With the backing of We Love White County, Carmi and the region now has a new Pregnancy Resource Center. Tucked away at 226 North Walnut, the Pregnancy Help Center (PHC) offers the confidentiality and privacy that’s paramount to the expected clientele. The Carmi Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting on Tuesday morning for the PHC. Director Pat Gross explains how and where the idea was born.
“Really ever since Roe vs. Wade. You know I always thought I should do something, but you always think, ‘what can I do? What can one person do?’ But I got a little challenged listening to a podcast by Alex and Megan and it kinda talked about standing on the edge of a cliff and staring down at all there is to do and what would you do if you could do something. And abortion went right into my head…maybe something I could do about that.”
The Center is open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 – 5 and offers a variety of resources to expectant and new mothers/families. Gross says she expects to help women who may feel like they’re in a ‘Crisis Pregnancy’ situation and no matter whether they’re married or single and those who may not feel confident about their options.
“We’d like them to come in and know their options, mentor them and just give them some courage and hope. We have a lot of other things we offer, parenting classes, pre-natal classes…we have 2 classrooms and there are even lessons on life skills. There are lessons on toddlers and parenting children as they grow. We’d like women to come in after they have their baby and up to them being a year old.”
The center will also provide some tangible items for expectant and new mothers in the form of diapers, formula, clothing, car seats, strollers, beds and more.
Gross says We Love White County has been an incubator for the PHC in that it fulfills the non-profit’s mission to make connections and build relationships. You can find more information on Facebook by searching for We Love White County-Pregnancy Help Center or call directly 618-383-6640.
