Dear Friends,

Even though we’ve never met, in a very real sense, you are my friend. Thanks to you, and others who support the Pregnancy Resource Center, I am alive today to share my story with you. And so is the light of my life, my daughter, Ashley.

On the outside, I seemed to have it all—loving, well-to-do parents and a bachelor’s degree from a well-known university. But inside I was tortured. I didn’t see myself as others did. I was depressed. I saw myself as fat and unattractive.

I had always watched what I ate, but my obsession with my weight soon got out of hand. I ate less and less until I was skin and bones. Today, I can finally admit that I had a dangerous eating disorder called anorexia.

My life went steadily downhill. I fell into a never-ending cycle of self-abuse and neglect. Just when I thought life couldn’t get any worse, I stopped having my periods. After four months, I figured out that I was pregnant. But my body was so messed up from the lack of nutrition that I wasn’t really sure how far along I was. 

When I looked in the mirror and saw how sickly and unkempt I looked, I said to myself, “How can I be a mother? Any baby of mine is sure to have all sorts of health problems.” It was then and there I decided to have an abortion.

On a bleak day last spring, as I trudged to the abortion clinic, I met a woman named Shelia who works at the Pregnancy Resource Center. She greeted me with such a warm smile that the grayness of that day seemed to melt away. I don’t know why—maybe it was the look of gentle concern on her face—but I told her my whole story. With the calm of an experienced mother, she explained to me that no one really knew the condition of my baby. She urged me to come with her to the Pregnancy Resource Center for an ultrasound.

To my surprise, the ultrasound showed that I was close to 8 months pregnant—not 4 months!

Sheila explained again that only God knew for sure the condition of my daughter but according to the ultrasound, she looked healthy.

All of my friends had urged me to get rid of my baby because they were sure she’d have metal or physical problems. Thankfully, Sheila went into a frank description of the gruesome procedure the abortionists would use. I’ll spare you the details, but I just couldn’t let them harm my baby. I decided to trust the God who knows all things. I would have my baby.

I know lots of people don’t believe in miracles, but I sure do! My little Ashley was born without complications. Today she’s 9 months old and in perfect health. You can see for yourself.

Thanks to Sheila and the Pregnancy Resource Center, my little girl is alive and I have a new purpose in life. All my friends at the PRC have been so supportive and helpful. I don’t know where I’d be today without them. With God’s love, I’ve been able to put my life back together. I’m even working on a master’s degree!

As hard as it is to share my personal struggle with you, I am living proof that stories such as mine can have a happy ending. I just wanted you to know firsthand that your gifts to the PRC are actually gifts to young women like me who often have no place else to turn. Your generosity changed my life and saved the life of my precious Ashley.

So please save the photo I sent you. Put it up on your refrigerator or someplace where you’ll see it every day. When you see those big blue eyes looking back at you, you’ll know that Ashley lives because of you.

Thank you so much for your past gifts to the Pregnancy Resource Center. Now more than ever they need your help. Please give whatever you can to the PRC. As someone who’s been on the receiving end of your kindness, I know that your gift does far more than you probably realize.

May God bless you richly as you have blessed me. 

Sincerely,

Shannon

PS.  In order to protect my family’s confidentiality, my friends at the PRC requested that I use different names for myself and my daughter.

However, my story and the photo are real.