Don't Lake Jump to Conclusions

[XLFD]

The 14th annual Lake Jump will take place at Stearn's Beach next Saturday, April 6, benefitting the West Shore Pregnancy Care Center (WSPCC).  Once again, WMOM radio is a chief promoter and sponsor of the event.

 

 

When I initially read about this year's annual Lake Jump event's beneficiary, I had some misgivings.  Throughout the years, the lake jump has traditionally provided a modest amount of funding up to $67,000, for some local charitable cause or non-profit.  Last year, the recipient of this year's donations was determined to be the pregnancy center.  I really didn't know a lot about this agency, and figured that such a move may politicize the event overmuch, since, like it or not, we live in a fairly conservative area that has several preconceived (no pun intended) notions of what a "pregnancy center" is all about.

 

I decided to do some research on the topic to see whether such fears had a basis, or whether the West Shore Pregnancy Care Clinic was a cause worthy of receiving support, regardless of political bend.  The easiest way to do so was to tour their website. 

 

They have a simple one-page site which tells just a fraction of what their main site does.  The top of the page rotates passages from the Bible relating to childbirth, followed by a heading of: 

"Pregnant? Not sure what to do?  Considering Abortion?  Get the facts to make an informed decision."

This may alleviate some qualms about it being some sort of Planned Parenthood offshoot, but the "about us" page contains a vision and mission statement, along with a statement of faith and principles, which ends with the sentence:  "West Shore Pregnancy Care Center shall not advise, provide or refer for abortion." 

A more cursory look up and down the website reveals a non-profit group staffed by volunteers looking to provide care, support, and guidance for soon-to-be mothers and mothers of babies.  A very worthy cause on paper, and mimicked by recent comments by their director on other local news media. 

 

It also seemed to follow the history of why this center was set up twenty years ago, reported on by a more community and socially-conscious Ludington Daily News on June 26, 1993: 

 

This was a supplemental article over the creation of the WSPCC placed on p. 5 of the same paper:

 

And the following article in that same paper showed how the services provided by the agency could save the lives of unborn children by mothers facing tough decisions.

 

 

Thus, West Shore Pregnancy Care Center was founded on the premise of helping women get through pregnancies, offer as many viable alternatives to the abortion option as possible, and help the women get through whatever decisions they make.  If we believe their website and their current director, that faith-based approach really hasn't changed, and I haven't seen any evidence to the contrary.  Recall, they shall not advise, provide or refer for abortion.  This puts them in quite a bit of contrast to agencies like Planned Parenthood.

 

If we look at Planned Parenthood of West and Northern Michigan at their closest branches at Big Rapids, Muskegon and Petoskey, we find an entirely different approach that many people who have problems with abortion would not be pleased with.   Their mission statement reads thusly: 

"Planned Parenthood of West and Northern Michigan (PPWNM) is a nonprofit agency, and the largest provider of sexual health, education, and advocacy services in the region. We work to ensure that people from all walks of life have access to affordable services that help them plan their families, prevent disease, and make responsible decisions about their sexual health.

PPWNM exists to promote and ensure sexual health, responsibility, and justice. We meet our mission by:

-providing comprehensive, confidential, sexual health services at eight health centers throughout our service area -providing education and training services which promote healthy human sexuality -protecting and advocating for reproductive rights -We believe that the ability to regulate one's own fertility is a basic human right essential to the emotional, physical, social, and economic well-being of the individual, the family, the community, the nation, and the world.

 

There is nothing in their set up that promotes anything than what could be called a left agenda.  Planned Parenthood even boldfacedly claims that Abortion is a safe and legal way to end pregnancy.  Safe?  A successfully performed abortion is the only surgical procedure I know of where someone is guaranteed to die.   But sometimes there is a pair of deaths. 

From this 2009 Report from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, "In 2008, the most recent year for which data were available, 12 women were reported to have died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortions. No reported deaths were associated with known illegal induced abortions."  The 2002-2007 CDC reports seem to trend the same way, showing 42 deaths from legal induced abortions and two from illegal procedures.  This data is likely underreported. 

