Because of You… We are here for Her

Christmas is a period of reflection and a season to count our blessings. It’s a time to draw closer in our faith and remember Jesus’ love to help others. You are one of Morning Star’s blessings. You continue to stand up for Life by loving and supporting mothers who find themselves facing unplanned pregnancies and who are struggling with their decisions.

Morning Star’s patient advocates and medical staff are here for so many young girls and women who have experienced trauma in their lives, girls like Charlotte…

Charlotte* ran away from home at age 11… and was sex trafficked. At 15 years old, she got in trouble with the law. She was eventually released and placed into the care of an aunt. As Charlotte struggled to deal with the trauma she had endured, she also wrestled with going back to school and attending classes. She couldn’t pretend that nothing had happened and that her life was “normal.” Charlotte desperately looked for acceptance and love—and at 16, she got pregnant.

When Charlotte’s aunt found out about the pregnancy, she immediately called Morning Star to set up an appointment and provide background information on Charlotte’s situation. Morning Star’s staff met Charlotte’s needs—physically, mentally and emotionally. Our patient advocate gave her the extra time she needed during counseling so Charlotte’s anxiety lessened and she became more open and comfortable speaking about her current situation. When Charlotte became agitated and demonstrated physical symptoms of anxiety upon seeing her baby during the ultrasound, our sonographer took the time to reassure her, answered her questions in a calming manner and directed her focus on the present, instead of past traumatic experiences.

Our medical team also provided STD testing to ensure Charlotte’s health was safeguarded and educated her on the different STDs, gently discussing ways to value herself and her body.

Morning Star’s patient advocate concluded the pregnancy appointment by sharing resources that would be available to Charlotte if she chose adoption or parenting: She wouldn’t be alone.

Although Charlotte had experienced so much devastation in her 16 years of life, she chose to continue her pregnancy—Charlotte chose LIFE! Her aunt was willing to continue providing a home for Charlotte, as well as her new baby, and Morning Star will continue to support Charlotte with parenting classes and baby supplies.

Morning Star is able to provide Life-affirming pregnancy medical services at no cost. Many women come to us because they can’t afford an ultrasound or STD testing and treatment. These moms also want to talk to someone about their situation and gather information on all their options so they can make an informed decision.

Moms are supported after their babies are born. Moms can receive baby clothing and supplies when they can’t afford to clothe and take care of their babies. And so many of the moms who come through our doors haven’t had role models. Morning Star’s Live Connected classes are giving them education on relationship and parenting skills and how to create a budget and save for their future.

By the end of the year, Morning Star needs to raise $154,000 to support all of the services we provide these moms on a daily basis. We must meet this goal to keep our three clinics in operation while facing an annual budget shortfall of $100,000 due to the defunding of Real Alternatives. Your support is essential to continue providing free Life-affirming services to moms, dads and families in our community.

Partner with Morning Star to be a voice for the unborn and save a mother from the heartache of abortion.

A gift of $410.70 will provide one initial pregnancy services appointment, which includes non-judgmental counseling, a medical grade pregnancy test, an ultrasound and STD testing. Or monthly support of $68.46 will provide two client visits for two women who want or are considering abortion.

A gift of $1,000 in honor of a loved one this Christmas season will help us reach our end-of-year goal of $154,000 to meet our operational budget.

A legacy gift of $5,000, $10,000 or more will help Morning Star reduce our budget shortfall due to the defunding of Real Alternatives, which supported families with baby supplies, counseling and educational classes.

It is a privilege to partner with you, day in and day out, loving these women as Jesus loves us. We thank you in advance for your compassion and generosity in supporting this ministry honoring Life.

*Name changed to protect confidentiality.

An Uber driver dropped them off. They rang our bell at 8:50 a.m., 40 minutes before we would see our first client of the day. Through the intercom, he said his girlfriend was pregnant and wanted an abortion. They were supposed to have been dropped off at Planned Parenthood, one mile down the road. The driver had left them here instead.

We invited them into our waiting room. She was very upset, holding her head in her hands and crying. Her boyfriend said again that she didn’t want the baby. That she wanted an abortion.

Our patient advocate sat with them in the empty waiting room and explained the services Morning Star could provide at no cost to them. The advocate said that we could give them information on all of their options and provide an ultrasound to date her pregnancy, verify that it was not an ectopic pregnancy and confirm that her pregnancy was viable. He wanted to take us up on our offer of free services, but his girlfriend kept insisting she wanted to leave. That she needed to keep her appointment at Planned Parenthood.

Our advocate offered them an opening for later that afternoon, after their appointment with Planned Parenthood. She didn’t want it but he did. We promised to keep the appointment open for them, just in case. Our staff watched them walk out the door, and then we prayed for them.

Just a couple of hours later, the couple walked through Morning Star’s doors a second time! He said they went to Planned Parenthood and it was dirty, cold and unfriendly. They kept comparing the environment to Morning Star, which was clean, warm and welcoming. They left Planned Parenthood before their appointment was complete to return to Morning Star.

They spoke with our patient advocate to get information on all of their options and discussed their situation. She was returning to college in another state and would not be back to Pennsylvania. They had a summer fling and the relationship was ending. Our sonographer provided her with an ultrasound, and both parents saw their baby—just seven weeks old. The sonographer went over the medical information and the risks of the chemical abortion pill.

