WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich., Jan. 13 /Christian Newswire/ -- More than a million American women will have an abortion in 2010, according to Focus on the Family. Forty-four percent of all American women will have an abortion at some point in their lifetime. Yet as millions of Americans prepare activities for the Sanctity of Human Life week in observance of the 37th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision made by the U.S. Supreme Court, the numbers are shifting in the debate over abortion. A 2009 national Gallup poll showed a pro-life majority for the first time. Fifty-one percent of Americans now self-identify as pro-life while 42 percent identify themselves as pro-choice.
Ultrasound technology is credited with an important role in changing attitudes. If women see images of their unborn children, and are educated about developing life in the womb, they are less likely to abort.
Shari Richard, an obstetrical ultrasound expert and educator, who personally experienced the grief and pain of abortion, uses knowledge to affect hearts and minds. In 1990, through Sound Wave Images, she produced the videos Ultrasound: a Window to the Womb and Eyewitness to the Earliest Days of Life showing fetal development and facts related to the emotional and physical trauma of abortion. Following in the steps of Ian Donald, the pioneer of clinical ultrasound in the 1960s, her 2-D footage has educated millions with over 500,000 copies distributed and translated around the world. Pregnancy Resource Centers (PRC's) across the nation use the videos to educate their clients on life in the womb.
In 2009, utilizing digital advances, Richard produced Eyewitness 2 and Window to the Womb 2: the Next Generation in 3-D and 4-D imaging. In three discs of ultra-clear and detailed images, Richard takes the viewer visually through the 38 weeks of pregnancy, documents the legacy of Ian Donald and the history of clinical ultrasound, and shares the personal stories of men and women who have experienced the grief of abortion and who have gone from pain to healing.
Now through her latest 2010 release of Eyewitness & Window 2 Pregnancy Care and Counseling Version (see trailer: http://vimeo.com/8618830), pregnancy centers, churches and schools will be able to provide information on fetal development, abortion and healing. As a teaching tool the videos are enriching the effectiveness of abstinence curriculum and decreasing abortion. According to the 2009 PRC report entitled "A Passion to Serve," PRC's serve some 1.9 million people each year. According to Eleanor Ruder, director of a PRC, "It is the most powerful and effective tool used in our pregnancy center to educate on human development."
As a voice for the unborn, Shari Richard knows a picture is "worth a thousand words." Her unforgettable images continue to alter the national conscience and affect public opinion. She continues her work of educating, speaking, and ultrasound training for the medical staff of pregnancy centers. Richard's mission continues to be to share God's grace and love to change and heal lives through a "window to the womb."
For more information about Shari Richard visit: www.unborn.com. To schedule an interview with Shari, call Creative Resources at 800-858-9388.
