The Knights of Columbus, the Orange County Catholic Diocese and Birth Choice Health Clinics  

On Thursday, September 30  the Knights of Columbus, the Orange County Catholic Diocese and Birth Choice Health Clinics celebrated the installation of the fourth new 4D ultrasound machine and the launch of the new Birth Choice Mobile Clinic. Kathleen Eaton, the founder and CEO of Birth Choice, Bishop Cirilo from the Orange County Diocese, and dignitaries from the Knights of Columbus will make brief presentations and participate in this historic ribbon cutting ceremony.   

This has been and continues to be a powerful community effort. Working together, four Knights of Columbus parish councils raised more than $200,000 and purchased four new 4D ultrasound machines in support of Birth Choice Health Clinics. According to Hank Evers, the Knights’ project chairman, “we’re more than half way to acquiring the fifth unit and don’t intend to stop as long as Birth Choice continues opening clinics.” Half of the funds were raised locally by the parish councils at St. Edward the Confessor, Our Lady of Fatima, Mission Basilica and St. Timothy parishes. “For every dollar we raise at the local community level, our Supreme or headquarter council in New Haven, Connecticut will match it evenly.” Birth Choice will use these ultrasound machines in their five licensed medical clinics and mobile clinic to enhance their level of medical services and counseling.  

Jennifer Wallace, Birth Choice Clinic Director stated, "In June, our very first 4-D ultrasound was delivered to the steps of the Long Beach Birth Choice Clinic.  We had just started fundraising to equip all six of our medical clinics with this new generation of ultrasounds.  The Knights of Columbus answered the call and have generously gifted us with the funds necessary to bring Birth Choice Health Clinics to that next level.”  

“In the past,” Wallace continued, “we have used the 2D ultrasounds to show our clients black and white images of their babies. With the introduction of the 4D, we will be able to show these young women a life-like image of their child.  The technological advancements of the 4D are so dramatic that the images obtained show an uncanny resemblance to the child after they are born.  We will be introducing our clients to their unborn child in a powerful way that is only made possible through the medical advances of the 4D ultrasound and the generosity of the Knights of Columbus."   

The Knights of Columbus Ultrasound Initiative serves as a concrete way for Knights to support the health and wellness of pregnant mothers and their babies. Launched Jan. 22, 2009, the national project has raised more than $1.8 million by local and state councils using the matching funds to purchase ultrasound equipment. “It (the initiative) has been a blessing to us ... that the Knights should do something like this to help,” said Birth Choice founder and CEO Kathleen Eaton.  

“Ultrasound diagnostics has been instrumental in the success Birth Choice has enjoyed since becoming fully licensed health clinics,” said Eaton. Starting as a small call-in pregnancy resource center in 1981, Birth Choice has grown into six community health clinics serving thousands of young women and men annually in Southern California, providing medical services, education and support to individuals in need of free services.  

The six Birth Choice Health Clinics, including the mobile clinic, are licensed community care clinics offering free medical services that include ultrasounds, pregnancy tests, HIV/AIDS testing, STD testing and treatment, first-trimester prenatal care and well woman care. Birth Choice also runs two parenting programs out of each of the clinic locations. Beginnings is a unique educational program for pregnant women to better prepare them for motherhood, and The Dad Project is a male mentor program, run by community leaders, that strives to empower young fathers to be the best dads that they can be.  In January 2011, Birth Choice Health Clinics will be implementing a Marriage and Family Therapy program to offer free professional counseling to Birth Choice clients.   

Since becoming fully licensed medical clinics in 2007, Birth Choice has logged over 37,000 client visits.  

The Knights of Columbus is the world’s largest lay Catholic organization with more than 1.75 million members worldwide. Last year, Knights gave more than 68 million hours of their time to charitable causes and donated more than $144 million to charity.