2024 Year-End Update from Our Executive Director

I want to start by saying thank you. Your support this year has helped save lives. In fact, we saved more babies from abortion in 2024 than any year in our history. Every prayer, every gift, every moment you’ve stood with us —it’s all made a difference.

But as we look toward the future, there is an urgent need.

We’re excited to announce a crucial change that will make an even bigger impact in the lives of women facing unplanned pregnancies. We’re expanding our clinic hours. Why? Because every minute matters.

We want to be there first—before women turn to abortion.

The sad reality is, when a woman is scared and feeling alone, she’s only a virtual visit away from aborting her baby at home by the abortion pill. But with your help, we’re going to change that. We’re opening our doors wider, faster, and more often (i.e. nights and weekends) – so we can meet her needs the same day or the next day after she calls us. 

The abortionists offer death in 1-3 days.
Care Net Peninsula offers life in 0-1 day.

Let me tell you a story …

Meet Jordyn

When Jordyn walked into our center, she was overwhelmed. With 4 children already, she found herself pregnant again and terrified what the father would say when he found out.

But by God’s grace, Jordyn heard about us just in time.

Because of our quick response and flexible hours, we were able to see her the very next day. That changed everything. Jordyn received the support, counseling, and care she needed to choose life for her baby, whom she now calls her greatest blessing.

Jordyn recently told us,

“I really felt heard and not judged. My situation was already complicated and these ladies listened. I’m glad I kept an open mind and decided to lean on these wonderful women.”

This is what your generosity makes possible. And it’s why we need you now more than ever. 

By expanding our hours and being available at critical moments, we can reach more women like Jordyn, offering them the love and practical support they need—before they feel like abortion is their only option.

Will you help us?

Your year-end gift today will ensure that more women can get help—faster. Every $50 you give will provide life-affirming counseling and ultrasounds to women considering abortion. 

As the end of the year approaches, your donation can be the difference between life and death for an unborn child.

Give Today! Because every minute matters.

We’re so grateful for your partnership and prayers as we prepare to save even more lives in 2025.

Tuesday, December 10, 2024

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

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What Is An Options Counseling Session?

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

If you’re a supporter of Care Net Peninsula, you probably know about the services you help us provide in our clinic, Alcove Health Women’s Clinic. Pregnancy tests, Ultrasounds, STI Tests, Parenting Support – all the services you would expect in a pregnancy center.

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

One of the best descriptions I’ve heard came from one of our advocates. She explained options counseling this way:

We take out abortion, like a cube, and hold it up and look at it from all the angles. What are her thoughts about what is growing inside her? Is this a life? How is she hoping abortion will make her life better? How will abortion make her life worse? How will she feel after an abortion? Is anyone pressuring her to have an abortion? The questions are as individualized as the women we serve.

While our team of nurses discuss the medical implications and physical risks of abortion, our team of advocates – through this options counseling session – discuss the emotional, relational, and spiritual implications of abortion.

But why discuss abortion at all, you may be wondering. If Alcove Health Women’s Clinic does not perform or refer for abortions (which we don’t), why have any discussion about abortion? Why not head straight to life-affirming options – like parenting and adoption?

Well, the reason is simple. Because if we don’t talk about it, then the only voice she hears in her head is the pro-abortion voice. “Abortion will empower you to live out your dreams,” she’s heard. “Your life is over if you have this baby,” she’s been told.

And these lies are so powerful when the truth is silent.

There may even be the possibility of real personal loss hanging on her pregnancy decision. Maybe it’s her husband or boyfriend’s voice replaying in her mind: “This baby will ruin our lives and I’m leaving if you don’t get an abortion.

These voices are loud. Yet, she has enough concern – enough wisdom – to say, “Wait, I’d like to talk this through, first.

And that’s where the options counseling session comes in.

You see for planned pregnancies, there is usually great excitement to tell others the good news of the pregnancy. But for unplanned pregnancies, there’s usually privacy and silence.

For who wants to tell family and friends about a baby who may not be alive in a few days? That weight is grueling and often leaves her in a corner by herself.

In a state where abortion pills can – within days – arrive in her mailbox, shoved among bills and junk mail, aren’t you glad that Care Net Peninsula says that she and her baby are worth a real live face-to-face conversation? That’s the heart of the options counseling session.

