October 18, Brooklyn Park Planned Parenthood
by a sidewalk counselor who wishes to remain anonymous
Thankfully, no escort was present when Joy and Garrett (not their real names) came for their appointment. On the sidewalk many regular volunteers were present: John, Vicki, Karen, and Craig. Dave, Julie, Bernice, and Jane from St. Stephen’s Life Matters prayer group arrived later. As the couple was going in, I said my normal greetings: “Good morning! My name is______. We care about you. Will you come over here to take this important information? We have free help if you know someone who is pregnant.”
They kept heading for the door but I kept waving them toward me. The young man then came over to take the literature. He said they were there for a check-up. I explained that if she’s pregnant, this is your son or daughter she’s carrying. “You need to protect your child.” I talked about the harm that abortion causes for women and men. As I was talking with him, I kept beckoning with arm waves to the young lady to come over to talk with me as well.
She finally did. She said she was pregnant. I asked if anyone had said anything positive about her pregnancy yet? She said, “No.” I said, “Well, I want to tell you that this baby is a gift. Congratulations!” She told me that she lives with her mom and didn’t want to leave. I explained that we can help her with whatever she needs. I asked her how far along she is. She said about 3 months.
I immediately opened the brochure to show her the development of her baby in the photos. She was amazed and said, “Oh my!” I asked to take them to a pregnancy resource center (PRC), pointing them to the Alpha Women’s Center mobile clinic across the street. But they still headed into PP. I said, “You don’t have to stay. You are free to leave at any time. We will help you!”
About a half hour later, the young man left and came back with a bag of take-out food, not stopping to talk with me, despite my pleas. Then they both came out about a half hour after that. They didn’t stop to talk with me then either. I called out information about abortionpillreversal.com. They sat in their car for about 10 minutes. As they were pulling out, I quickly went down to the driveway where they would exit. Thankfully, Cheresa, the next shift sidewalk counselor, had arrived to keep offering literature at the door.
At the driveway, they rolled down the window when I asked them to talk with me. I asked if she’d taken the abortion pill. She shook her head “no.” I asked if they changed their minds. They said “yes.” “What changed your mind?” I asked. Garett said, “It’s a human life.” I asked if the literature helped change their minds and they said, “Yes.” I asked if I could talk with them further to get them to a pregnancy resource center. They pulled down the street and I followed on foot, then asked them where they lived to point them to the closest PRC. Garrett gave me his number to keep in touch.
