For twenty-five years, Choices Pregnancy Center has been offering hope and help were once there was none.
For women and men facing challenging pregnancy situations, we have been the safe place to go with questions, fears, and doubts. Some of our clients say we are the one place they can relax. They know we are going to listen, encourage, and coach them as their unique situations unfold.
When we ask our clients how they found us, most of them say, “A friend told me about you.” If people we’ve helped are vouching for us, then our compassionate care must be making a difference.
Over time, our reputation has expanded. Court officials, domestic violence agencies, and other advocacy groups often send parents struggling with their responsibilities to us. We’ve been told we offer the best parenting classes in town. And the only free ones.
Seeing women—and men—move from uncertainty about parenting to hopeful confidence is one of the most satisfying things we get to do.
Watching their children grow up is another.
The National Word is Out
A recent report on the state of pregnancy help in the United States described what Choices Pregnancy Center does, alongside nearly 3000 other centers. The report said:
“Empowering women to make life-affirming choices while addressing needs through a holistic approach has both short- and long-term impact. The benefits to women’s health are considerable.”
By helping women find alternatives to abortion, the report said, organizations like Choices Pregnancy Center spare women the long-term physical, mental, and emotional effects of undergoing that procedure.
To make those alternatives possible, we listen carefully to their needs, then provide the support women and families are lacking. That can take the form of material supplies—from clothing to diapers to baby equipment. It can include connections to other services in their communities. In every case, we offer ongoing emotional support, education, and mentoring.
According to the report, pregnancy centers like Choices save US communities an estimated $46,871,736 in non-medical services alone. Centers that offer medical services save their neighbors even more.
Meanwhile Here in Redwood Falls…
But here at Choices, in our corner of the world, what exactly are we doing?
Among our free Services, we offer
- highly-sensitive pregnancy tests
- fact-based counseling on all pregnancy options
- our popular Earn While You Learn program
- post-abortion help
- life coaching
We travel to classrooms to educate students about sexual risk avoidance. (That’s avoidance, not just reduction.)
We network with community agencies to better understand and meet our clients’ needs.
We offer Safe Sleep training, helping parents reduce the risk of losing their children to SIDS. This is especially important among our Native American clients, as the rate of SIDS for native populations is triple that among non-natives.
We help men become better fathers. As a growing number of fathers attend our classes along with the women in their lives, this can only be good news for the families around Redwood Falls.
Celebrating 25 Years – And Looking Ahead
None of the work we do would be possible without the help and support of our community. We gratefully appreciate all the people who have given of their time and resources to help Choices Pregnancy Center create a rich legacy of service for over twenty-five years. And we look forward to all that we can accomplish together as we move into the future.