For it is within these conversations that she begins to articulate how she feels about her pregnancy, and how she feels about ending her pregnancy. It is not rare that this consult is the first (and maybe only) place she will talk about how she feels about abortion – and how she feels about the baby inside her.

It’s an amazing thing when you think about it. Two strangers (staff and client), sitting together, talking through one of the biggest decisions of her life.

And often, in those conversations, she is empowered because she has heard her own questions. She has listened to her own reservations and clarified her own thoughts. Speaking is powerful; so is being heard. Both happen during these consultations.

And distinctly a part of the ministry of Care Net Peninsula, this session offers her a spiritual conversation, too. For many women, they know God as creator and just need to hear themselves say, “I know God creates life.” That’s a powerful admission to reconcile when you’re considering an abortion. For some, this instance – this unplanned, unwanted pregnancy – leads them to say yes when, during this session, we ask, “Can I tell you the Gospel?” Isn’t it extraordinary that God will use an unexpected pregnancy to draw women to repent and believe?

There’s more to the options counseling session, of course, because we discuss all her options. She has real choices that protect both her and her baby – like parenting and adoption. We discuss these, too.

Ultimately, she will make a pregnancy decision. Our hope is that, in part because of this consultation, she found the help and hope she needs to choose life – not begrudgingly but empowered by a choice thoughtfully made in a space created just for her.

And that is the value and power of an options counseling session.

Sherri Pigue, Client Advocate

Monday, December 2, 2024

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

Read More »

Save the Date for Giving Tuesday 2024

Save the Date For

Giving Tuesday 2024

As we prepare for Thanksgiving, we’re so thankful for the community around us. Your generosity and dedication to the mission and work of Care Net Peninsula have allowed us to provide hundreds of local women each year with the help and hope they need to choose LIFE for their babies.

Giving Tuesday is right around the corner, and we invite you this year to join us in taking a stand for life by providing the women we serve with ONE free options-counseling session. 

$128

While our team of nurses discuss the medical implications and physical risks of abortion, our team of advocates – through the options counseling session – discuss the emotional, relational, and spiritual implications of abortion.  

But who better to tell you about these sessions than our advocates themselves. Listen to Jenn, one of our Senior Client Advocates, as she shares what she loves about these sessions.

So mark your calendars for Tuesday, December 3, and together, we can continue to provide women with FREE options counseling sessions so they receive the help and hope they need when it matters most.

Monday, November 25, 2024

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

Read More »

Why Early Medical Services Are Critical For Pregnant Women

WHY EARLY MEDICAL SERVICES ARE CRITICAL FOR PREGNANT WOMEN

When a woman is facing an unplanned pregnancy and needs to talk through her options, she typically has three choices: the abortion pill online, an abortion clinic, or Care Net Peninsula’s free medical clinic —Alcove Health.

At Alcove Health we provide women with medical support and also spiritual, emotional, and holistic care —something that can be lacking in medical facilities due to time constraints.

As the Medical Director for Alcove Health, I oversee the medical aspects of the clinic and review each ultrasound. I’m not personally in the room with each patient, but I serve alongside Alcove’s team of licensed Registered Nurses who have received specialized sonography and abortion education training.
 
On top of their medical skills and knowledge, this team of Nurses is passionate about their work and genuinely wants to help each woman they meet, even when that means going above and beyond to care for their clients.

Our Registered Nurses:

Kinta, RN, BSN

Nurse Manager

Meg, RN, BSN

Nurse

Denise, RN, BSN

Nurse

Patty, RN

Nurse

Karla, RN, BSN

Nurse

We provide medically accurate information detailing the fetal development of their baby. We also clarify the different types of abortion and what occurs in each procedure. We never encourage abortion, but we do explain the reality and risks of these procedures so women can make an informed decision. Our prayer is for each client to choose life for her baby.

The most critical component of our medical consultation is the ultrasound. The world around us tells women that an ultrasound isn’t essential —that it is easier not knowing details, and that it’s too invasive. But the truth is, ultrasounds can not only be life-saving for the baby, but life-changing for the moms by providing necessary medical information they need before taking their next step. Simply put, an ultrasound provides answers.

