Life hung in the balance on November 5, 2024, as Floridians went to the polls. A coalition of pro-life advocates, including pastors from around the state, had worked tirelessly to educate people on the dangerous and deceptive wording of Amendment 4, a ballot proposal to allow abortion in Florida up to the point of fetal viability – a term they failed to define. “If it had passed, the most dangerous place in the state would be the mother’s womb,” said Rob Pacienza, pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church. Joy Wright, executive director, and the team at Hope Women’s Centers, faith-based medical clinics that exist to encourage and equip women and men to make informed life-affirming decisions when faced with unexpected pregnancies, texted each other nervously as they watched the results roll in. The decision would be pivotal to their vision of creating a culture where all life is respected and accepted as a gift of God and healthy families flourish.

 

Finally, a tweet from Governor Ron DeSantis confirmed the result they had been praying for: Amendment 4 was defeated and the current law that bans most abortions after six weeks would stay in place. “We rejoiced!” said Wright, “and I cried. I cried because if it had passed, I couldn’t imagine the women that would be hurting, the babies, the lives that would have been lost, the confusion that would be out there. And so I was just grateful for God’s mercy and protection and that life was valued… It was emotional because we all just poured ourselves into it.”

 

Churches like Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church, Rio Vista Community Church and Sheridan Hills Baptist Church had all hung large banners on their buildings urging passersby to Vote No on Amendment 4 and educating their congregations to view this not as a political platform but as a life and death gospel issue. The amendment needed 60% of the vote to pass and ultimately failed by a slim margin, garnering 57%.

“It was close,” said Pacienza. “We celebrate, but we realize there is a lot of work to be done. It means the majority of the state is pro-choice, pro-abortion. Roe may no longer be the rule of the land, but it does still rule in the hearts of men and women all across America.”

According to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, there were 84,052 recorded abortions in Florida in 2023 and 10,476 of those were in Broward County. Over a million babies are aborted each year in the U.S.

“So we have a lot of work to do to give people a case for life from the moment of conception,” said Pacienza. “The Bible has something to say about all of life including the beginning of life. God is the author of life. He is the redeemer of life, and we need to be teaching this to the next generation.”

 

Providing opportunities to choose life

Hope Women’s Centers was birthed in the 1980s in response to the increasingly pro-abortion culture following the passage of Roe v. Wade. The Roman Catholic church was the first to really speak out against abortion while protestants were mostly silent, not wanting to get involved in social and cultural issues. Finally, a few protestant evangelicals, including Dr. D. James Kennedy, founder of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church, and Bill Billingsley, former pastor of Sheridan Hills Baptist Church among others, were convicted that “if we’re going to do something about this, we can’t just shake our fists at abortion and condemn it. We’ve got to provide opportunities for moms and dads to choose life,” explained Pacienza.

Local pastors joined forces across denominational lines to stand in the gap for life. Coral Ridge established A Woman’s Pregnancy Center in Fort Lauderdale and Sheridan Hills Baptist along with pastors from what is now Park Road Presbyterian, Gloria Dei Lutheran and others began Reach Out For Life in Davie to provide the counseling, support and encouragement women facing unplanned pregnancies need. These centers merged in 1987 as Hope Women’s Centers, which now has three fully licensed medical clinics in Fort Lauderdale, North Lauderdale and Pembroke Pines. They serve women facing crisis pregnancies who often believe abortion is their only option until they encounter their loving support along with a free medical evaluation and ultrasound revealing the undeniable precious life within. As a result, more than 35,000 abortion-minded women have chosen life since its inception.

 

Today the ministry of Hope has an annual budget of $1.2 million with the majority of its funding coming from individuals, then churches, grants and special events. The budget grew significantly when Hope became licensed medical clinics in 2005. About 50 Broward churches currently support Hope Women’s Centers in some way. However, the need is great since there are only three faith-based medical clinics standing for life in Broward and 26 abortion providers.

 

Medical services and options consultation

Hope Women’s Centers provides the following services to patients free of charge.

• Assessment
• Pregnancy Test
• Medical Consultation
• Limited OB Ultrasound
• STI Testing and Treatment
• Options Consulting
• Resources and Referrals
• Gospel Conversation
• Prayer

 

Cara Tully, a patient advocate at Hope Women’s Centers, is a calming voice in the midst of the storm for many women. She greets them warmly, gently asking questions to understand their situation and what needs they have. Assuming the pregnancy test is positive, are they thinking of keeping and raising the baby, are they open to adoption or are they considering abortion? They discuss all the options, utilizing “Before You Decide,” a peer-reviewed, evidence-based booklet that educates patients on the abortion pill and abortion procedures and their risks to help them make their own informed decisions. The book addresses questions such as, “Will I still be able to have a baby after” and “Can this affect me later?” She also has a long list of community resources from which to refer patients for help, including adoption services; one-on-one mentoring through Every Mother’s Advocate (EMA); Embrace Grace, a Christian support group for women facing unplanned pregnancies, assistance signing up for Medicaid; recommended OBGYNs, plus so much more.

