This is my story of an unplanned pregnancy … and hope.
by Brittany Gordon
I always imagined growing up and attending Texas A&M. When my acceptance letter arrived my senior year, my dreams became a reality. Attending Fish Camp, freshman orientation, packing up all my possessions, officially starting classes – everything was going exactly how I planned.
What I didn’t plan was getting pregnant just three months later.
Worry, fear, disbelief, anxiety, panic – just a few of the emotions I was feeling. My boyfriend Ty and I had been dating for about a year at the time, and neither of us had a clue what to do.
We decided the first step was to go somewhere for a pregnancy test to be 100 percent positive. Searching online yielded Hope Pregnancy Center of Brazos Valley, described online as an organization designed to meet the needs of those facing crisis pregnancies and offering free pregnancy tests. I scheduled an appointment. Little did I know, they would be providing so much more.
At the appointment Ty and I learned I was in fact pregnant. The staff provided us with counseling both together and separately. They didn’t tell us what to do, what was right or wrong, or judge us on our thoughts or decisions. They simply provided us with information and options, discussed pros and cons of each situation, and answered any questions we had.
Two weeks later we went back to Hope for our free ultrasound. It still didn’t seem real, but when we saw that little baby on the screen and the staff called us mom and dad, it hit us right in the face. We were about to be parents.
At our appointment, Hope provided us with a bag packed full of information and everything we might need: a list of local doctors, what to expect during pregnancy, referrals for things like WIC and Medicaid, prenatal vitamins, and so much more. They also gave us a list of parenting classes they offer at Hope Pregnancy Center. Attending classes earns points that can be redeemed at the Hannah’s Closet at Hope: a room stocked with anything you might need including cribs, car seats, strollers, diapers, and clothes.
We immediately began attending classes offered at all different times to fit everyone’s schedule. We continued going as often as we could throughout my pregnancy. Besides information to prepare us for parenting, we earned enough points to receive a diaper card that gave us a package of diapers and wipes each month for a year, a baby monitor, clothes, bottles, sheets and blankets … and so much more.
Representatives from Hope called and checked on us periodically during my pregnancy and after the birth, always friendly and eager to help in any way they could.
Ty and I got married on January 22, 2011, soon after finding out the news I was pregnant. Our son, Keaton Tyler Gordon, was born on July 3, 2011, and what began as one of the most terrifying experiences in my life soon became the most precious and memorable moments of our new, though very different than planned life together.
Hope Pregnancy helped us in so many ways beyond a free pregnancy test and free diapers. We received real help and information at a very worrisome and terrifying time in our lives. We were given hope.
Graduating this May, I have been able to stay in school throughout pregnancy and Keaton’s early childhood. Some moments have been very hard and stressful: major problems like finances, inexperience and fear were lightened immensely with the help of Hope Pregnancy. It was through their services and support that Ty, Keaton and I have continued to grow as a family.
Did things go as planned when I got my acceptance letter to Texas A&M? No. But along with my degree in Communications and Journalism, I’ve had the lesson of a lifetime learning to be a wife, mother and college graduate with the help of many people along the way, beginning with the staff at Hope Pregnancy Center.
Unplanned Pregnancy?
Nearly half of the pregnancies in the United States are unplanned. Teen pregnancy accounts for 20 percent, and 82 percent of teen pregnancies are unintended.
Hope Pregnancy Center offers testing, counseling and … hope.
Executive Director Tracy Frank says Hope Pregnancy Center was started in 1985 to help those facing crisis pregnancies by providing information and services at a time of great stress. Frank learned what services were lacking locally when she became pregnant shortly after her 18th birthday during spring break of her freshman year at Texas A&M. Frank says not only wasn’t there a center like Hope Pregnancy, there wasn’t any help or information: she was told she was pregnant … and that was it. Frank got involved with Hope Pregnancy when she joined the board in 1997; she was hired as executive director in 2006. It is Frank’s and Hope Pregnancy’s goal to provide both comfort and information to women and men facing an unplanned pregnancy with services and information at this vital time of need.
Hope guarantees clients will be treated equally and with zero discrimination, says Frank. The Center is available to provide information with open and honest answers and is available to help regardless of the decision you make.
“Ultimately the decision is up to the client, we just want to provide all the information so no client ever says, ‘No one ever told me that,’” Frank says.
Last year Hope gave away 80,000 diapers and saw 1,437 men and women in their center. In one month alone they gave 76 pregnancy tests.
Hope Pregnancy Center serves both women and men and includes the following list of free and confidential services: verification of pregnancy with a clinical pregnancy test; confirmation of pregnancy with an ultrasound; peer-counseling services; information about pregnancy and options; 24-hour
Hotline; sexual health services; voucher for free testing and free treatment; education and counseling; parenting education classes; Hannah’s Closet; and any assistance and referrals needed.
Pregnancy is an important stage and a vulnerable time for both women and men. Frank says Hope Pregnancy is here to assist and encourages men and women to never hesitate to call or stop by for help or information.
For more information about Hope Pregnancy Center, visit hopepregnancy.org or call the center at (979) 695-6163. Email Tracy Frank at tracy@hopepregnancy.org.
