By Shawn Strasburg
Just what is the Women’s Resource Center and what do they do? When something truly life changing develops in people’s lives such as an unplanned pregnancy a whirlwind of questions surround those affected and a variety of tough decisions are faced by the mother and father. This is where the WRC can best offer help and according to the mission statement, they hope “To empower individuals to make informed life choices.” The services offered by the Women’s Resource Center aid not only during pregnancy, but also extend into post-pregnancy and beyond. A list of the services offered by the Women’s Resource Center follows:
- Free pregnancy tests with immediate results
- Positive pregnancy test verifications
- Accurate information pregnancy, abortion and alternatives
- Pregnancy & fetal development information
- Referrals for housing, childbirth classes and future medical assistance
- Referrals for ongoing prenatal care
- Learn & Earn Incentive Program
- Maternity and baby clothes available for clients
- Prenatal and infant care education
- Referrals to community resources and agencies
- Post-Abortion Counseling
As I talked with Executive Director, Amy Woods, I found their approach to a ‘crisis’ pregnancy was well planned and sensitive to the needs of those affected. Crisis pregnancies can occur at any point in life and can affect singles, couples, or even those that are married. With the economy still quite sluggish and with so many people without jobs, a pregnancy, with all of the responsibilities that surround it, can become an unbearable burden without help. This is where the heart of the services offered by the Women’s Resource Center comes into play. They have Peer Counselors that have gone through struggles quite similar if not the same as those they counsel. The WRC allows people to access materials so that they can make an informed decision when it comes to the choices of keeping the child and marrying, keeping the child as a single parent, giving the child up for adoption, or abortion.
Beyond this, when a decision has been made, they offer continuing services to aid individuals to succeed in this transitional time of life. The Learn & Earn Incentive Program is a great way for an individual that has chosen to keep a child to flourish. Educational parenting classes and counseling times that are attended by the parent(s) are rewarded by points which are redeemable for items from diapers to cribs. Also referrals to community resources and agencies and housing referrals can greatly aid in a successful parenting experience.
All of this Information can be found at www.pregnancynorthplatte.com and phone numbers for the WRC are; 308-534-1440, 308-650-3085 texting enabled or 800-395-HELP. The address for the Women’s Resource Center is 331 East 6th Street P.O. Box 1893 North Platte, NE 69101. They are located in the Parkade Plaza East of the Ace hardware store and the office hours are 11-5 Monday through Friday and the 800 number is a 24 hour hotline.
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