 

Abundant life

Beginning in 2025, Hope Women’s Centers is launching a new THRIVE program designed to walk alongside these women and men for the long haul by offering them group classes or one-on-one mentoring on adoption support, healthy pregnancy, labor and delivery, parenting development and life coaching.

 

“Currently our patients can take nutrition classes with our patient advocates and receive a brand-new car seat upon completion, but we want to meet the holistic needs of the women we serve,” said Laura Slavich, THRIVE director and community relations coordinator. Hope will be using a national curriculum developed by Bright Course that incorporates a video component, assignments and discussion. “It’s going to take what we have been doing to the next level because we’re not just pro-life; we’re pro-abundant life,” said Slavich.

 

They also look for opportunities to present the gospel, with permission. “Ideally, we want to be able to walk with these women every step of the way and get them connected with a church, so they’re not drifting about asking ‘how do I do this?’” she added.

 

Hope also encourages men to participate in the process, specifically providing mentoring for fathers in the THRIVE program. While statistics show that 85% of the women facing an unplanned pregnancy who come to Hope for services end up choosing life, national CareNet data shows that if both the mother and father see the ultrasound of their baby, they choose life an astounding 97% of the time.

 

Who do they serve?

Last year, 2,800 patients received services at Hope Women’s Centers. So, who are the women they serve? “It’s the people next to you in church. It’s your neighbor. It’s your adult child. It’s your co-worker. She can be financially secure or financially insecure. She can be in college. She can be a graduate with a career. She could have children. She could be married or unmarried. You know her,” said Wright. Women have unexpected pregnancies all around us.

 

A recent patient at Hope Women’s Centers, Stacy [last name withheld] said she felt very supported by the resources she was given. “They gave me clarity, direction and guidance. The encouraging words, support and prayer I received gave me peace of mind and helped me choose life.”

 

Dorothy [last name withheld] said, “The ultrasound really solidified it for me. When I saw my baby’s heartbeat, it took my breath away! Seeing her heart beat and her tiny form on the ultrasound screen really made me feel like I was strong enough to do anything, and I knew that giving life to that baby was something I was going to do.”

 

Sadly, this is not always the case. An estimated one in four women in the United States will have an abortion in their lifetime, according to the Guttmacher Institute.

 

For women who are dealing with the emotional pain of an abortion decision they now regret, Hope Women’s Centers provides hope and healing through post abortive Bible study programs such as “Forgiven and Set Free” or “Surrendering the Secret.” Many have carried that secret for years, so “we want to offer hope and healing to those women too so that they don’t carry around any shame or guilt from their past decision.”

 

Founding executive director of Hope Women’s Centers and a former national consultant and trainer for CareNet, Dottie Wobb has been in ministry with women most of her life, but she said, “There is something about the hand of God on the pro-life ministry that is extremely unique. He is present, and I could tell story after story of the choreography and the timing. His presence is palatable almost every day because it is life and death, and His heart for His daughters and His children is unique above and beyond any other ministry.”

 

Sanctity of Human Life Sunday

Churches around the country will celebrate the Sanctity of Human Life on Sunday, January 19, 2025. This annual event honoring God’s gift of life commemorates the many lives lost to abortion and solidifies their commitment to protecting human life at every stage.

Andrew Coleman, pastor of Sheridan Hills Baptist Church plans to participate, saying he feels it’s important for the body of Christ to support life because God is pro-life. “God created life in His image. The first commandment in the Bible was to fill the earth and subdue it. The first thing humans are told to do is procreate because this brings God glory… but Satan’s whole thing is to steal God’s glory and destroy the image of God in every way possible, so it makes perfect sense that he is doing everything he can to distort what God has designed and what God has commanded.”

Want to help?

There are a number of ways that you, your church, school or business can help Hope Women’s Centers create a culture of life.

• Participate in a baby bottle boomerang campaign, filling baby bottles with cash, coins or checks during the months leading up to Mother’s and Father’s Day as support for the ministry.
• Your church can bless parents who have chosen life by hosting a baby shower with your church or small group.
• Hold a diaper drive or collect diaper bags filled with supplies for expectant mothers.
• Invite Hope Women’s Centers to speak at your church
• Give financially
• Volunteer
• Pray

For more information on how you can help, visit friendsofhope.com

For information on patient services, visit hopewomenscenters.com

For more stories on life, visit https://www.goodnewsfl.org/topic/life/

For more Good News, read the GOOD NEWS January 2025 Issue at: https://digital.goodnewsfl.org/2025/january/