Gulf Pine Catholic

Gulf Pine Catholic • October 18, 2019 20 Adoption an option for pregnant women, families wanting children JACKSON - Catholic Charities of South Mississippi does not offer adoption services. However, Catholic Charities Jackson does provide a variety of services. Adoption services are provided for women who are pregnant and thinking about adoption, as well as those families seeking to open their homes and hearts to adoptable children. Families are especially needed for older children, children of minority or mixed racial heritage, and children with special medical needs. Our programs do not discriminate against persons based on race, age, residence, creed, religion or socio- economic status. Here is what Catholic Charities Jackson offers: • Confidential counseling • Family support • Community resources • Adoption services • Maternity care • Open and confidential adoptions • Legal assistance • On-going support We can come to you -- at a place and time that is convenient for you. We’re here to help! But, if you’re not ready for a phone call, feel free to email us at adop- tion@ccjackson.org. No one will contact you without your permission. For more information, please contact: Adoption/Maternity/Infant Foster Care Program, 850 E River Place Jackson, MS 39205 Office: (601) 960.8649 Fax: (601) 960.8657 Catholic Charities of South Mississippi offers valuable resources for pregnant women Pictured is a client that Catholic Charities of South Mississippi was able to assist with newborn items including diapers, hygiene items, car seat, pack n play, clothing, and blankets. She is a single mom of five children. Morning Star Pregnancy Care Center assisted her with case management, goal setting and essentials for her newborn baby. They also educated her on safe sleep and safe travel for her new baby. BY JENNIFER C. WILLIAMS, LSW Diocesan Director Catholic Charities of South Mississippi Since the early 1980s, Catholic Charities has min- istered to pregnant women and the unborn through Morning Star Pregnancy Care Center located in Gulfport. The office began next door to an abortion clinic and offered women a place to find support, information, and alternatives to abortion. The focus in the early years was very simple: to encourage women to choose life for their unborn children. Over the years the program grew to not only serve women while they were pregnant, but to also provide support after the child was born. It is not enough to simply say to a woman “Choose life for your unborn child.” If we say that to a woman facing an unplanned preg- nancy, we must also say “We will help you!” Support grew to include adoption services for those that made the loving choice to place their child and material goods support of diapers, formula, bottles, blankets, and clothing. Today, this ministry has expanded to include car seats, safe sleeping spaces, and financial support. While we stopped providing adoption ser- vices in 2014, we still provide education regarding adoption and refer to our sister organization in Jackson. Many caring staff and volunteers have worked at Morning Star and they all have shared the same trait: a passion for helping people and a passion to encour- age life. Morning Star has always been a safe place for many and we have many former clients who still come to visit to show off their children when they graduate or have children of their own. Today, the little house on 24th Avenue serves the community as a whole through case management and financial services, while still providing infant and maternity care services. The sign out front now says Catholic Charities of South Mississippi but still pro- vides the same compassionate community care for cycle of poverty. The services expanded to the entire community, not just pregnant women, because each and every life, no matter the age, is important and is valued. While it is important that we value the lives of the unborn, we must also value the lives of the born. What we see on a daily basis is both encouraging and frustrating. We see less teenagers than we did in the 80s and 90s. We have also seen a decline in women considering abortion as the first option when finding out they are pregnant. Clients are choosing to parent. The frustrating part is that we know they need help but we don’t always have the resources to meet their needs. Our clients are usually working hourly jobs that are physically demanding. When they enter the latter stage of pregnancy they cannot or are not allowed to continue working until after the baby is born. Very few of our clients have paid maternity leave. If they are put on bedrest, they don’t have paid sick time. Most child care facilities will not accept a child until they are at least six weeks old and child care assistance is very limited in our area. This leaves a gap in the ability to meet basic needs, such as rent and utilities. They want to give life to their children but some are forced to become home- less because they cannot pay their bills. Catholic Charities has resources to help in this area and does not have enough to help for the long term that is needed; approximately three to six months. Rent, power, and water assistance to assist a women for a minimum of three months pre and post birth equals about $3,000. We’ve seen 149 pregnant women so far in 2019 and have used all available resources to meet their needs at the time that we see them. To our knowledge, all have chosen life for their unborn children, no matter the struggles that they are facing. Catholic Charities also provides the same ser- vices through its offices in Pascagoula, Waveland, and Hattiesburg. which Morning Star has always been known. The added case management helps us to assist clients in making long term plans and goals to help break the