Why She’s Passionately Pro-Life and Pro-Woman
By Katie Doryland
Diane Ferraro recently stepped into the role as the first female CEO at Save the Storks. She has been part of the team since 2018. Diane is a life-long pro-life advocate, largely because of her own story. She was adopted as a baby after her mother chose life for her. She is passionate about ensuring that a mother’s decision for life is not where those in the pro-life movement end the relationship, but rather is the beginning of a partnership.
How long have you been involved in the pro-life movement?
In 2005, I volunteered at Living Well (now Obria) Pregnancy Center in Pasadena, CA. I worked at the front desk on Thursday nights, filing, answering phones and doing anything else that was needed. I’d always been pro-life, but this was my first encounter with a clinic that served moms who were considering getting an abortion.
When I volunteered to help put their annual fundraising banquet together, I was in awe of the stories I heard when calling donors. The stories of these women were what opened my eyes to the truth of pro-life. The services that Living Well PRC offered, free of charge, were what pro-life was all about. The love and genuine care they showed to every woman restored my hope in the pro-life movement.
The pregnancy resource center simply met the needs of the women facing an unplanned pregnancy. They offered the choice to choose life and provided meaningful, practical resources during the pregnancy and after the baby was born. Living Well PRC even had a list of compassionate attorneys on-call who volunteered their services to women who chose an adoption plan.
Dr. Geeta’s clinic and her focus on compassion and the love of Christ was not just pro-life, it was pro-woman.
What is one big goal that you have for Save the Storks and/or the pro-life movement?
It is a God-sized goal, as it should be. We want every woman to choose life when facing an unplanned pregnancy. This will happen when women feel empowered by access to the resources and unconditional support they need during her pregnancy and after she has her baby. We want the 2700+ pregnancy health clinics across America to be the go-to places a woman visits when she finds herself in an unplanned pregnancy.
What do you wish more people knew about being pro-life and pro-woman?
We need to be honest: the past 48 years of pro-life have been divisive to many. There are women who have had an abortion who don’t feel that they can or even want to be part of the pro-life movement. There are Christians and Catholics who feel abortion is okay in certain cases. The church has been hesitant to discuss pro-life as pastors have been misinformed that this is a political issue.
Let’s start to extend olive branches to friends and family who are pro-choice and invite those we don’t agree with to have a conversation. Don’t rely on a social media post to convince others to share your stance on life. Now is the time to share your personal story.
Sharing your story with others is the most compelling way to engage others in a pro-life conversation. My story is about my adoption, but I also couldn’t have children so I fostered and adopted. I know the heartache of not being able to conceive a child. There are millions of stories about life and motherhood. There are millions of stories about the tragedy of abortion, too.
Start to pray about YOUR story and how you might connect with just one person who needs to hear it.
We tend to see the pro-choice side as the enemy. But look at these women (and men) who see abortion as a women’s “right” and try to understand their story and why they feel so strongly about pro-choice.
Remember the WWJD bracelets and bumper stickers? It is time we as a pro-life movement get back to this basic and do what Jesus would do if a person he encountered needed to hear the truth about life.
He’d sit down with the person, give His undivided attention, and offer love and compassion.
To read more pro-woman stories in the pro-life movement, click here.
To find a pregnancy center near you, click here.