With each ultrasound, our nurses look for the following three things that are vital to a woman’s decision:

1. Location of the Pregnancy
This year alone, I have reviewed the scans of three women experiencing an ectopic pregnancy outside the uterus. If left undetected, they can rupture, leading to internal bleeding and even death. Because of early medical intervention, these clients received the treatment they needed in time.
 
2. Fetal Heart Rate
It is essential to know if the pregnancy is viable, regardless of whether a client is planning on carrying the baby to term or planning to have an abortion.
 
3. Gestational Age
Pregnant women can get a rough idea of how far along they are by calculating the time from the first day of their menstrual period (LMP). However, our nurses obtain measurements from the ultrasounds for a more accurate determination. 
 
For women considering abortion, this determines what options for termination are available and how our nurses consult with her. It also reveals the humanity of the baby developing in her womb.
 
Too often, our nurses hear clients say things like, “Why didn’t anyone tell me it would look like a baby?”, “There is already a heartbeat?”, or “It’s moving!”. The ultrasound is a window into the womb for our clients, revealing life forming right in front of their eyes and debunking the narrative that the baby is not yet a person.
 
I stand firmly behind Care Net Peninsula and the work we do to provide help and hope to women facing unplanned pregnancies. I know across the organization, this is a team of passionate Christ followers ready to support life, and I especially know that my team of nurses is prepared to meet every obstacle thrown their way to be able to minister and help the woman sitting in their ultrasound room.
 
When you support Care Net Peninsula, you are supporting the only local pregnancy center providing life-affirming medical services.
 

You Can Support the Mission and Work Of Care Net Peninsula Today By Making a Gift!

Dr. Jerrid Neeley, D.O., Medical Director

Friday, November 15, 2024

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

Read More »

Two Failed Abortion Attempts = LIFE For A Beautiful, Baby Girl

 Two failed abortion attempts =

life for a beautiful, baby girl!

The other month we celebrated the birth of Baby N! This client came to us extremely abortion minded from the time she walked in, to the time she walked out and even attempted to abort her baby twice. Yet this little baby escaped death both times!

You might be thinking, how could this little girl have survived two attempts? God used some ordinary and extraordinary means.

We see this frequently. God uses flat tires on the way to the abortion clinic, overbooked appointments at the abortion clinic, google searches, the sign on our street, friends who help them stop and think, the abortion reversal pill, and even strangers outside the abortion clinic to draw them to Alcove Health. This was the case for Baby N and her mom. Divine obstacles interrupted her plans and brought her back to our caring team at Alcove Health where she received the help and hope she needed to choose life for her little girl. They are prime examples of the ordinary and extraordinary ways God protects LIFE inside the womb.

Because of you, we are here for her. Your support to this mission is saving lives every day. Thank you for your faithfulness to this mission!

Katelyn Carpenter, Development Assistant

Wednesday, November 6, 2024

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

Read More »

Get to Know Emalee

Get to Know Emalee

Our Development Coordinator

Many of you have gotten to know our Development Coordinator, Emalee Yow, through the Walk4Life and the Peninsula4Life Dinner this year. But we thought it was time to really introduce her to the CNP Family!

A native of New Bern, North Carolina, Emalee moved to Virginia with her husband, Adam, to be part of the Manna Church Newport News relaunch. Over the past few years, God has been moving to bring Emalee to our team.

Before her move to VA, Emalee earned a Bachelor’s degree from Manna University and served as a Missions and Outreach Intern at Manna Church in Fayetteville. During this time, she worked hard on her skills in planning and executing large-scale events, outreaches, and mission trips.

Emalee’s proficiency in these areas made her transition into the role of Development Coordinator smooth when she joined us earlier this year in the middle of Walk4Life planning and Bottles4Life Campaigns, and we know she has been a blessing to the Development team.

If you’ve ever met or talked to Emalee, you know right away why we’re all so grateful to have her on our team. In fact, it’s hard to believe she hasn’t even been with us for a whole year yet!

So feel free to stop by and say hi to Emalee, learn about our upcoming fundraising events, and grab a cup of coffee.

