by Joe Bollig
joe.bollig@theleaven.org
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The Greater Kansas City area will get a much-needed pregnancy clinic if a recently launched capital campaign is successful.
This month, the Kansas City Pregnancy Clinic began a “soft launch” of a fundraising campaign to open a second pregnancy clinic somewhere in Shawnee, said Ron Kelsey, president of Kansas City Pregnancy Clinic.
“I’m convinced Shawnee is an excellent area,” said Kelsey. “We do not, as of now, have a specific location.”
The campaign goal is $500,000, and it began with a $50,000 leadership grant from Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann and the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. So far, the clinic has raised $141,000 in gifts and pledges.
The funds raised will be used to lease and remodel the second clinic location.
To raise funds, the campaign will send solicitation letters to donors and host a Valentine’s Day Evening of Life and Love on Feb. 13, 2024, at St. Patrick Parish hall in Kansas City, Kansas.
There’s no cost to attend, but freewill offerings will be accepted to defray the cost of the event and to fund the new clinic.
Participants must preregister. (See below.)
Currently, the Kansas City Pregnancy Clinic has one location at 721 N. 31st St. in Kansas City, Kansas, said Kelsey. In 2022, the clinic provided about 250 ultrasounds for pregnant women. Now, however, the clinic is well on its way to reaching an estimated 800.
“Ultrasounds are a proven tool to help women choose life,” said Kelsey.
There is an urgent need for a pregnancy clinic, he said.
One indication of need for another pregnancy clinic in Johnson County is a growing demand for services, especially for ultrasounds.
Another indication of need is that although Johnson County used to have three pregnancy clinics, it now has only two. This comes at a time when the number of such clinics is increasing across the country.
A third indication of need is the increasing number of abortions in Kansas, among both in-state and out-of-state residents, according to Kelsey.
Kelsey attributed the abortion increase to three things.
The first is the April 26, 2019, Kansas Supreme Court ruling in Hodes & Nauser v. Schmidt. In this ruling, Kansas’ high court discovered a “right to abortion” in the state’s 1859 constitution. This ruling, in effect, nullified all laws regulating abortion in Kansas.
A second is the August 2, 2022, defeat of the “Value Them Both” proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution, which would have restored the power to regulate abortion to the state Legislature.
The third is the establishment of a new abortion clinic in Kansas City, Kansas.
Kelsey is confident that archdiocesan Catholics and other people of good will shall give generously. He believes they will recognize the need for a third pregnancy clinic in Johnson County, and that such a clinic will save the lives of many unborn children and provide tremendous benefit to women.
Join the Valentine’s fundraiser
For more information and to register for the dance, go online to: kcpregnancyclinic.org. At the top right of the homepage, you’ll see the “2024 St. Valentine’s Day Event” link through which to register.
