Volunteers and churches have come together to create a new crisis pregnancy care clinic in the Oceanside and Carlsbad area.
Volunteers from First Baptist Church of Carlsbad, Palomar Community Church in Vista, Twin Cities Christian Church of Oceanside, St. Mary Star of the Sea Catholic Church in Oceanside, and several other coastal churches have begun to raise the needed funds and to plan for the new site.
The committee has scheduled a preliminary meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 5, at 8:30 a.m. at Mariah’s Restaurant in Carlsbad for planning and gathering local church and volunteer support.
The CPC ministry is a positive way to offer alternatives to abortion. The center will offer free pregnancy tests and nurse confirmations, prenatal vitamins, food, formula and diapers as well as a point system for earning and then spending points on needed baby items. It will also offer child birth education classes, adoption options, post abortion counseling and education, Bible study, parenting classes from Growing Families International, the “Life on the Edge” series from Focus on the Family and other resources to women in crisis.
These services are all free to those in need and in direct response to the growing need on the coast. In the past year, the local abortion clinic has gone from occupying one suite to three. The state Health Department has identified Oceanside as a state “hot spot” for teen pregnancy rates. “This area needs services to reach these gals in need. I hope the community will pull together to support and create a center,” said Dana Serrano, administrative director of Alternatives Pregnancy Care Clinic in Escondido.
Volunteer training will be held on Saturday, Aug. 9, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Carlsbad, for all those who wish to volunteer at the new site and give alternatives to abortion to women and teens facing a crisis pregnancy.
The new center must raise the required opening costs in both donations and pledges to pay for a staff and expenses. To do this the committee is working on hosting a Walk for Life on Oct. 18 at 11 a.m. The California Pro-Life Council is holding its annual Walk for Life on this same day, and both plan to work together to make the two walks a success. “We feel having a Crisis Pregnancy Center in Oceanside/Carlsbad is very important to that community, and want to work together so that walk is successful. Our goal is to save children and not compete for support,” said a spokeswoman for the California Pro-Life Council.
“I am encouraged that San Diego County as a whole can see that there is a need on the coast for a CPC. It means so much that we are working together to save the babies, there is no room for competition when it comes to saving lives. San Diego is unique because we all care and love them so much and can work together,” said Serrano.
Pastors, women’s ministries leaders, missions leaders, youth pastors, and others interested in the ministry are invited to the information meeting on Aug. 5. For reservations, call Vicki, committee chair, at Alternatives Pregnancy Care Clinic, (760) 741-9796 or Pastor Jesse Scott at (760) 729-3081.
