The morning started with seven sidewalk counselors accompanied by a Catholic priest who gave them a special blessing.  Prayer warriors with 40 Days for Life began lining up along the sidewalk early in the morning, praying for the unborn.

As the priest’s blessing was going on, one of the counselors began talking to a couple from India who came with their two-year-old boy.  They were astonished about the record of the doctor and at one point the father went up to FPA to check it out.  The counselor continued to talk to the mother, who said that this pregnancy was unplanned.  They had just moved to the United States about a year ago and were not ready to have another child.  The counselor told the woman to look into her heart, as this was her child and she needed to do what was right for her baby.   The counselor told the woman how she witnesses week after the week the pain of abortion, as these women are the never the same after having an abortion.   The woman had a look of concern and listened to the counselor.  The husband called her upstairs and the woman told the counselor not to worry that she would be back.  They were upstairs for about 5 minutes and they came down and were again urged to go to Culture of Life Family Services.  They got into their car and left.

One of the counselors saw a car with Baja plates approaching and signaled one of the Spanish-speaking counselors.   There was a young couple in the car.  They both got out of the car, and the counselor immediately approached them.  She said to them, “If you are going to Family Planning Associates, regardless of what your decision is, you need to look at some information regarding the doctor.”  The woman took the pamphlet, and the counselor proceeded to ask her, “Are you coming for an abortion?”  The woman said she was.  The counselor said she knew a place where she could go for an ultrasound, and if she still felt she needed to come back, then she could, but not before she had a chance to see the true picture of what this meant.  The counselor handed her a picture of a six-week-old pre-born baby, and the woman started to cry.  The counselor looked at her with empathy and knew the woman had reservations about this.  The woman said,  “I am already a mom.”  The counselor replied, “I know it’s hard, but there is help.  Don’t do anything this radical.  Both of you are beautiful, and can you imagine what the baby would look like? Look, I can’t protect your child, he is not mine. You are his mom, and you are his dad. Only both of you can actually protect him. You are in a country where help is always given to those who need it.” They seemed religious, so the counselor told them that Virgin Mary would bless them greatly if they repented from this action. When they looked at each other with remorse, the counselor knew there was nothing more to say, and the counselor left and began praying for them.  Another counselor had decided to speak with the young man while the first counselor spoke to the woman. The second counselor asked the man about his religion, and he responded that he is Catholic. The counselor started to talk to him about how Our Lady of Guadalupe came to Mexico so that the Aztecs would stop doing human sacrifices. He said that it was her decision.  When they were both done talking, the woman approached her boyfriend.  The second counselor took the opportunity to emphasize the abortionist’s bad record to both of them. Then they said they wanted to discuss this in private.  They got in their car and after talking for several minutes, drove off.

One of the counselors approached three Hispanic women as they got out of their car. The counselor went up to the one who was dressed in sweats, figuring she was abortion-intent.  The counselor spoke to her about the abortionist’s litigation and probation record.  The counselor spoke about the positive aspects of adoption, especially open adoptions.  The woman listened and appeared concerned about the doctor’s record. After a while she thanked the counselor and said she would read this and take it into consideration. As she and her two friends were walking toward the clinic they ran into three of the other counselors. They spoke for a while, and as they moved toward the elevator the first counselor noticed that the abortion-intent woman was weeping. They stood at the elevator for a while but they never went up. They turned around and headed back to their car, the woman still weeping.

A counselor spoke with a Mexican couple in their 40s. They already had four children and apparently could not afford another one.  The counselor  spoke to them about the abortionist’s atrocious record. This concerned them a lot, and the counselor spoke to them about adoption, and what a blessing the adoption of the counselor’s child had been.   The counselor told them that he had spoken with several women who had either kept the baby or given the baby up for adoption, and none of them had regretted their decision.  The counselor told her about women he knew that have had abortions and do have great regrets.  The counselor noticed that the man was wearing a cross. When asked what denomination he was, he said Catholic.  The counselor pointed to all of the prayer warriors (about 20 at the time) and said that they were praying for the women going into the clinic.  The counselor also pointed to the image of Guadalupe hanging on the tree above the prayer warriors, and pointed out how she had come to Mexico to convert the Aztecs and stop human sacrifice. The counselor told them that abortion was a type of modern human sacrifice.  He gave them a photo of the six-week ectopic pregnancy and pointed out that this is our son or daughter from the moment of conception.   As he was speaking with them, the woman was intently reading all of the information given to her in Spanish, that lists the dangers of abortion. They thanked the counselor and got back in their car spoke for a while, then left.

Soon after, another counselor saw a man entering his car.  He was polite to the counselor but said he needed to visit a restroom.  He listened to everything the counselor had to say, and he promised to go up and try to get his girlfriend out after he came back.   The counselor lost track of him but eventually he was spotted on the balcony talking with this girlfriend and another woman.  This went on for some time with the woman going in and out of the abortion clinic.  After an hour or so, the woman and man came out with their arms around each other and it appeared she was crying.  The counselor tried to talk to them but the man told the counselor not to come over to the car.  A short time later the other woman left with them.

A couple drove into the lot and circled the lot several times, then parked close to one of the counselors.  They sat in their car and observed the counselor for some time but never got out.  Finally they started their car and drove away.

Sometime later another couple with a child in the backseat drove in from El Centro.  However, the father was disinterested and the woman listened to the counselor but appeared to be in a hurry.  The counselor gave her as much information as she would take, but eventually she went into the clinic.   The woman looked to be showing in her pregnancy.  After sometime, the woman came out and did not appear to be happy.  She was on the phone and was looking for her husband.  The counselor told her everything would be all right, but the woman got into their car and left.

One of the counselors spoke with a woman briefly, who did not want to talk much.  She did not get out but sat in her car.  After about a half hour she drove away.

One of the counselors spoke to a young woman and her boyfriend.  The woman went inside, but the boyfriend stayed and listened while the counselor explained some of the alternatives to an abortion.  He went in several times to try to talk his girlfriend into coming out.  She finally came storming out saying “They said I can’t leave.  I said ‘Yes I can and I will!  Watch me!’  I got up and left.”  The woman went back in for her coat.  She came out again and said she was not going to have the abortion, and they left.

At one point in the morning one of the prayer warriors shared with a counselor how she and her husband helped counsel one of their workers whose wife was pregnant.  The couple was considering abortion and this prayer warrior and her husband helped them to choose life for their baby.  Today was the day that the baby was due to be born, as a C-section was scheduled.