October 22, 2024

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

Read More »

Bringing Hope To The Women We Serve

Bringing Hope to the Women We Serve

For four years after college, I was a missionary in the Dominican Republic. It was life-changing, and there are still days I’m convinced the mountains of the DR are my most natural habitat.

The experience informed how I think about culture, religion, and politics: those problems every society faces that I try to solve in my head on a morning run.

In the DR, as in most of Latin America and the Caribbean, abortion is illegal and culturally unacceptable. Nothing grieves my heart more than when immigrants feel emboldened by our culture of death to kill their own children. Tragically, this is happening more often. We will serve twice as many Hispanic women considering abortion this year than any previous year.

The great news is that God has gifted our team with multiple bilingual staff and volunteers and our Hispanic clients are 40% more likely than our average client to change their mind and choose life for their baby.

Please pray with me that we would stop exporting our abortion views to other cultures. Pray that our team would be well-equipped to handle clients from any background or language. As always, thank you for your partnership with our ministry.

For Life,
Executive Director
2024 Care Net Peninsula Summer Newsletter - Camela's Story

“God has been extremely good to me” – Camela told her church family at World Outreach Worship Center. She had mustered up the courage to share her testimony on Sanctity of Human Life Sunday.

“When I arrived in the U.S. from Jamaica, I said, ‘Okay, this is a whole new life!’ I started working and soon had the opportunity to go back for my two children I had to leave behind. While there, I married my daughter’s father, but he couldn’t return with us. While transitioning back to life in the U.S., now with two kids, I realized – I was pregnant.

Camela’s reaction to the news was a plea to God –

“The thought of abortion came to me, so I went online looking for help. I found Alcove Health and said, ‘Wow! It’s a free clinic!’ and I made an appointment. Upon arriving at my appointment, I realized it was a Christian clinic, and right then and there, I said, ‘Oh, this is not going to work for me.’ But I still went in.

God was bringing Camela the help and hope she needed, and at that moment, the Holy Spirit was working in her heart to combat the lies in her head about why it wouldn’t work to bring this new life into her life.

“When I met with Nurse Kinta, I told her what I wanted to do. She hugged me and said, ‘No, you’re not going to do that’. Then, on the ultrasound screen, she showed me my little baby. And I said to myself, ‘This is a life inside of me. God, I can’t do it.’

I had given up everything when I found out I was pregnant; I had given up on myself. Care Net Peninsula came into my life, and they brought my hope back. They brought me a mentor, and this is where my spiritual mother came into my life”.

That spiritual mother was Pastor Terrie Council, of WOWC, whom Camela met through our Spiritual Mentorship Program.

“She has been a tower of strength for me and was only supposed to be with me for six weeks. But here we are, almost a year later, as she holds my precious little angel. I was raised in a Godly home by a Pastor and teacher; I knew God. But sometimes, we lose our way. This tremendous woman of God came into my life and mentored me, shared with me, and guided me, never letting me make excuses for myself.

God showed Pastor Terrie something in me that I didn’t even see in myself. She has been there for me when I needed it most and is like a mom to me. God is good. I’ll never leave, and I’ll always be in his sanctuary.”

Because of your support and partnership, we can meet our clients’ physical, mental, and spiritual needs. When a woman comes to us about her unplanned pregnancy, she is presented with an opportunity during that visit to connect with a local Christian woman. This mentor steps into her life and walks alongside her spiritually, showing how great our God is, even in the most challenging of seasons.

Make a Gift Today to Serve Women Like Camela

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

Read More »

Olympians Are Not The Only Ones Setting Records

An update from Care Net Peninsula in Newport News, Virginia (Va) - Olympians aren't the only ones setting records

Olympians are not the only ones setting records

Summer doesn’t take a break from unplanned pregnancies and neither do we here at Care Net Peninsula. Our clinic is busier than ever before. In fact, we served an all-time record number of women in just the first 7 months of this year (657 to be exact)! We are so grateful to be able to bring lifesaving help and hope to women facing an unplanned pregnancy. 

Many of the women who come through our doors are not making their decision alone. She is often faced with family members and friends counseling her to have an abortion regardless of her desire to carry her baby to birth. As she examines her options, she may be risking many relationships if she chooses life – perhaps even with the father. 

