Do pro-lifers care about babies after they’re born? What about the mothers who carry those babies for their first nine months of life?
This holiday season, Choice42, a pro-life education group out of Canada, is proving just how much they do care through its first national Christmas Sponsorship Program, a project designed to benefit babies and their mothers in need of financial support.
Over the last few weeks, Choice42 asked pregnancy help centers across the country to submit the names of clients they thought would most benefit from some Christmas cheer. Applications came pouring in, and last week, the Choice42 team awarded six single mothers with their own sponsored Amazon gift registry.
Sharing the women’s stories online and via email, Choice42 invited their supporters to purchase dozens of gifts from the ladies’ personal registries, which included diapers, clothing, toys, and other items.
Despite hardships ranging from homelessness to disability, each of the women is striving to create a better future for themselves and their children.
“Laure” from Quebec is one of those women.
“Laure’s” Story
When Laure found out she was pregnant at four months, she was in complete shock. Caught up in a lifestyle of partying and surrounded by friends in the sex industry, Laure was just 18 and very much on her own.
“She was no longer with the father of her child, was homeless, and had been estranged from her family after living in numerous group homes throughout adolescence,” says the Choice42 website. “Once her family did become aware of the situation, they put enormous amounts of pressure on her to have an abortion.”
But then, just before her scheduled appointment, Laure ended up falling on her abdomen and needing an ultrasound. That ultrasound changed everything, opening her eyes to the tiny human inside of her.
With a new outlook on the life she was carrying, Laure turned to a local pregnancy help center in Quebec for support. She walked away from her old way of life and her friends in the sex industry, including her baby's father—a man who is now in prison for eight counts of human trafficking.
“Despite the ‘easy’ money that could have been made, she turned away from that lifestyle to focus on being a better person and mother,” says Choice42.
Today, Laure has a baby boy who is four months old, and she’s leading an entirely different life.
She has recently gotten her own apartment and is working hard to be strict with her budget and learning new skills; such as cooking meals from scratch and grocery shopping. She is currently unemployed, does not drive and has limited family support. She is not only a single mum, but also helping her own mother who is in the hospital with Polio and severe diabetes, as well as aiding her own siblings...
Laure is trying to rebuild her credit, maximize her money but is living on a very limited income. It is extremely hard to make ends meet, despite the fact that she is working so hard to manage well.
Challenging the Abortion Status Quo
Choice42 reviewed reams of stories just like Laure’s in the hopes of making a difference and shattering one of the most pervasive myths about the pro-life community.
“Our organization is all about educating people, supporting women and really, challenging the abortion status quo,” said Rebecca Charlton, outreach and volunteer coordinator at Choice42. “A big pet peeve of ours is the idea that pro-lifers don’t care after the baby is born, which is horrifically false, and we’re proving that here.”
Though largely known for its humorous and thought-provoking pro-life videos, Choice42 also hosts an online database of nearly 200 pregnancy help resources that are assisting women all across Canada.
In a parody video released this October, Choice42 Founder Lauren Klassen and a masked partner-in-crime break into a pregnancy help center in the dead of night—only to fill it with $2,500 worth of diapers.
Now, with a little over a week to go before Christmas, all six of the women’s gift registries are complete—just six days after Choice42 announced the program.
And the rapid success isn’t unique to this program alone.
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“C’s” Gratitude
Just last month, Choice42 created another a registry for a woman called “C,” a pregnant mom in need of emotional and financial support. Pro-lifers responded immediately, purchasing 42 of the requested items the same day Choice42 Founder Laura Klassen posted the registry to her Facebook page.
In a thank you letter posted to Klassen’s page a couple of weeks later, “C” expressed her amazement and gratitude for the generosity of everyone who bought a gift for her and her children:
I cannot seem to find the right words for the amount of gratitude that fills my heart by all of the above who don’t even know my face, name, or struggle—but love me, evidently. You have helped to recreate a new world for me and this precious little boy. And some of you have even considered my first-born (now 2.5-years-old, conceived from a violent sex assault) in your gifting to me. To think that my very first thought at the news of a second pregnancy was to abort seems all too disheartening to me… Selfish and destructive—to more than just one life. So, thank you.
Thank you for believing in my child(ren). Thank you for executing the “no-judgement policy” when I didn’t even ask for it. Thank you for your kindness, your grace, your faith, and your confidence in me—a no-name to you.
I was 13 weeks away from my due date with absolutely no preparations for this baby. No crib, no stroller, no car seat, no clothes, no diapers, no wipes, no blankets—no hope. I now have 11 weeks to go still, and over 80% of my baby registry has been fulfilled because of YOU! Wow! What an encouragement to me. What hope and joy to look forward to with this little mover so intricately knit-together in my womb. How did I not think this was possible with God? I have everything I need, and more.
I appreciate each one of you. And I will forever cherish this baby boy with the inspiration that you have all initiated by this.
Thank you for caring.
- C
With a heartwarming message like that, the Christmas cheer intended for others is sure to boomerang right back to the many pro-lifers giving their talents, time, and compassion to families in need this holiday season.
