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Birthright began in Toronto,
Ontario, Canada, in 1968, when Louise Summerhill, a busy housewife
and mother of seven children, felt something should be done
to help women through an unplanned pregnancy. The grassroots
response to her idea was overwhelming, and the Toronto chapter
quickly grew into Birthright International, the world's first
international crisis pregnancy service. In 2003, Birthright
International celebrated its 35th anniversary with over 400
chapters worldwide, including Canada, the United States, and
others in South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria, and Colombia. Birthright
is a fully independent organization, not affiliated with any
church or public agency. Its name and logo are trademarks. An
estimated 28,000 women make their first visit to a Birthright
chapter every month. Birthright also operates a 24-hour North
American hotline, at 1-800-550-4900.
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Many Birthright
volunteers and clients feel a special affection for Louise
Summerhill-- an ordinary woman who did something extraordinary
to help others. Events in her life helped her understand the
feelings pregnant girls might experience, including feelings
of loneliness, fear of criticism, tension with parents, and
even the shock of finding oneself unexpectedly pregnant.
Birthright
began very humbly in 1968, with a one-room office and only
$300 in the bank. But Louise's steady leadership and powerful
vision ensured that the new pregnancy service survived. In
later years, Louise was glad the organization did not begin
with a lot of money because it caused Birthright to rely on
the "good hearts and hard work of volunteers" to
provide "lots of love and common sense." Over thirty-five
years later, Birthright International remains true to Louise's
original vision of personal, one-on-one contact in helping
relationships. Louise's Birthright means "approachability
and informality" for clients and volunteers, instead
of bureaucracy and meetings in highly structured, business-like
environments.
Birthright
takes a "non-moralistic, non-judgmental" approach
toward helping women through their pregnancy dilemmas. Louise
regretted the fact that some young unmarried mothers were
belittled or ostracized by their relatives: "I can never
see anything wrong with any of them." Louise recreated
the supportive homelike environment they deserved to have.
Moreover, Louise helped formulate a Charter, followed by all
Birthright chapters worldwide, to define Birthright's services,
to ensure that pregnant women receive the same considerate
treatment at every Birthright chapter, and to help volunteers
preserve Birthright's good reputation in the future.
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