 

Earlier this year, in Muskegon an abortion clinic was shut down after an alleged break-in was investigated by police, leading to them entering the facility and reporting "unsanitary conditions throughout the clinic, including used hypodermic needles in unsecured containers, “blood on the floor and walls in multiple locations” as well as dripping from a sink trap in a patient room, and “uncovered buckets containing unknown fluids” in the operating room." ,as reported here, with pictures.  Not surprising when the facility was not properly licensed and as such was not routinely inspected for violations.

So to summarize, it seems fairly clear that WSPCC fulfills a necessary service to the area which is good in whatever way you look at it.  If you feel that abortion is never acceptable, you actually have an ally with this agency; even if they fail to change a client's mind about getting an abortion, they at least strongly offer the alternatives.  If you believe it is a matter of a woman's choice whether to have an abortion or not, you have a local Mason County group that offers services to such women, including tactfully  providing all the facts so that a woman can make an informed decision on what the law says is their choice. 

 

So please, if for some reason you have decided to not pledge or donate to the 2013 Lake Jump because of some misconception (no pun intended) about the West Shore Pregnancy Care Clinic--reconsider.  They perform a great community service in doing what they do, as long as they stay loyal to their credo.

[Willy]

My hat's off to the WSPCC for offering an alternative to Planned Parenthood which receives hundreds of millions of tax dollars annually.

[Jane]

Bullcrap, the first thing they do is shove a bible in your hand and say 'read this' passage,what would Jesus want you to do. pushy religious nuts. Maybe they should try talking to people first to see if they are religious or not before pushing their agenda down a scared pregnant girls throat. They definitely know how to push someone to stop listening ASAP and run for an abortion clinic to get away from the religious nonsense.

If they want to talk someone out of having an abortion they should try science instead of a bible.

[XLFD]

I would guess that experience either happened to you or a friend, Jane, but I don't think it was standard procedure if those events did happen as you said.  When you have a staff of volunteers, mostly Christians, you're likely to get someone occasionally that forces their beliefs first, instead of trying to gauge the situation and the woman involved. 

Unfortunately, I think Planned Parenthood is more guilty of taking the human factors out of the equation in making the choice of abortion and engaging in risky behaviors.  I can't speak from experience, but I would think becoming a potential mother is a 'spiritual' experience with a lot more ramifications than getting your appendix removed.  They should be aware of all the facts, without just the secularity of Planned Parenthood or just the piety of the avowed anti-abortionists. 

[Willy]

WSPCC doesn't hide their agenda. They spell it out clearly and plainly on their web sites so that anyone who desires to use their services can see before hand what WSPCC represents. Unlike Planned Parenthood, WSPCC tells the truth as stated in  the following statements which are at the beginning of their web sites "about us" page.

Vision Statement

West Shore Pregnancy Care Center (WSPCC) is a non-profit Christian ministry caring for those with pregnancy related concerns and mother’s of young children by meeting their physical, emotional and spiritual needs.  Our greatest desire is to enable those we serve to make positive life-giving choices for themselves and their children and to become whole in Christ.

Mission Statement

The mission of West Shore Pregnancy Care Center (WSPCC) is to communicate God’s truth and demonstrate His love and mercy.

Compare those statements to Planned Parenthood and their deceiving agenda's.

[masonco]

I have some friends who volunteer at this center. They are supposed to ask if they may share scripture and if they can pray for the person there. They don't just offer assistance with pregnancy, they help with medical care, baby clothes, car seats, diapers, maternity clothes and the list goes on. Sometimes they refer a client to a shelter. The provide parenting classes.

Over the years they have had to set up more hurdles for clients to receive goods or financial help because they received reports from some of the resale places that someone who received the car seat took it to them (unopened) for fast cash. So now the center requires clients to participate in short classes involving parenting, financial or whatever to receive these costly items for free.

They also assist with adoption ideas to place the baby with a solid adoption agency that has the baby's best interest in mind.

[XLFD]

Thanks for your personal experiences, Masonco.  The only 'personal anecdote' I have with the pregnancy care clinic is with them helping provide a young mother with some extra formula when she brought in and donated some formula of her own that was incompatible with her baby. 

She was a bit non-religious herself, and she never mentioned anything about them trying to force stuff down her throat, just that they were helpful with other things she had questions about.