by Catherine Halbmaier
Special to The Leaven
ATCHISON — The pro-life movement in Kansas has never been busier. Under new executive director Eileen Lambert, Life Alliance Kansas (LAK) will make sure no pregnancy resource center has to adapt alone.
After the “Value Them Both” amendment failed to pass in 2022, Preston and Melanie Bowman founded LAK. The organization seeks to provide a supportive network to pregnancy resource centers across Kansas, and, with Lambert’s help, increase awareness of these organizations.
According to Deb Niesen, board vice president, Kansas has become an “abortion-destination state,” which highlights the need for pregnancy resource centers.
“Our abortion numbers are skyrocketing,” said Niesen, who is the consultant of the pro-life office of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. “And I think the majority of our abortion numbers in the state of Kansas are coming from out-of-state women. So, a group of us got together to say, ‘OK, how are we going to market to those women coming into our state? How can we let them know about pregnancy resource centers, to offer another option, a better option for them and their baby?’”
When the growing organization needed an executive director, Niesen began the search for qualified candidates.
“I had known Eileen because of her work at St. Mary’s Home for Mothers, and then, she was involved up at the Atchison pregnancy resource center,” Niesen said. “So, I knew she had a passion for this.”
In fact, Lambert has exhibited a passion for the pro-life cause from a young age.
“I volunteered with my grandma, who helped us start the Precious Life Shelter in Los Alamitos, California,” Lambert said. “But by trade, I was an event coordinator before finding my way back into the pro-life ministry.”
Lambert worked as the event coordinator at Benedictine College in Atchison before seeking her current position. It was the defeat of the “Value Them Both” amendment that pushed Lambert to seriously consider making a change.
“I think I’ve always wanted to get back into it or do something more for the pro-life industry,” Lambert said. “I felt really discouraged after we lost ‘Value Them Both’ back in 2022, and that kick-started my passion. I was just like OK, my vote didn’t work, I need to do something else.”
Now, through LAK, she plans to make real change. Lambert’s first goal as executive director is to connect all the pregnancy resource centers in Kansas.
“By nature, running a pregnancy center is very isolating,” Lambert said. “The job itself is attacked frequently by our culture. So, I think one really important thing is just getting all of them connected and helping them link arms.”
Lambert has already seen examples of the strength that comes with connecting pregnancy resource centers.
“Just this last week there was a gal who went to a pregnancy center in Dodge City and then traveled to Kansas City and had her baby early. She only had contacts with the people in Dodge City.” Through Lambert’s contact with the Dodge City resource center, the woman was connected with help in Kansas City.
This is just one example of how the connections formed through LAK can help both women and pregnancy resource centers.
“It’s just really helping support pregnancy centers where they need help, and that looks different for all of them,” she said. “You know some of them need help with marketing, whereas others are doing great but they can offer their services for others. It’s just helping them do the work that they’re meant to do.”
Of course, to do that work, people need to be aware of what pregnancy resource centers have to offer. Marketing is an area of emphasis for Lambert, especially with Planned Parenthood being such a recognizable brand to compete against.
“The sad reality is that so many people, I mean like even Catholics, don’t actually know what a pregnancy center does,” Lambert said. “And most high schoolers will know what Planned Parenthood is because they have great marketing. They have brand recognition. While all of our pregnancy centers have different branding, there is something that Life Alliance as a state coalition can do — [it can] educate people and let people in the state be more familiar with what a pregnancy center is.”
Lambert is just getting started. With her, LAK hopes to foster unity among pregnancy resource organizations and increase awareness like never before.
If you would like to learn more and support Life Alliance Kansas, visit its website at: lifeallianceks.org.
