PAGE- Post Adoption Group Encouragement

Birthmother Support Group Meeting coming up!
When: September 20, 2008, 10 AM to Noon
Where: Caribou Coffee, 1531 East Blvd., Charlotte
If you have questions or need directions please contact Meg at 704-995-6435.
Bring Anything You Want to Share or Just Bring You!
RSVP to Meg at pagegroup@yahoo.com or call 704-995-6435

PS: Next meeting is December 13th at Charlotte Pregnancy Resource Center.

Prolife Video Contest

Contest Inspires Pro-Life Video Activism
http://www.studentsforlife.org/index.php/videocontest/.
Students for Life
Yesterday, Students for Life of America launched the first-ever pro-life video activism contest in cooperation with Stand True Ministries and Rock for Life. The contest asks high school and college-aged students to submit homemade videos, posted on YouTube, regarding pro-life voting in the 2008 presidential election and de-funding Planned Parenthood. Multiple prizes will be awarded with a top prize offered at $2,000.

Students in U.S. high schools and universities as well as homeschoolers may enter their videos on either De-funding Planned Parenthood or Pro-Life Voting in the 2008 Election. All entries must be posted on YouTube and submitted by October 11, 2008 at 11pm ET. They will be judged in five categories ranging from creativity and originality to newsworthiness. Whether documentary style or scripted, each video must be under 10 minutes in length and entirely factual.

For more info go to: www.studentsforlife.org/index.php/videocontest/

Interesting Adoption News and Research Findings

REPORT SUGGESTS RELIGIOUS ADOPTIVE PARENTS EXPERIENCE LOWER STRESS
A study of 113 adoptive families in a rural, Southern area found that religiosity predicted lower stress in adoptive parenting and that faith was a primary factor in their adoption decisions. “The Role of Faith in Adoption: Achieving Positive Adoption Outcomes for African American Children,” by Kathleen Belanger, Sam Copeland and Monit Cheung, was published in the current issue of Child Welfare (Volume 87, Issue 2). While most families attended church weekly, the percentage was even higher among Blacks (91 percent) than Whites (78 percent), and the authors concluded that greater recruitment from African American churches and tailoring the message to key aspects of their faith would be the most effective strategies for increasing the adoption of African American foster children. To access a free abstract, go to: http://www.cwla.org/articles/cwjabstracts.htm#0803

MAJOR STUDY LINKS ADOPTION OPENNESS TO BETTER OUTCOMES FOR PARENTS
Based on data from 323 adoption triads sampled from 33 agencies in 10 states, greater openness in adoptions is linked with more satisfaction with the adoption process for both adoptive parents and birthparents and with more positive post-adoption adjustment for birthmothers and birthfathers. “Bridging the Divide: Openness in Adoption and Postadoption Psychosocial Adjustment among Birth and Adoptive Parents,” by Xiaojia Ge, Misaki Natsuaki, David Martin, Jenae Neiderhiser, Georgette Villareal, John Reid, Leslie Leve, Daniel Shaw, Laura Scaramella and David Reiss, was published in the August issue of the Journal of Family Psychology (Volume 22, Issue 4). This is the first major study on openness to include birthfathers (n=112) and reports on the first wave of data collection six to nine months post-placement. To access an abstract, go to:
http://psycnet.apa.org/index.cfm?fa=browsePA.volumes&jcode=fam

Bristol Palin's Pregnancy Highlights the Prevalence of Teen Pregnancy

PRESS RELEASE
September 2, 2008

For Immediate Release
Contact:
Kay Phillips
919) 226-1880

Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Campaign of North Carolina

Bristol Palin's Pregnancy Highlights the Prevalence of Teen Pregnancy
Every 28 minutes an NC teen becomes pregnant.

Durham -The revelation of the pregnancy of Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin's daughter Bristol, 17, brings the issue of teen pregnancy to the national forefront once more. "Our hearts go out to the Palin family as they deal with this difficult issue under a national spotlight," said Kay Phillips, Executive Director of the Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Campaign of North Carolina. "This issue is too common in America today and deserves a frank look at what we can do to help teens become adults without the fear of an early pregnancy." In North Carolina, a teen girl becomes pregnant every 28 minutes.

"This is an issue that can happen to anyone, anywhere; parents need to take this opportunity to speak to their children about sex and the consequences of sex. Teenaged mothers are less likely to complete high school and less likely to go on to college. If we are committed to building a better life for our daughters, we must provide them with information about sex and how to prevent becoming pregnant, either through abstinence or contraception."

For further information and statistics on teen pregnancy in North Carolina, please visit our website at www.appcnc.org or call (919) 226-1880 for information.

The Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Campaign of North Carolina (APPCNC) is a nonpartisan non-profit that works with health workers and those who work with teens to prevent teen pregnancy and promote better teen parenting skills. Its services include training, resources, advocacy and information as well as community mobilization. Its services are available to all 100 counties in North Carolina.

APA REPORT DISREGARDS EVIDENCE ON ABORTION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Aug. 14, 2008

CONTACT: Kristin Hansen, (703) 544-8742

APA REPORT DISREGARDS EVIDENCE ON ABORTION, CARE NET SAYS

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Care Net President Melinda Delahoyde responded Wednesday to a draft report released by the American Psychological Association that claims there is no risk of mental health problems after one abortion. Delahoyde said the report will have “devastating consequences on women if health professionals follow the APA and withhold potentially lifesaving information about the risks of abortion.”

“The APA has completely disregarded credible research that shows abortion increasing the risk of clinical depression, suicide, drug and alcohol abuse, and post-traumatic stress disorder,” said Delahoyde. “The report’s conclusion also flies in the face of what pregnancy centers see every day: the anguish of thousands of women and men every year – 13,000 in 2006 alone - who visit Care Net centers seeking help from a past abortion.”

“Finally, the APA’s report also contradicts what the Supreme Court recognized in Gonzales v. Carthart – that abortion holds considerable emotional health risks for women,” said Delahoyde. “In the words of Carhart, women experience ‘grief more anguished and sorrow more profound’ when they are not informed of the truth about abortion. The Court’s conclusion was based on thousands of affidavits of women who testified to experiencing ‘severe depression and loss of esteem.’”

“The APA may continue to politicize abortion, but Care Net and its network of affiliated pregnancy centers are committed to providing medically referenced and accurate information about abortion risks to empower women to make informed health decisions,” said Delahoyde. “We’ve heard too many anguished women over the years say, ‘I wish someone would have told me abortion would cause me this much grief.’ Women deserve the truth.”

Care Net is a Christian, non-profit organization that seeks to promote a culture of life through the delivery of valuable, life-affirming, evangelistic ministry to people facing unplanned pregnancies and related sexual issues. Care Net supports a network of 1,100 pregnancy centers in North America and operates, in conjunction with Heartbeat International, the Option Line call center and website that assist women in need 24/7.