Having a child is always a beautiful blessing, but if expecting moms and dads are unprepared or unable to meet their needs, the stress can be almost too much to bear.
The Pregnancy Resource Center in Fayetteville helps pregnant women and new parents who are in tough situations.
“If you have a pregnancy and you need help in making right choices we give you the information you need so you can make the right decision,” said volunteer Joyce Roberts.
“We help them meet their needs. We help them get to a doctor, we do a pregnancy test, we have parenting classes, we have classes that teach them how to be responsible with finances, we tell them how to better their own health, we give them information about sex outside of marriage and sexual diseases, etc.”
“We deal with the whole person,” she explained.
Roberts possesses strong faith, and says moving to Fayetteville four years ago was a decision from the divine.
“I moved here from southern California. The Lord told me to move to Georgia because He had work for me to do here. In obedience to him, we packed up and moved here.”
Roberts experienced a similar calling when she delivered her church’s Baby Bottle Boomerang to the Pregnancy Resource Center.
“A Baby Bottle Boomerang is where you put money in baby bottles at your church and give it to them. When I did that, I saw that God would want me to be there to be a help to those ladies and share the gospel with them.”
Since then, Roberts has served the Center by counseling pregnant women.
“People really need someone to love them, to care about them, to support them - when they come in they are in a position where they are desperate, confused and I am there to encourage them and let them know that they are not by themselves. I help answer all of their questions and lead them in the right direction,” she said.
As a volunteer counselor at the Center, Roberts has helped many struggling women get back on their feet.
“One lady came in- she was so desperate, she was older, she had no idea how she would have her needs met. She was already in a place where some of her kids weren't staying with her. She had no job - she had nothing. She didn't know how she was going to make it, being pregnant,” she remembered.
“Now things are starting to pick up for her. She is going to have her baby, she was going to put it up for adoption and now she is going to keep it. It's due in December. When she came in, she was so distraught, and now to see her with this big huge smile on her face, someone that has hope, that’s a major blessing. God worked everything out for her.”
Roberts’ personal devotion to the women she meets at the Pregnancy Resource Center can sometimes be emotionally taxing.
“It brings you down when you offer hope to someone and they reject the hope you are offering them. It makes you feel bad,” described Roberts, who has even opened up her home to women who were in need of shelter.
“Offering your home - it's bigger than saying 'I'll pray for you' and leaving them alone - it's putting yourself out there to help.”
She said the recent floods and economic downturn have added to some womens’ desperation.
“One family came in - the person they were renting from, his house was in foreclosure and didn't tell them. He took their money and then the house was snatched from under them,” she explained.
“The daughter has little twins, a year old, and she's pregnant with another one. They are living in hotels.”
“All we had at the time was diapers and wipes. We didn't have food to give them - and the other places they were going to were helping the flood victims and didn't have food to give them.”
Roberts said she gave the young mother formula for her one year old twins, because it was all they had to offer.
“The baby was a year old, he was too big for formula. Because they hadn't eaten, they took formula. That one hurt me. I tried calling her to follow up, but her phone was disconnected because they don't have any money,” said Roberts.
“That hurt me to the core. I am dealing with that right now and I am praying that the door will open and I will be able to reach her. To see their faces...” she trailed off, with emotion in her voice.
Though it sometimes makes her sad to hear stories of hardship from the women she meets, Roberts knows her volunteer service is truly making a difference in their lives and in her community.
“Everyone should have the opportunity to get involved,” she urged. All the wisdom and experience you have accumulated over life - to keep it for yourself isn't fair to other people. You should give it to others so other people's lives can be changed.”
“What we are doing in the community, if everyone is hurting and no one is doing anything about it - if no one is making that sacrifice and volunteering there is no place for people to go get help.”
Roberts said the love and hope she sees everyday at the Pregnancy Resource Center is truly amazing.
“You can play with their kids, know their names. You are giving them love and they are giving you love back,” she explained.
“You have the reward of seeing someone else being blessed and life being changed. Someone who doesn't have hope all of a sudden have hope. That’s awesome.”
Currently, the Pregnancy Resource Center has a need for volunteers in their Clothes Closet, where women can earn dollars through parenting lessons and homework to purchase items for their babies.
“They have an Earn While You Learn program,” described Roberts excitedly.
“You watch a video and do a lesson afterward and then get homework. When you come in, you get a dollar for keeping your visit, a dollar for watching the video, and a dollar for doing your homework assignment. Then you can go into the store with clothes and diapers and strollers and buy them. It's teaching them to use their money wisely.”
To find out about how to donate and/or volunteer with the Pregnancy Resource Center in Fayetteville, go online to www.fayetteprc.com or call (770) 719-2288. The center is open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
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