As they wrapped up their appointment, he told their patient advocate he had made a decision: Although she didn’t want the baby, he did. After the couple discussed it, she agreed to continue the pregnancy. He will drive across several states to pick up his baby after it’s born and bring him or her back home to Pennsylvania. He has a job and will care for and raise his baby.

Morning Star will support him with baby supplies and clothing after his baby arrives. In addition, he can attend Morning Star’s Fatherhood Foundation parenting classes. Not only will he meet other dads in similar situations, creating bonds and a support group for himself, but he will also learn how to take care of his newborn, how to create a budget and save for their future, and how to be a role model for his child.

Thanks to YOU, we were able to provide this couple with free medical services, which included an ultrasound. He saw HIS baby—and HE chose Life!

YOUR donations provide the free medical and social services women and men need when they are facing unplanned pregnancies and are unsure of what to do. These services make a Life-saving difference. For some of our moms and dads, sitting down to talk with patient advocates in a non-judgmental atmosphere is the most helpful service. For others, what ensures a Life-giving decision is having an ultrasound to see that it’s a baby, not just “tissue.” And yet for others, the difference is knowing that, after their children are born, they’ll be supported with supplies and parenting classes—the assurance that they are not alone.

With YOUR support, WE are here for HER and for HIM.

It costs $410.70 to provide one client visit to a woman considering abortion. An initial client visit includes non-judgmental counseling with a patient advocate, information and education on all of her options, a medical-grade pregnancy test by medical personnel, an ultrasound by a registered diagnostic medical sonographer and STD testing and treatment by one of our staff nurses.

Your gift of $410.70 will provide one client visit to a woman that thinks abortion is her only option. You’re giving her the support and all the medical information she needs so she can make a truly informed decision. Or perhaps you are able to make a donation of $821.40, providing TWO client visits to TWO women considering abortion—women who don’t want ties to the fathers of their babies, who think they can’t afford it, or who think that they can’t do it alone because the baby’s father won’t support them.

Donate today to partner with Morning Star and stop the ultimate heartache of abortion that so many women and men experience. It takes all of us—the entire community— to form a circle of support around HER and HIM—empowering them to choose Life.

Morning Star is a pregnancy medical clinic providing essential ultrasounds, pregnancy education, STD testing and treatment and abortion pill reversal. When we couple medical services with supporting social services, including counseling, parenting classes and baby supplies, we are providing a full-service support system for women facing unplanned pregnancies. Our track record has proven that 80% of women at risk for abortion choose to have their babies when they receive Morning Star’s services.

In 2023, Real Alternatives was defunded in the state of Pennsylvania. On average, Morning Star received approximately $100,000 each year to support some of our parenting classes, baby supplies and counseling services. This funding helped us stretch our budget further so we could assist even more clients. Without Real Alternatives funding, we need your help to continue to provide both medical and non-medical services to the growing number of clients we see each year—including clients like Alexa:

Alexa’s Story

Alexa* was graduating from college. She had a great GPA, worked hard on her resume, lined up multiple job interviews, and landed her dream job working remotely so she could live in different parts of the country. She was looking forward to being independent and starting her “adult life.” And then Alexa missed her period.

With only a few weeks until she walked at graduation, Alexa shared her situation with her mom and they both agreed she “wasn’t going to wreck her life.” She would have an abortion.

Alexa and her mom had heard Morning Star’s services were free and decided to schedule an appointment. Alexa sat down one-on-one with a patient advocate and told her she was planning on having an abortion. Seeing how panicked Alexa was, our advocate slowed the conversation, giving Alexa a chance to calm down so she could concentrate on the information she was being given. Our advocate educated Alexa on all of her options and discussed what these options would look like for her, given her personal situation.

After pregnancy confirmation, Alexa was taken into the examination room for an ultrasound. During the ultrasound, Alexa was shocked to find out she was much further along than what she had realized. She watched in awe as her baby waved his arms and hands as if he was saying hi. Alexa asked for her mom, who quickly joined her in the exam room. When Alexa’s mother looked at the monitor, she immediately turned to Alexa and said, “Well, we’re having a baby.”

Alexa chose to parent her baby and is staying in the area to be near family. Our medical team provided her with prenatal vitamins and helped her transition to prenatal care. In addition, Morning Star is supporting Alexa with our nine-week parenting class, Live Connected, so she can plan for a stable and bright future for her baby, as well as with baby supplies as Alexa starts this new journey in her life.

The Pronio Family knows the importance of supporting women like Alexa and is offering a $15,000 Matching Gift Challenge to supporters of Life in our community to help Morning Star fill in a gap in maternal healthcare and meet the increasing demand for pregnancy services.

From now until June 21, you can help support a mom with both medical and non-medical services—giving her the information and education she needs to make an informed decision. It costs $625 to provide all of our services to one woman considering abortion. Your gift of $312.50 will be doubled—providing comprehensive support to one mom!

Join the Pronio Family to help make a difference in our community—saving the life of a child and the heart of a mother. Together, we are more—together, we are fulfilling God’s Life-affirming mission.

*Client names have been changed to protect confidentiality. Photos are stock photos posed by models.