e-mail
Last month, I told you about two different programs that house pregnant women and then help them with the resources and tools that they need in order to successfully parent their children. I’ve run across a similar program that is nearby in Charlotte, North Carolina called Lois Lodge.
Lois Lodge is a family style, Christian based, modern day maternity home that provides housing to women in need while experiencing unplanned pregnancies. Lois Lodge does not force a decision of parenting or relinquishment on the women but gives them information on both options to help them make an informed decision. According to Debbie Durrel, executive director of Lois Lodge, about half of the women end up parenting and about half end up making adoption plans. The staff tries not to sway them one way or the other but provides each woman with information on both options. If women choose to make an adoption plan, then they are referred to an outside adoption professional or adoption agency.
While at Lois Lodge, arrangements are made for each woman to receive prenatal care as well as weekly counseling. The women at Lois Lodge also receive education and information on a variety of subjects to help them be successful parents such as household management, financial planning, employment skills, parenting, decision making, building healthy relationships, and more.
There is no cost to stay at Lois Lodge. Women of all ages are accepted; there have been women in the program between as young as 14 and as old as 42 but the average age is around 19. Women can come at any point in their pregnancy and can stay at Lois Lodge until they give birth. By that point, the staff at Lois Lodge will have begun making a transition plan for the woman and her baby.
In my next post, I will introduce you to a former resident of Lois Lodge, a young mother who stayed at Lois Lodge during her pregnancy and is now successfully parenting her daughter.
–
Other Programs Similar to Lois Lodge:
House of Courage in Tennessee
Christmas Village in Mississippi
Refuge Home in Illinois
Real Alternatives in Pennsylvania
