Safe harbor for all women 

Safe harbor for all women

a high school junior who wonders whether she's got a sexually-transmitted disease. Maybe she's 47. a professional woman unsure of how to deal with what is called in cold. clinical terminology an unintended pregnancy.
"When she leaves here. we really don't know if she's going to go ahead with the abortion or if she's going to go ahead with the pregnancy." said Linda Griffith. the center's president and chief executive officer since it opened in 1971. "We like that. That's the way it should be."
The center. is a faceless doctor's office where women with little or no health insurance can come for family planning advice. gynecological exams and a sobering education on women's health issues.
The 14-year-old idea gathers men from around Ocean County ' doctors. whatever ' to cook their specialities. The grub ' and a complimentary service of wine. beer and water ' are then served for $40 a person.
The annual gathering is the largest fundraiser on the center's calendar and raises nearly $20.000 a year. Perhaps more importantly. it also gives visibility to an agency often overshadowed by better-known groups. including Planned Parenthood.
"We need to exist." said Kim Ubriaco. a nurse practitioner who has worked at the planning center for about three years. "A lot of people have no health care. They need affordable health care."
The center's mission when it started ' Griffith has been the leader for 35 years ' was to help poor women plan or prevent pregnancies. Now. with its $1 million budget. the center serves about 4.500 women a year.
The services include providing birth control and a frank discussion of pregnancy options ranging from referrals to adoption agencies to talking about abortions. Under federal law. the agency does not perform abortions because it accepts federal money.
Ann Keever. the center's education coordinator. helps people make those decisions by giving them information first. She talks to patients. high school students ' she's even talked with high-risk elementary school pupils.





Pregnancy