A Look Back at 2023
Miranda’s Story
We met Miranda after she moved to Florida to obtain a better quality of life as a teacher. In her mid-thirties, she had never been pregnant and did not know if that would ever happen for her. Soon after moving to Jacksonville, she got into a relationship and found herself to be unexpectedly pregnant. Not long after finding herself pregnant, devastation hit as she found out her boyfriend had been unfaithful to her and was also not supportive of her keeping the baby. Conflicted, and with no family or support system near her, Miranda did not know what to do. She made four different appointments for an abortion, but the uncertainty kept tugging at her. Unsure what to do, especially being in a new area, she googled “other ways to help women who are pregnant.”
80% of post-abortive women said they would have chosen life if they had just one person standing with them to provide additional support, according to one study. When Miranda found First Coast Women’s Services she found the support system she needed. When speaking about her client advocate, Miranda said: “There was something about her presence. There was finally someone I could talk to. There was finally someone who was going to listen to me without judgement.” Because of the team around her she was able to get over the shock and the shame of the situation. Despite the challenges she was facing, Miranda chose life for her son. Since then, Miranda has started attending a local church after they threw her a baby shower. There, she also recently had her son dedicated. The Lord used her son, unplanned by her but planned by God, to minister to her. “He literally saved me. God is gracious.” Not only that, but she has found forgiveness towards the father of the baby, and they are successfully co-parenting. Miranda is still connected to FCWS, even though her son is a toddler. She has grown as a person, “Now I know that I am worth it.”
Watch Miranda’s full testimony video below!
A Letter from Judy Weber, CEO
Bridging Our Clients to Life in Christ and to Fellowship with Other Christians
2024 is still a shiny new year full of blessings and possibilities. This is nowhere truer than in the lives of the desperate, frightened clients that the Lord brings to FCWS. In 2023, the number of individual clients we served increased by 18% to 3,400, and the number of babies saved increased by 15% to 1,200. We are thankful to the Lord for all that He did in the lives of these women and men. We were thrilled to see an increase in the number who chose adoption rather than abortion. Three families who were making adoption plans at Christmas were blessed by local churches to receive gifts for their other children. We are no longer surprised to find families who already have several children make adoption plans for their current baby whom they cannot afford. I can only imagine how difficult that would be for a mother and father. I admire them for this choice that will bless another family waiting and praying for that baby they are unable to have.
Our desire at FCWS is to help those clients, especially those who are abortion-minded, to be able to find a path through the problems they are facing and choose LIFE for their babies. But we care for more than the baby. We care for the mother and the father of the baby. We know that this choice will also help them avoid that pain and regret which comes with having an abortion. Even beyond this, we know that the most important thing we can do is to introduce them to salvation in Jesus Christ. He is the source of new life for them individually and as a family. We always pray for and look for opportunities to share the Gospel with clients, but it does not always appear early in our relationship with them. That is not what they are seeking when they come to us. We have learned that our best opportunity to share about Christ comes with the clients who return to us several times, as many do. It also occurs when we can connect them to Christians in local churches who minister to them, like the three families at Christmas mentioned above.
Our client story this month is a good example of a client who came to us far from Christ and is now fully connected to Him and a church fellowship. We have two specific programs, “Making Life Disciples” and “Embrace Grace”, which connect our clients with local churches. We would love to speak with you about these. Another way is simply to minister to a specific client with a baby shower. More than half of our clients have a Christian history, but many have been hurt within church while growing up and need to experience the true love of believers in a more loving local church. This can lead to salvation or re-dedication and a whole new faith-life. Sincere thanks to all of you and your churches who have been involved with FCWS in serving, praying, and giving. We know that we could never do what the Lord has called us to do without you. Thank you!
Joyfully serving,
Judy Weber, CEO
A Look at 2024
We are believing for 2024 to be a year of growth and expansion both in the places God already has us and on new grounds.
As of December 2023, First Coast Women’s Services is now serving the St. Augustine Community through our new St. Augustine Center.
Additionally, as the demand for our services continues to increase across all our Centers, we hope to provide our Centers with the necessary updates to increase our capacity and functionality. These needs range from major renovation projects to furniture and tech equipment.
Click below to learn more about the 2024 vision and how you can partner with First Coast Women’s Services to bring life to Northeast Florida!