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.

I wish this wasn’t my story, but God in His great mercy and grace has asked me to make it His story.

Forty-seven years ago, I was a scared 20-year-old student when I discovered I was pregnant. I found my way to Planned Parenthood and believed Satan’s lie, that abortion was a good solution for my problem. No one needed to know my secret and my life could go on as normal. So, I chose abortion.

Creating different social media accounts for both our clients and donors also allows us to reach and connect with the younger generations (Gen Z and Millennials), while still maintaining our relationship with the Gen X and Boomer generations.

I saw a bumper sticker recently that read, “God is pro-life.”

I certainly can’t disagree with the statement. But I also can’t help but wonder if we believers know what pro-life really means. Yes, God is for developing infants. And God is also for the poor, the abused, the neglected, the vulnerable, the abandoned and the marginalized.