 |
||||||
|
Who We Are |
||||||
|
Jesus said, ‘Let the
little children come to me, and do not
hinder them,
for the kingdom of heaven belongs
to such as these’. |
The male officers had been assigned to security duty outside the city’s free-standing abortion clinic. They were appalled by the number of women choosing to enter the building and abort their babies. The officers learned some women were homeless, and citing a lack of housing for their decisions to abort. The two men vowed to ensure that no woman would ever choose to end the life of her baby because she had no place to live. The officers approached a handful of fellow Christians, plus the Calgary Pregnancy Care Centre, and together formed the Emma Maternity House Society. They rented a local church’s surplus manse, solicited furniture and other household items from local donors, and began welcoming Emma House’s first residents in 1992. Those first residents were from Calgary and other parts of Southern Alberta. In the years since then, as its reputation has grown, Emma House has provided shelter and support to expectant and “abortion-vulnerable” mothers from as far west as Vancouver, as far north as Yellowknife and as far east as Toronto. In the early years, women stayed at Emma House only until their babies were born. But in recent years, in response to much lengthier waiting lists for long-term housing, Emma House has begun inviting women and their newborn babies to remain at the home for as much as six months while they secure long-term housing. |
|
|
Je’Han is now employed, and living with her little boy in a Calgary townhouse.
|
||
|
|
||
|
|
At Emma House, expectant mothers are welcomed into a safe, supportive, loving, family-like environment – one in which they are not judged for their past, but instead encouraged to make the most of their present and to plan for the future. Each woman receives her own bedroom, counseling and support, plus time to find long-term housing and to decide whether to place her baby for adoption or raise the child on her own. For many new arrivals, Emma House offers the first example of loving discipline they have ever experienced. The rules for all residents include daily chores, curfews, and attending school, going to a job each day, or doing regular volunteer work. Collectively, it provides some consistent structure for the women as their baby delivery dates approach. Live-in Residence Directors—a married couple—supervise Emma House and ensure the women’s safety. In many ways, the Residence Directors serve as surrogate parents. They are often the first models of a mutually supportive married couple that the expectant mothers at Emma House have ever witnessed during their often troubled lives. Resident Directors also help teach residents life, homemaking, nutritional and parenting skills that will benefit them and their babies. |
|
|
Shawna’s story is a
familiar one. She ran away from a dysfunctional
home, met and moved in
with a boyfriend, became pregnant,
was abandoned by the man and
had no place to live. Yet when she arrived
at Emma House, she was far from grateful.
Shawna placed her baby for adoption and returned to school. She is now married and a mother again. |
||
|
STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS |
||
|
Emma House, from its inception, has enjoyed a close and mutually beneficial partnership with the Calgary Pregnancy Care Centre. Emma House provides housing to pregnant women who come to the centre needing places to live. The centre, in turn, provides weekend staff relief, plus child care training and counseling for Emma House’s residents. The centre also has a non-voting director on Emma House’s board. Emma House also has relationships with many of Calgary’s other nonprofit agencies combating homelessness, including the Calgary Homeless Foundation, The Mustard Seed, Salvation Army Centre of Hope, Calgary Drop-In Centre and Sonshine Centre. Many of them refer potential residents to Emma House. We also benefit from relationships with the Garden Path Society and Alberta Food Bank Network Association including their Community Kitchen. Recently Emma House has partnered with Ambrose University College in a practicum program. |
|
