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Second Step Pregnancy Outreach |
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 Many women facing a pregnancy for which they are unprepared, do not consider adoption as an option. Many will say, "I would rather abort than adopt." We believe that to be a tragic of a society that does not champion the choice of adoption. Movies, myths, and anti-adoption advocates make it very difficult for a woman to make an informed decision that is already emotionally complex and challenging. Our societal atmosphere often prevents her from truly considering all of her options.
The first step that a woman facing a crisis pregnancy must face is the decision to carry the child to term, or to have an abortion. After having visited a pregnancy care center or after having decided to carry the child to term, the Second Step outreach can minister to her, helping her to make a positive choice for her life and her child's life.
We will as a body step forward to help these women through the difficult decision making process of who will parent their child. The birth mother and her family will be ministered to by a support team of four: a professional counselor, a Support Specialist (a member of the body of Christ who will come alongside women as a friend, mentor and prayer warrior); an OB/GYN, and should she decide to place for adoption, an attorney.
The Support Specialists will be required to successfully complete a pre-ministry interview, advocate training, post-training interview, ministry shadowing, and on-going training. This process will equip believers to understand the issues that birthmothers may be facing, have a clear understanding of boundaries to be drawn and expectations of ministry, as well as a solid knowledge of other resources available to birth parents. All outreach will come from a Biblical foundation.
The counselor will help each woman navigate the more complex issues that many women face in addition to the challenges of pregnancy decision making, while her OB nurse or doctor helps her to be sure that she is getting the medical care that she needs, and is staying healthy.
All clients will be served a minimum of three months beyond the birth of her baby. After her baby is born, if she decides to parent, the Second Step program will make sure that she is connected to a single parent program that will help her address the obstacles that many single mothers face. If she decides to place her baby for adoption, continued support through the emotions afterward will be provided so that she will be able to continue the personal growth that has begun and navigate the mixed feelings of grief and joy.
All members of her support team will help each woman have a complete and consistent message of the love of God, the care for her emotional, relational and physical self, and will encourage her in a child-centered focus as she prepares to plan for the arrival of her little one.
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