The title of NARAL president Nancy Keenan's email this afternoon piqued my interest, "An ad no woman should see."

What would that be? Egad!...

This Sunday, May 23, actor, producer and human rights advocate Eduardo Verástegui will headline the first ever Latino United for Life Family Congress at the Los Angeles Convention Center from 8a to 7p.

"The funds raised... will be used to open a medical center in Los Angeles that provides free, high-quality care for pregnant women and their preborn babies," stated Verástegui in a press release.

"The Guadalupe Medical Center will be located in an area that has 10 abortion facilities. Therefore, our center will be an oasis of life in the midst of a desert of death," Verástegui continued....

Thank goodness I read Psalm 37 this morning, which I just had to reread. Otherwise I might be throwing things after reading this news story, from Statesman.com, today:

Pregnancy centers that don't offer or refer clients to abortion services or birth control services will now have to say that on signs posted at their facilities, the Austin City Council decided in a unanimous vote this morning.

Council Member Bill Spelman [pictured left] proposed the idea because he said it can be unclear to visitors to the centers what services they offer. The centers are not medical clinics and typically offer adoption counseling, pregnancy tests and financial assistance to women with unplanned pregnancies, but not other services, Spelman said.

Baltimore is the only other city in the nation that has passed a similar law.... It won't affect Planned Parenthood clinics or local or state health clinics that provide or refer clients to abortion and birth control services....

Net gain for the sanctity of preborn human life.

I reported March 31 that despite pro-abort pressure, Lilith Tour organizers had decided to keep several pregnancy care centers and maternity homes on its list of prospective women's charities to receive proceeds from its multi-city concert tour this summer.

Well, that lasted a whole blink of an eye....

First, what is the Lilith Fair? From its Facebook page...

by Raving Theist

Residents of Draper, UT, showed support for the Pregnancy Resource Center of Salt Lake and raised over $3,600 on August 12.

In addition to matching funds, participants were inspired by a "photo challenge" - the Center received $50 for each person who posed for the picture above (click to enlarge). It also received $25 for each essay submitted describing the importance of the Center's mission. The Center's executive director, Tamara Anderson (back row, in green directly under the "e" in the word "We" in the banner), looks forward to similar gatherings in the future. The event was hosted at the home of Allyson Dunbar (2nd row, end left).

[JLS note: I promised to post this photo as added incentive to the photo challenge, which is a great idea!]

From John Jansen at Generations for Life:

When I talk with members of pro-life clubs, one of the most common questions I hear is, "How can we get more involved?"

One of the suggestions I make is to organize a fundraising event for a local pregnancy resource center. Not only does this help a pro-life club become a greater part of the local pro-life community, but it also provides much-needed money for a place that offers lifesaving help to women who are pregnant, scared, and don't know where else to turn.

As for particular fundraising event ideas, a pro-life car wash is one of the easiest to sponsor - not to mention one of the most fun. If your club is interested in doing one, make plans now to participate in the 4th Annual Wash for Life on Saturday, September 19.

Over the past 3 years, more than 6k pro-life teens across the country have sponsored Wash for Life car washes and raised nearly $180k to benefit pregnancy care centers in their local communities.

You can help make this year's Wash for Life even more successful! I hope you will consider being a part of it.

[Photo attribution: WashForLife.com]

After generously offering help with fundraising ideas for pregnancy centers, David Bereit and Shawn Carney of 40 Days for Life are hosting a free teleseminar and web simulcast TONIGHT entitled "How to Boost the Income of Your Organization's Upcoming Fundraising Banquet by 35.4%... OR MORE!"

Time: 9p EST (8p CST)

Format: Simulcast (Attend via phone or webcast - your choice)

Register online now at: http://www.banquetsuccess.com/training

David Bereit and Shawn Carney of 40 Days for Life have helped raise $21+ million to further the missions of pregnancy centers and pro-life groups.

Inundated with requests to share their fundraising advice, they've released a FREE, downloadable report for parties interested in making their fundraising banquets much more profitable, helping to save the lives of more women and babies.

Get the free report here!

I particularly like (and have begun using) their suggestion of pitching a 2-part pledge: 1 for a gift the night of the banquet and 1 for an ongoing monthly gift.

Another of their suggestions is to make sure banquets are not drawn out and end on time. I've observed pro-life organizations getting much better at this....

The Paul Stefan Foundation operates 2 homes for expectant mothers in central VA, caring for moms in need and babies during and after their pregnancies.

In just 2 years, PSF has housed 36 women and babies.

PSF was formed through the spiritual guidance of Fr Stefan Starzynski, parish priest of the James family, whose unborn son was diagnosed with a birth defect of the lungs and died 1 hour after birth.

Now, PSF is asking our help, launching an online baby bottle campaign to raise money for the homeless and abused pregnant women they support.

Randy James, CEO of PSF, states...

UPDATE, 2/27, 6:40a: Many pro-choicers have complained in the comments section about my characterization of pro-contraception, pro-abortion young women as being easy marks. I have to say it was comedian Chris Rock who was my inspiration. I watched the following video a couple years ago, and it made total sense. In fact, if you can get past Rock's foul mouth and sexual explicitness, you'll see many truths in what he has to say. WARNING: R-rated...

2/26: Attempting to turn tables on pro-lifers, the Feminist Majority Foundation is encouraging college feminists to protest their local pregnancy care center. Interesting concept.

While pro-lifers around the country now gather twice annually at abortion mills for 40 days, often around the clock (aside from thousands of other times annually), FMF can only rally its femitroops 1 day, April 13, strangely a Monday. I guess college women who advertise they're pro-birth control and pro-abortion are much in demand on weekends.

So anyway, here's video of one recent protest, held across the street from a Planned Parenthood protest, which looked fun....

UPDATE, 11/26, 11:25a:

Congrats to CareNet Pregnancy Center of Central TX! And thanks to all who voted and helped CareNet win!
_______________

(November 19) CareNet Pregnancy Center of Central TX is in the running for a $25,000 office makeover from Perry Office Supply....

I am a brand new board member of Pregnancy Aid South Suburbs, a network of 3
pregnancy care centers and 1 maternity home located in the southwest suburbs of Chicago.

Tomorrow is PASS's annual Hike for Life, 1 of 2 annual fundraisers that is very important to PASS's financial stability....

By Valerie Jane

It is ridiculous the campaigns that the pro-choice side is doing to stop crisis pregnancy centers. I hear how horrible we are. How we mistreat women. We are told how we commit harassment, criminal confinement, verbal and mental abuse, and intimidation. We see the anonymous statements from these poor and weak women who didn't know how horrible the pro-life side was. No proof is provided. No court cases cited....

The cover story in the Feb. 26 edition of Time magazine is on the "new face of an old movement," medically-modelled pregnancy care centers that perform ultrasounds and conduct STD testing.

I read the article first from a pro-life activist's perspective (me!) and thought it exceedingly placed pccs under a microscope and on the defensive.

Would, for instance, that Time reported on undercover investigative calls to abortion mills on the hunt for misinformation, like it did pccs. Or that it had a young woman pose as a pregnant patient in an abortion mill, like it did a pcc.

Then I read the article from the abortion industry's perspective and thought they must certainly be depressed about it, likely reworking their talking points as I write. They were pathetic. Here was the worst....