Erin* was only 22 years old when she found out she was pregnant. Her ex-boyfriend, the father of her child, was in jail and in no position to take on the responsibility of being a parent. An unexpected pregnancy is always frightening, but being alone made it even more terrifying for Erin.
She was six months pregnant and living in maternity housing, a place for woman to go who need assistance during pregnancy, after experiencing homelessness when she realized she couldn’t provide the life her child deserved and needed help.
An internet search changed her life; Erin found the pregnancy counseling hotline. Once she called, she was immediately connected with a pregnancy counselor with Joining Hearts, a program of Catholic Charities Community Services.
After meeting her pregnancy counselor in person, Erin chose Joining Hearts to help her make the most important decision of her life.
Erin explored both the possibility of parenting her unborn child as well as placing the child for adoption with a loving, qualified family who has been waiting to adopt. After six weeks of pregnancy counseling, she decided placing the child for adoption was the best option for her, and most importantly, her child.
Erin chose a semi-open adoption with Joining Hearts, which means open contact and correspondence between Erin and the adoptive family she chose. She spent the last five weeks of her pregnancy building a relationship with the adoptive family. Erin was able to talk on the phone, receive text messages and meet for an occasional outing with the adoptive family.
When Erin’s baby was born, she felt positive about her adoption plan and placed her baby with the adoptive family she chose. She was able to sleep soundly knowing that her child was truly getting a chance at their best life. Most importantly, Erin was able to make the decision with the support from Joining Hearts on her side. During the whole process, Erin was never alone.
*Name was changed to protect client privacy.
