Birth mother luncheon

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BETTENDORF — The Women’s Choice Center of the Quad Cities will host its second annual Birth Mother Celebration Luncheon Saturday, Nov. 22 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the center. This free event is open to anyone who has made the choice to deliver a child into the waiting arms of adoptive parents. This event is part of an initiative by the Women’s Choice Center (WCC) to help raise awareness about adoption as a loving option for unplanned pregnancies.
Birth mothers and birth fathers will be honored and celebrated by adoptive families, among others. This event will feature personal testimonies from individuals who have been personally touched by adoption including birth parents, adoptive parents and adoptive children.
In 2012 the Women’s Choice Center launched a partnership with area professionals and groups that facilitate adoptions. In January 2014, at the request of area adoption agencies, the Women’s Choice Center launched the only birth mother/birth father support group in Iowa. This confidential peer support group meets the third Thursday of every month at 7 p.m. at the Women’s Choice Center. It is led by a birth mother and Vicki Tyler, the WCC’s executive director and a certified counselor. Tyler has personally counseled birth mothers through the roller-coaster of pre-delivery hormones that can make adoption so difficult for the birth mother.
During that hormonal storm of emotions, some women change their minds about going through with an adoption plan, she said. “Once that storm is passed, we have seen birth moms become passionate advocates for adoption. They know that for them, and for their child, they made the most loving choice,” Tyler said.
Less than 3 percent of women facing unplanned pregnancies choose an adoption plan. “Often pregnancy centers like Women’s Choice Center are the first to raise adoption as a possibility.” Tyler explains, “We are seeking to help women who don’t believe they can parent the child themselves to see adoption as a loving alternative to abortion.” Adoption is an option that can be explored without commitment, she said.
At the luncheon birth mothers and birth fathers will hear how their sacrifice has enriched the lives of adoptive families, many of whom waited years to adopt. The luncheon is also an opportunity for birth moms to connect with other women who understand their journey.
RSVPs are requested. Please email Melissa Jones at Melissaj@womenschoicecenter.org or call (563) 332-0475, for reservations.


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