Bottles for babies: A celebration of motherhood

Guest Commentary
May 10, 2008

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Surprise! You're pregnant! There can be no greater bombshell in all of life than hearing you are going to be a mother when it's unplanned. To some women, it's a great cause for celebration, but for others it provokes a profound fear.

I never thought I would be a mother because I was hell-bent on developing a lifelong vocation in broadcasting. When the news came of my first pregnancy, I shook my fists and shed some serious tears wrestling with the pros and cons of baby versus career.

Fast forward 30 years. I now look at Micah, my firefighter son, and my daughter Mandy, a proud member of the United States Navy, and I ask myself, "How could I live without these two precious human beings?" Life simply wouldn't be as blessed! It wouldn't be as complete. Life wouldn't be as full without them. I wouldn't laugh as much, or cheer as much. I wouldn't have the memories, the pictures or the lessons.

At the Pregnancy Resource Center in Greeley, we frequently hear mothers remark how grateful and amazed they are with their "surprise" babies. They had no idea the joys they would experience with these miniature human beings. Women who come to us for free pregnancy tests (more than 800 last year) are sometimes quite bewildered with the news that they are going to be mothers. Because I am one, I can tell you that the mothers who have chosen the gift of life for their babies end up receiving the far greater gift.

This Mother's Day, the PRC is focusing on the gift of motherhood through its annual Baby Bottle Campaign designed to raise about 20 percent of the annual PRC budget of $240,000.

Almost 60 Weld County churches will be handing out colorful baby bottles to their members, who will then fill the bottles with loose change and charitable checks. The bottles will be returned in June on Father's Day.

Last year, this effort provided more than $50,000 for the PRC, which is a sizable income for such a small container. These funds helped provide for nearly 700 pregnancy tests, 230 free ultrasound exams, free car seats, layettes, maternity wear, diapers and other baby items. Have I mentioned free options counseling? We hope you will join this effort to bless mothers and babies with the amazing gifts of life and life-giving.

If you don't belong to a participating church, you are encouraged to stop by the Pregnancy Resource Center, 1403 10th Ave., Greeley, to pick up your own Mothers Day Bottle. You'll be surprised at how much fun you have by blessing moms in a tangible way!

Gail Holmes is executive director of the Pregnancy Resource Center in Greeley.