N.C. Baptist leaders, pastors and local representatives pray over a new ultrasound machine that was dedicated at the Albemarle Pregnancy Resource Center in Elizabeth City, N.C., on Aug. 29.
North Carolina Baptist leaders gathered in Elizabeth City on Aug. 29 to celebrate the dedication of a new ultrasound machine at the Albemarle Pregnancy Resource Center (APRC).
The machine was placed in the clinic’s mobile unit, which opens opportunities for staff to serve and “meet families where they’re at,” said Dee Spruce, the center’s executive director.
According to clinic staff, Elizabeth City State University recently granted them permission to park the mobile unit on campus once a month to provide support, testing, ultrasound scans and other services to students.
“In this area, transportation is a huge issue for the families that we serve,” Spruce said. “So now on our mobile unit we’ll be able to go out into the six counties that we serve and provide the same services. Having this ultrasound machine means we’ll be able to go to women and families that would not be able to get into our clinic. That means we’re gonna save more lives.”
The machine was donated through a partnership between N.C. Baptists and the Psalm 139 Project, a pro-life ministry of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.
“The opportunity to serve Albemarle Pregnancy Resource Center through this ultrasound placement is a great privilege to N.C. Baptists,” said Seth Brown, director of convention relations for N.C. Baptists. “We care about standing for life, and we have some of the most generous churches in the nation.
“Our partnership with the Psalm 139 Project allows us to fan the flame of how God is working in this community to serve the vulnerable and share the gospel. We thank God for the staff at APRC and the congregations in Elizabeth City.”
The resource center was established in 1988 and serves Chowan, Perquimans, Pasquotank, Currituck, Camden and Gates counties. The main clinic is located only half a mile from Elizabeth City State University and a few miles from the College of Albemarle’s main campus. They see about 600 clients every year.
In March, N.C. Baptists also partnered with the Psalm 139 Project to donate a mobile ultrasound machine to the Smoky Mountain Pregnancy Care Center in Franklin, N.C. State convention officials are currently engaged in talks about placing additional machines in other parts of the state.
(EDITOR’S NOTE – Liz Tablazon is a communications strategist with the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina.)
