At 30 years old, she was not our typical client. To protect her privacy, we will call her “Frances”. She was the single mother of an eleven-year-old. She had a good job. She came to us because she thought she might be pregnant.
Frances was the victim of date rape. She reported the incident to the police, and told them the perpetrator was a co-worker. He was stalking her, and she needed help. She believed there was little, if anything, she could do to protect herself and her daughter, besides quit her job and leave town. Because of these difficult circumstances, Frances was thinking about having an abortion to end the pregnancy that resulted from the violent attack.
The day she came to our center, she sat on the chair in the counseling room, curled up in a fetal position. When the pregnancy test was positive, she tearfully recounted the story of the events that led up to the pregnancy. She didn’t know what to do, but she knew abortion was wrong. Frances shared with the counselor that she had a deep faith in God, and faithfully attended church, but felt totally helpless to do the right thing in her current situation. There was the shame of an unplanned pregnancy…there was the fear of her eleven-year-old child finding out, and there was the fear of reprisal from this man who had violated her.
We encouraged Frances to consider an adoption plan and found a maternity home where she could live until the baby was born and placed with the adoptive parents. Friends at church provided care for Frances’ daughter while she was away. Within a few weeks, we heard from Frances that she wasn’t ready to commit to placing her baby for adoption, and was returning home to Broward County.
God worked in miraculous ways as He brought Frances and one of our most experienced adoption counselors together through a “chance” meeting. This counseling proved invaluable as Frances discovered that adoption was not for her. She decided to explain the situation to her daughter and work together on a plan for raising this baby. In the meantime, God was using law enforcement agencies to assure Frances that she was safe and that this man was not going to be able to harm her, her daughter, or the new baby.
It was beautiful to witness the “concert” that God orchestrated to allow this baby to be born. By His Grace, Frances’ little girl was born in late October. Her friend from church, and her eleven-year-old daughter were there at the hospital with her to welcome this new little person into the world. Her adoption counselor was able to provide a car seat through Hope, and the first center she visited provided a newborn layette. There is an African saying that “it takes a village to raise a child”. Sometimes it takes a village to HAVE a child…God put all the right people in place for this special little girl!
Frances and her daughter came back to say hello and to share in our “Art in the Park” fun we had with some of our previous patients. We were so thrilled to see how happy they both are and to see how this precious little girl was thriving!
*Story and pictures shared with permission.