Dear friends of Mary's Shelter,
Welcome to this year's unique "Virtual LIFE WALK" event. Thank you to all who have already registered. Please continue to share this information with family and friends. It would be amazing to see as many folks as possible walking and/or running to help spread the word of what pro-life ministries right here in our community are doing. Join us as we partner with Bethany Christian Services and Choices Women's Center to accomplish that goal.
I thought I would take a few minutes to share some content that might be helpful in customizing your personal fundraising page. Sharing your "why we support this ministry" goes a long way when asking your family and friends to sponsor you for this fundraiser. Once you customize your fundraising page, just copy/paste the link www.lifewalkfxbg.com into your social media and email blasts. This will hopefully make it much easier to share the information. You can share the narrative and stories below to help explain the event and encourage friends to sign up or share your personal stories about why you support Mary's Shelter.
NARRATIVE:
Hi, I'm _____, ministry partner with the local pro-life maternity home, Mary's Shelter, who exists to change lives of women by offering hope and life affirming choices. Mary's Shelter acknowledges that life begins at conception and is worthy of protection. Mary's Shelter provides housing and a Christ centered program of guidance and support for women (and any additional children she may have) facing a crisis during pregnancy. Mary's Shelter offers women a three year stay so educational, employment and housing goals can become a viable reality. Please consider investing in this ministry by sponsoring me in this fundraising event. Together we can help more women choose life and continue to plant that seed of hope to all in our community.
Over the past 14 years, Mary's Shelter has given loving refuge to over 400 women, their many children and, of course, their beautiful babies. Here are just a few of their stories.
Valerie had two children when she found herself pregnant a third time. She was in a very abusive relationship and thought there was no other choice but to abort. She did not see how she could have another child living the way she was. She scheduled the abortion. Someone told her about Mary's Shelter and after a bit of begging, she agreed to call. She was shocked to hear there was a place where she and her children could live long term, be given the time needed to make changes, be safe from the man she feared and NOT have to go through with the decision she absolutely, at the end of the day, did not want to make. Valerie went on to have her third baby, a beautiful little girl, who she is so in love with. Valerie still has a long road of healing ahead, but with God, support and prayer all is possible.
Janine has many very sad stories from her past. She has suffered from abuse her whole life. She learned she was pregnant with her first child after a very physically dangerous situation. Still, she knew from the moment she learned she was with child that she wanted to give her baby life. There was no safe place for her to do this. She came to Mary's Shelter and the whole team rallied around her. She received love, support and safe, clean, beautiful housing. We immediately got her into counseling and helped set up her prenatal. While there are still obstacles in Janine's life to work through, with the support received from Mary's Shelter, she is so much more confident in her role as a mother and giving her baby the life each and every child deserves.
Inaya came to the United States from another country. She had a great education and was able to obtain employment. She had tons of support from her family, until they learned she was pregnant. Because she was not married, her family threatened to disown her if she did not abort. She chose to keep her child and her parents, in fact, did just what they said. The father of her child could offer no support so she was left alone, pregnant and could no longer keep the job she had, which required much traveling time. Her entire world turned upside down and all of sudden she was without support and homeless. It was a shocking turn of events. Inaya has been a wonderful member of the Mary's Shelter family. She has given birth to her beautiful daughter who she cherishes. She is kind and supportive of other women in our program. While her family
still does not support her, she knows she made the absolute right choice!
We hope you will find these stories inspiring, we have many more like these to share. Please let us know if you have any questions or if we can be of help in any way. Your generosity and support mean the world to our families. Please remember to send your video and pictures to #lifewalkfxbg
Blessings and thanks,
Kathleen Wilson, Director
Mary's Shelter
