Fund-Raising Program . . . Enables Pro-Life Centers To Have Ultrasound Machines To Save Preborn Babies’ Lives
By DEXTER DUGGAN
(Wanderer Editor’s Note: In the coming weeks, The Wanderer’s website will feature a podcast about this remarkable pro-life initiative.)
- Every September, people in the U.S. and elsewhere devote a moment of silence to recall the approximate 3,000 lives lost to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, in New York City, Washington, D.C., and rural Pennsylvania.
If people were to devote such a quiet moment for every 3,000 preborn babies killed by abortion in the U.S., “We would be silent for 118 years,” said Diego Wendt, the co-founder of a charity fund-raising program to buy ultrasound machines for pro-life pregnancy centers.
That figure for abortion deaths doesn’t even include other countries, Wendt said — a total of 62 million domestic abortions.
In addition, a person may ponder that the potential family line of each aborted baby stops with his or her death, never living to have their own babies or descendants. This may sound horrific to many people, but population controllers consider such a fact very attractive.
Wendt told The Wanderer during an August 16 interview that he thinks many people don’t realize the magnitude of the abortion numbers.
The ultrasound charity, 4US (4us.org), has designated its primary mission to be Operation IllumiNATION, which advertises with The Wanderer.
Its background information says that 90 percent of pregnant women considered abortion-vulnerable don’t choose abortion when they’re “provided an informed choice,” are told of available resources, and are made aware they’re not alone.
When one person had asked Wendt what he personally was doing about abortion, “that question resonated with me,” he told The Wanderer.
He said he and his wife, Kim, who have been married for 25 years, both were Air Force pilots. Background information says they “delivered life-saving support to war zones around the world. They’ve applied their military knowhow to 4US.org’s vision to deliver life-saving technology and support to 2,000 PRC’s in the United States.” They figure that each ultrasound machine saves 1,000 lives.
They began an energetic fund-raiser personally but netted only about $3,000 — an amount that he and Kim could have donated themselves, but which fell far short of the $55,000 needed for one ultrasound machine, he said.
They developed an approach to adopt individual pregnancy centers needing ultrasound machines, and arranged to have donations double-matched. The Knights of Columbus is part of the fund-raising support.
“We applied a combined 50 years of military experience to develop Adopt-a-Center,” its website says. “This force-multiplying technology is designed around three basic principles of victory.
“1) Focus your fire for greatest impact; 2) Empower your troops with the best tools, training, and technology; 3) Unleash individual initiative on the field and get out of the way,” it says.
The effort began with one machine delivered in 2006, grew to 40 delivered in 2020, and hopes to attain 75 to more than 100 machines delivered in 2022, a 4US fact sheet says.
A LinkedIn page for Diego says, “From humble beginnings, we grew from a small event-based fund-raiser to a national charity that harnesses the power of online fund-raising, peer-to-peer networks, and partners through a pioneering platform — ‘Adopt-a-Center’.”
The Wendts have four children, a girl, 18 years of age, and three boys ranging from 12 to 16 years.
What They Almost
Missed Out On
The following is one of the help stories at Adopt-a-Center, featuring Pregnancy Center North, in Baltimore, dated July 25, described as receiving an ultrasound machine earlier this year:
“Sue, an attractive 38-year-old woman, came to Pregnancy Center North seeking pregnancy confirmation so she could go elsewhere for an abortion. Her then-boyfriend did not want the baby, and Sue didn’t think she could possibly raise a child alone. She already had two grown children with developmental difficulties, and their father, her late husband, had passed away from cancer.
“To add to the complications of her case, Sue had recently undergone gastric bypass surgery, resulting in a 180-pound weight loss. She was worried that carrying a baby to term might not be healthy for her or the baby. When our counselor, Cookie Harris, asked Sue to consider adoption, Sue didn’t think she could just ‘give away her baby.’
“Cookie conversed with Sue for an hour, and learned that she was Catholic and didn’t really believe in abortion, but felt she had no other choice. When Sue left that morning, Cookie did not know what Sue’s final decision would be. Cookie prayed for Sue and for her baby’s life to be spared.
“Two months later, Sue stopped by to visit Cookie at the pregnancy center. Cookie was overjoyed to hear that Sue had decided to keep the baby and had found out that she was carrying a baby girl! Cookie maintained contact with her during the pregnancy, offering her maternity clothes, assistance, and encouragement.
“Months later, Cookie was on duty on her birthday and received the best birthday surprise! Sue brought baby Cheyanne and her fiancé, Steve, to visit! ‘That was the best birthday present I could ever receive,’ announced Cookie. ‘I carried that little one’s picture in my cell phone for months following that day, to remind me how important our work at the pregnancy center is! Life had taken a turn for the better for Sue!’
“Cookie was at the pregnancy center a few months later when Sue crossed her mind. Cookie wondered how she was doing and what was going on in her life. Suddenly, Sue called and said she was stopping by for a visit.
“Sue came in, accompanied by her mother, son, cousin, and baby Cheyanne. They all spoke about how grateful they were for having baby Cheyanne in their lives. Sue’s mother summed it up best, ‘Look at what we almost missed out on!’”
