BY BRIGITTE TOULON and CHOYA RANDOLPH
NNB Reporters
MIDTOWN– Nearly 21,000 people have walked through the doors of the Pregnancy and Family Resource Center in Midtown, and received help with more than they anticipated.
Originally built in 1992, the center received grants and donations from the community and Suncoast Baptist Church to help them help the community.
The Resource Center is a place where individuals can receive information on preventing pregnancies, contraception, alternatives to abortion and general counseling for individuals in these kinds of situations.
“The center is orientated around the value of life, parents understanding their roles and love for babies, before and after the womb,” said Carole Alexander, director of the center.
Before becoming a resource center, it was a condemned house that was donated to the Suncoast Baptist Association. The church allowed the fire department to use the home for fire drills. After being burned down, the land was cleared and built into the center in 1992 and began serving the community in 1994.
Prior to the building being completed, the center began serving people through Pleasant Grove Baptist Church off 9th Ave S, for about a year. The center went from serving roughly 600 people in its first year to now almost 1,000 people a year.
The center now offers programs such as the Gaining Opportunity and Achieving Life Success (GOALS). This program teaches families about hard work by having members earn points through activities including group activities, one on one’s, watching DVDs and participating in other programs. The points earned could be used at the Mother’s and Baby’s Boutique for parents to buy diapers and other necessities.
Another program offered is the Baby Love Support group which is a six-week program for parents to bond with the child and each other and learn about prenatal care. For parents that have received abortions and may have lingering feelings about the experience, the center provides the Post Abortion Recovery Ministry.
In 2010, the center began to struggle fiscally and was about to shut down because of the economic recession. Due to a letter the center sent out to the community which stated their financial needs, they were able to keep their doors open due to the flood of support and donations they received.
“We give to the church, and the church gives to us,” said Alexander.
The church provides help by way of financial donations and by encouraging their members to volunteer at the center. In turn, the workers of the center give back by volunteering for the church at different functions, in particular by giving vital information to the members of the church.
Alexander, has a personal connection to the centers’ work, partly because she was faced with an unplanned pregnancy in her youth. Due to the lack of resources prior to her pregnancy, she is now committed to helping others understand the importance of life.
“Here’s our vision, when we’ve accomplished and done all that we’ve been called to do, we want to see vibrant families in communities, whole and complete lacking nothing through Christ,” said Alexander.
For more information:
What: The Pregnancy and Family Resource Center
Where: 1210 22nd St. S
Contact: (727) 896-9119 or email: pcenter1@msn.com.