In 2025, an estimated 72 million women worldwide chose abortion. Surprising to most is that 60% of abortions in Ohio are medical, not surgical, abortions.

In 2025 we noticed a trend on the first Tuesday of every month.

In 2025, the leading cause of death WORLDWIDE was abortion, killing 72 million people. Ohio was responsible for 25,135 of those deaths. Like a penny, our culture has deemed pre-born life worthless and disposable. Let that sink in. Human life is worthless to our culture.

James 1:17 reminds us that “every good and perfect gift comes from above.” We have learned that no gift is too small, and together we can make a difference. Starting Point has grown tremendously, and we continue to challenge ourselves with new strategies, tools and services to reach even more young people in our community.

Starting Point has exciting news to announce: We are going mobile in 2026! We have partnered with ICU Mobile to launch a medical unit as an extension of our center. ICU Mobile is an organization specializing in pregnancy center mobile ministry.

Partnering with Starting Point is more than just a financial gift once a year. It is an opportunity to extend our resources into the hands of Jesus to bless, multiply and serve the multitudes that come.

The local church offers love, support and a safe place to learn about God’s amazing design for a healthy home. That is why we are proud to partner with over 30 churches in Knox County that spread Gospel transformation in our community.

We live in a world of restless change, endless busyness, and increasing loss of community. It may seem like the price of progress. But here at Starting Point, we witness firsthand the impact our changing culture is having on the health of families.

Family structure traditionally has been defined as those who reside in a home together including a mother, a father and their children. These definitions are highly variable, as there are many ways to form a family.

A “broken family” typically refers to a family unit that has experienced a significant disruption, often due to divorce, separation or the death of a parent. The term can also be used to describe families with unhealthy or severed relationships, even if parents are still together. While commonly used, the term “broken” can be stigmatizing and may not accurately reflect the experiences of all families who have experienced such changes, particularly in the cases of divorce or separation.

There is rarely a family that doesn’t experience some type of brokenness. We see marriages at the breaking point, single parents trying to figure out life on their own, families splitting and children being caught in the middle. This is detrimental to our community, and now there is scientific evidence to explain why this is a problem.

The “American Dream,” to live a happy, healthy life and build a family and home where everyone is productive and stable, is getting farther out of reach for Ohioans.

This month, we welcome Marissa Kunes, Mobile Operations Coordinator, to the team. She will be responsible for launching our mobile unit into the community. We will be transporting our mobile unit from Tennessee very soon and preparing it to be branded for Starting Point!

The Starting Point Annual Fundraising Banquet, themed “Preserving Our Heritage,” showcased our commitment to serving families in Knox County. It was an evening full of sharing ministry updates and honoring those who have impacted Starting Point and our community this past year.

Our Male Client Advocates are building trusting relationships of support for these young men. The relationships with our male mentors are reaching outside of the center walls - through calls, texts and even coffee meet-ups. The young men stay engaged, developing hope for their growing families.

Since the elections last year, much debate and tension have reigned in our state. As we anxiously await changes that will likely be made to Ohio’s abortion laws in the wake of Issue One's passage, we still have good news to share with you. 

Informed consent is the process by which a health care provider is legally required to educate patients about ALL the risks, benefits, and alternatives of any given procedure or intervention. Nowhere is this more critical than in the area of reproductive healthcare.

Starting Point has spent decades supporting Ohio’s informed consent laws by providing free pregnancy services and education on ALL risks, benefits and available pregnancy options, including Abortion Pill Reversal (APR). Our goal is to equip those facing unexpected pregnancies with the knowledge needed to make fully informed decisions.

Starting Point is committed to overcoming this gap of understanding. Many are surprised to learn that well known celebrities like Jamie Foxx, Steve Jobs, Kristin Chenoweth and Faith Hill are all adopted!! Our staff and volunteers work to encourage and educate young birth moms and dads, not only on a variety of adoption choices available, such as open, partially open and confidential, but also on their own true meaning, value and purpose.

If you follow the news, you may know that pregnancy centers across the country have been under attack since the Dobbs’ Supreme Court decision last year that overturned Roe v. Wade. Ohioans who formerly advocated for making abortion “safe, legal and rare,” not only challenged the 2019 Ohio Heartbeat Law, but are now introducing a November ballot initiative to change the Ohio Constitution. This change would effectively permit abortion throughout all nine months of pregnancy. Key advocates also seek to shut down life-affirming organizations that provide options through education, medical services and material support to those facing an unexpected pregnancy.

We at Starting Point feel called to step up our investment in the lives of young fathers across our community. Pregnancy decision models and educational formats are constantly changing but our core mission to share God’s truth and love with young moms and dads never will. Because of your support, clients facing the fear and anxiety of life changing decisisions will find mentors ready to walk alongside them.