director of Hope Resource Center in Knoxville, Tenn., offered words of encouragement in the keynote address for In-Depth Day.
Wood honored the multiple generations that have served in pregnancy help over the last several decades, saying that each has something to contribute, and each can benefit from the others.
“I credit the good work of these generations that have stood for a generation that’s been aborted,” he said.
“I see a room full of people willing to stand,” Wood said.
Likewise, whether affiliates in attendance came from rural, suburban, or urban centers, it didn’t matter.
“You belong here,” said Wood. “We need you.”
Tweet This: “You belong here. We need you.” - Center director to the pregnancy help crowd at Heartbeat International's In-Depth Day training
Heartbeat’s In-Depth Day offered 14 intensive programs for participants to choose from.
Abortion Pill Rescue® Network with an ultrasound image
of a baby saved through APR/Lisa Bourne
Chemical Abortion Today & Saving Lives with Abortion Pill Rescue Network provided presentations on APR from Dr. Brent Boles, medical director for Heartbeat International’s Abortion Pill Rescue® Network (APRN), Christa Brown, director of Medical Impact for Heartbeat International, and Dr. George Delgado, of the Steno Institute and a pioneer of APR.
The Executive Roundtable pondered life in a post-Roe America for pregnancy help leaders, including the growing importance of Abortion Pill Reversal. The session included presentations from Beth Diemert, director of Affiliate Services for Heartbeat International, Danielle White, general counsel for Heartbeat, Tom Glessner and Anne O'Connor of the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA), and Jor-El Godsey, president of Heartbeat International.
of Family and Life Advocates, and Heartbeat International
General Counsel Danielle White in the Executive Roundtable/Lisa Bourne
Participants in the Abortion Minded Caller training learned about serving women seeking abortion.
The LOVE Approach training gave attendees an interactive training in the effective and compassionate longtime outreach used by pregnancy help organizations all over the world.
The Abortion Recovery: Building & Elevating Your Program session equipped participants to craft a plan of action to establish or expand an abortion healing program.
Marketing in 2022 educated those taking part on how pregnancy help centers can market to potential donors and clients, with the hope of helping to change a client’s world.
The Adding STI Testing and Treatment Services training covered integrating STI testing and treatment in a pregnancy help center and developing a clinic strategy to respond to the sexual health crisis in participants’ respective communities.
The Developing Case Management for Prenatal Diagnosis session educated on how to support parents who are carrying to term following a prenatal diagnosis.
In Censorship, COVID-19, and Court Battles: Funding Your Center In Spite of Challenges, changes in the world of fundraising, development, and marketing were covered.
In the Housing: Trauma-Informed Care session, the physical, emotional, and mental response to chronic trauma and toxic stress that many clients deal with was discussed, along with survival mechanisms and practical interventions for behavioral change.
Valerie Humes, director for the Maternity Housing Coalition and housing specialist for Heartbeat International/Lisa Bourne
Through Growing A Successful Pregnancy Help Ministry participants learned key strategies to foster success in all aspects of pregnancy help.
Attendees of Making the Case for Life learned to simplify the abortion debate by addressing two questions: What are the pre-born? and What makes humans valuable?
Science, Sexuality, and Worldview gave participants effective tools to help centers inform young people on understanding their own sexual nature and that of the opposite sex, to foster preparedness for the rapidly changing, sexualized culture.
With the Sexual Risk Avoidance Training attendees learned the core concepts of Sexual Risk Avoidance Education (SRAE) and how to effectively establish an SRAE program in their individual communities.
Heartbeat International was also on track for record attendance for its 2022 Annual Pregnancy Help Conference, which convened Mar. 30 and ran through Apr. 1.
Editor's note: Heartbeat International manages the Abortion Pill Rescue® Network (APRN) and Pregnancy Help News.
