Respect life office back in Miami Gardens

By Marlene Quaroni - Florida Catholic

MIAMI GARDENS | When the original Archdiocese of Miami Respect Life Office in Miami Gardens closed eight years ago, the area was left without such a facility. Now, a respect life office has returned to Miami Gardens.

“Thirty-six years ago the Archdiocese of Miami Respect Life Office originated in a former farmhouse on Miami Gardens Drive and N.W. 12th Avenue on the east side of the Florida Turnpike,” said Joan Crown, Respect Life director. “Since then, our offices have spread throughout Miami-Dade and Broward counties. However, we felt it was time to get back to Miami Gardens.”

The ministry’s North Dade Pregnancy Help Center was located in Miami Lakes, in an office too small and hard for Miami Gardens clients to reach, said Crown. “We decided to close the Miami Lakes office and move to a more visible location.” The new office opened in October 2016.

“Our number of clients is increasing since we opened here,” said Crown. “The office is very visible.”

On March 8, Archbishop Thomas Wenski dedicated the North Dade Pregnancy Help Center in the Golden Gates Office Park at 1515 N.W. 167 St., Building 4, Suite 190.

“Congratulations on the rededication of a respect life facility in North Dade County,” the archbishop told those at the dedication ceremony, who included several volunteers and Knights of Columbus. “Hopefully, clients will find the courage and support here to not abort their babies. You witness new life in all its beauty. Your work has its ups and downs, some victories and some defeats. Today, we thank God for this place.”

The Golden Gate Office Park management renovated the 2,300-square-foot space in a former medical training school at no charge, and Respect Life received a lot of furniture from the school, said Crown.

Maggie Martinez, North Dade Pregnancy Help Center director, said it was God’s will that the office move to its new location.

“We have about 300 clients come in each month,” said Martinez. “We get help from 13 surrounding parishes through a baby bottle campaign in which people donate money into the bottles. Those parishes are our angels. They help us continue our work.”

The office provides counseling in English, Spanish and Creole. It is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and on the first and third Saturday of each month.

Ed Suazo, pro-life archdiocesan coordinator for the Knights of Columbus Florida State Council, said it was a privilege for the Knights to acknowledge the new office. Donations from their local and state councils help defray the operating costs of the pregnancy help centers. They will fundraise for an ultrasound machine at the Miami Gardens location.

“We are here to help in the fight against abortion,” he said.

Martinez told the story of one expectant mother who came to talk to her. She had two boys and was in a difficult financial situation. A friend was going to give her the money for an abortion. The woman said that the fetus was just a blob.

Martinez showed the woman a tabletop display called “A Touch of Life in the Womb,” which shows a baby’s development at 10, 12, 14, and 16 weeks.

“I put a tiny rubber baby which I call ‘my miracle baby,’ at 10 weeks of development, in her hand,” said Martinez. “The woman said, ‘Look it has ears. People told me it was just a blob.’

“I told her that your baby is more afraid than you are,” continued Martinez. “The baby is afraid of losing its mother.”

The woman gave birth and later brought the baby to two neighbors who were considering abortion “but changed their minds after visiting our office,” Martinez said.

Correction: The original posting misidentified the volunteer in the photo with Archbishop Thomas Wenski. It is not Maggie Martinez, the North Dade Pregnancy Help Center director.