Austin LifeCare Northwest

Hope Connections began when Edna and Randy Staudt wanted a pregnancy resource center in the Leander area. With donated materials, volunteers refurbished a former pharmacy into an office in 2008.

After the merger, the Leander location began sharing staff and materials with LifeCare's Austin outreach. In addition to donations, the organization seeks Spanish-speaking volunteers to reach the maximum number of clients.

"We're not just trying to save babies," Development Coordinator Teri Johnson said. "We're trying to wrap our arms around people in the community who may need help and support in a lot of different areas, whether that's prevention, intervention or restoration."

For pregnancy prevention, LifeCare sponsors a risk-avoidance sexual education program in nine Central Texas school districts. Yet most who enter the office are already pregnant or think they might be, volunteers said.

That is when volunteers begin intervention by sharing counseling services, information and supplies, volunteers said.

"No matter what they choose, it's a lifelong decision," Executive Director Pam Cobern said. "We have a mentor program, so if we have a client that doesn't have support then we match them up with somebody who can walk alongside them during the pregnancy and afterward."

LifeCare's volunteers and staff members work with several adoption agencies. Some clients enter the office already knowing they want someone to adopt the child, volunteers said.

Volunteers also maintain a baby boutique and off-site storage locations full of free maternity clothes, baby formula and food. Other resources such as diapers and car seats are earned by taking child care classes, Client Services Director Marianne Drummond said.

"People hear about us, and they'll come in and say, 'I want to give it to you because you give it away,'" she said. "We do have donors, and they help us buy things that we need."

Some volunteers have medical backgrounds, but LifeCare is not a medical clinic. However, staffers said they can provide referrals and ultrasounds early in a pregnancy.

Finding clients may be difficult, so volunteers want an accessible yet confidential location, Cobern said.

"We're at some point hoping to expand this [location], because right now it's small. We'd love to see this location get as busy as the other one [in Austin]," she said. "Our goal is not just to give [clients] a handout and say, 'Good luck with that.' We want to have a relationship with them, and we want to see some change in their lives."

Austin LifeCare Northwest, 2701 S. U.S. 183, Ste. C, Leander, 512-260-8855, [email protected],www.austinlifesupport.com, Hours: Mon.–Thu. 9 a.m.–5 p.m.