By Maria V. Gallagher, Legislative Director, Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation
Fathers are far too often forgotten, when it comes to the protection of preborn babies’ rights.
But a long-time pregnancy care center in Pennsylvania is trying to change that with its fatherhood initiative.
Morning Star Pregnancy Services, based in south central Pennsylvanis, is reaching out to the fathers of preborn babies with care, concern, and compassion.
Morning Star cites an intriguing statistic—an astounding 85 percent of women who have had an abortion say they would have had their babies—if only the fathers of those children had been supportive.
This is where Nurse Clinic Manager Steve Morris comes in.
In Morning Star’s recent newsletter, Morris said:
“A father’s presence is extremely influential and helpful for a mom strongly considering abortion. We hear it time and again from moms: ‘If he had been more involved, I would have been less likely to choose abortion.’
“From a woman’s perspective, when the dad says, ‘I support your choice,’ she hears and interprets that as ‘she is on her own.’ What she wants to hear is ‘I’m going to support you, let’s do this together.’”
Morris added, “It’s important for me to sit down with these dads and ask them what they are thinking and how they envision themselves in this decision-making process. I empathize with the dads in our counseling sessions, and I tell them that their opinion weighs heavily in the decision.”
Morris discusses with each dad who comes in for counseling the idea of fatherhood and a vision of it moving forward.
“I also emphasize he has a responsibility. There is something so fundamental for men to step up to responsibility—it just resonates with guys. I remind him that this was both of their decision in creating this child. Sometimes he doesn’t like to hear it, but it hits home.”
Kudos to Morning Star and all the pregnancy care centers throughout the country that reach out to fathers with love and understanding. Including the father in the conversation about abortion may just save a life—and save a man and woman a lifetime of emotional pain.