Featured Event: An Evening for Life

With the high rate of abortions that take place in Detroit, Right to Life of Michigan is working hard to help women find resources and alternatives to abortion. This year, we launched the website HelpintheD.org, which lists dozens of resources for women in need, from pregnancy help to childcare, material assistance and healthcare. Our hope is that this site encourages women to find the resources to choose life and thrive as mothers.

To continue our outreach efforts in Detroit, we annually award grant money to pregnancy centers that serve the women of Detroit. This is the third year we awarded grants. Grants were given to seven centers: CareNet of Detroit, Pregnancy Aid, Image of God SE, Image of God SW, Detroit Pregnancy Test and Help Center, Mother and Unborn Baby Care, and Guadalupe Workers.

On August 1st, we visited five of these centers to present them the grants in-person.

Image of God of Southeast Detroit – Located in the basement of a local church, this center is primarily supported by parishioners. They offer pregnancy tests and ultrasounds, baby clothes and diapers, and they often hold parenting classes and gatherings for women. Previously, this center has used the grant to build a walkway to their center to stop flooding issues in their center. This year, the money will be used for computer and desk upgrades.

Guadalupe Workers – This center is in an older home in Southwest Detroit. The group’s original purpose was sidewalk counseling; they would stand on the streets near abortion facilities and try to talk women out of the abortion. A key to their success is finding an immediate ultrasound at a nearby center if a woman was thinking of changing her mind. Though they are well connected with local pregnancy centers with ultrasounds, they often experienced times where they couldn’t find an immediate option. Just the day before our visit, they received an ultrasound machine for their center so they will never be without an opportunity for an ultrasound. They continue to work with the women who changed their minds about abortion, including hosting meetings at their center. Our grant will be used for building improvements, including a water heater.

CareNet in Detroit – CareNet has two centers in the Detroit area, one serving the downtown area, and one in Berkley. Their centers have ultrasound machines and licensed medical staff who are committed to providing women with the support they need in choosing life for their child as well as providing for the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of the mothers. Our grant will allow them to create a testimonial video for their centers, which will help them with spreading their mission—especially to local churches.

Detroit Pregnancy Test and Help Center – This center is located just a few doors away from the most infamous abortion facility in the state. This means they are in a crucial place to save the lives of children every day. They have been in this location for about a year, and before that they spent several years operating from a church. They have several board members and supporters who have been involved for many years who are committed to expanding the center’s services to provide medical care. Our grant will allow them to organize their storage space, including diapers and other items for women in need.

Mother and Unborn Baby Care – Many of the women this center serves are actively seeking an abortion. This center spreads the word through online advertisements, hoping to catch the attention of women in a crisis pregnancy. Through their ultrasound services, dedicated counselors and the support they offer for material needs during the pregnancy and well into the baby’s life, this center helps many women to change their mind about abortion. This center also began providing post-abortion care, and the counselors assure the women they can always return for counseling, even if they have chosen abortion. Our grant will give the center car seats and “pack ’n plays” to give to women in need.

These centers across the Detroit all have many differences: from how many people they have on staff, to whether they have an ultrasound machine, to how they spread the word—online or through word of mouth. But they all have the same goal: to help women with the support they need to choose life for their child, and to walk with them through their pregnancy and beyond.