This was the case of a brave woman we served last week who went against culture AND family coercion to choose life for her baby.

We understand that it’s complicated, but we are unshakable in our stand for LIFE. We are so proud of this woman and the many women who choose LIFE regardless of the pressure around her!

So when you pray for this ministry and the women we serve, please also remember to pray for the families and friends who are part of the decision. Pray that they will have hearts towards life; for the mom and for the baby. Your prayers are powerful and are making a difference.

Friday, August 9, 2024

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

Read More »

Meet Lee Strobel – Our 2024 Peninsula4Life Dinner Guest Speaker

2024 Care Net Peninsula Peninsula4Life Dinner in Newport News, VA Keynote Speaker Lee Strobel

Meet Lee Strobel

Author. Apologist. Evangelist.

Care Net Peninsula's 2024 Peninsula4Life Guest Speaker

Atheist-turned-Christian Lee Strobel, the former award-winning legal editor of The Chicago Tribune, is a New York Times best-selling author of more than forty books and curricula that have sold fourteen million copies in total.

After probing the evidence for Jesus for nearly two years, Lee became a Christian in 1981, inspiring his best-selling book, The Case for Christ. In 2017, Lee’s spiritual journey was depicted in an award-winning motion picture which was shown in theaters around the world.

Lee has been described in the Washington Post as “one of the evangelical community’s most popular apologists.” He was educated at the University of Missouri and Yale Law School. He was a journalist for fourteen years at The Chicago Tribune and other newspapers, winning Illinois’ highest honors for both investigative reporting and public service journalism from United Press International.

Lee currently serves as Founding Director of the Lee Strobel Center for Evangelism and Applied Apologetics at Colorado Christian University.

Learn more about Lee: https://leestrobel.com/about

Tuesday, July 23, 2024

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

Read More »

Praise and Prayers: A look at two years since the overturning of Roe v. Wade 

Overturning Roe v. Wade - Two Years Later - Care Net Peninsula - Newport News, Virginia (VA)
Overturning Roe v. Wade - Two Years Later - Care Net Peninsula - Newport News, Virginia (VA)

Praise and Prayers:

A look at two years since the overturning of Roe v. Wade

Today marks two years since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the constitutional right to abortion. The National Right to Life estimates that up to 89,000 lives have been saved due to this ruling (1). Praise the Lord! And while we are grateful for each of these precious lives saved, we cannot relax in our fight for life.

Despite the favorable Supreme Court ruling, abortion is on the rise.  

In 2023, the US recorded the highest number of abortions in over a decade (2). Nationally, the abortion pill, which in 2020 accounted for 53% of abortions, increased last year to 63% of abortions (3). This means that each year hundreds of thousands of women are having their abortions at home. Abortions with no medical oversight, and many with only a tele-health consultation. 

Here in Virginia where abortion remains legal until the third trimester, the news is not better. In addition to the swell in abortion pill use, clinic-provided abortions increased 85% since 2020. Last year alone, that accounted for 34,700 medical abortions in our state (4). 

BUT THERE IS GOOD NEWS!

Because of your support we are here to give life-saving help and hope to women experiencing an unplanned pregnancy. Already this year we have seen a record number of women in our new clinic. Women arrive feeling scared and alone leave with hope and resources to support them in choosing life for their unborn baby. 

Together We Praise and Pray:

So, as we celebrate the anniversary of this life-saving ruling and the lives that have been saved as a result, let us continue to pray. 

  • Pray for life-giving legislation on a federal and state level.
  • Pray for Care Net Peninsula, and other pregnancy centers who are on the frontlines giving help and hope to women in crisis
  • Pray that women will find us and choose life before they default to an abortion.

As always, we invite you to visit our new center to meet our team and see this life-giving work first-hand. Feel free to give us a call at 757-591-0303 or email me, Anne, at anne@cnpeninsula.org.

Monday, June 24, 2024

What Is An Options Counseling Session?

But there’s one service that seems to many of our donors as, well, mysterious. We use words like “safe space” and “lovingkindness” when we discuss our services, but what exactly is this thing we call an “Options Counseling Session?”

Read More »