DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — On the ninth floor of a towering office building steps from Brooklyn Borough Hall, a team of nurses is trying to do what many deem impossible in New York City — “erase the need for abortion.”
Or to at least erase the belief that there is a need for abortion, says Katie Mauer, the vice president of patient services at CompassCare Pregnancy Services, a Christian organization offering medical and educational services to expecting mothers. In their new space in Brooklyn, CompassCare hopes to reinforce their belief that all life, both that of the woman and her unborn child, deserves dignity.
While it’s CompassCare’s belief that no woman truly requires, or wants, to terminate their pregnancy, many do it because they are facing external pressure that works to negate their natural love for their unborn child.
“From the womb to the tomb is what we say,” Mauer explained. “They’re [children] all valuable because they were created in God’s image, and he’s commissioned us to address that need one by one, patient by patient.”
This office marks their fourth location in New York state and the first in the New York City area. In the first six months of 2023, about 65,130 abortions were estimated to have occurred in New York, according to research from the Guttmacher Institute. Based on the research, abortions increased in that year by nearly 20% — or 10,000 more abortions in the timespan — compared to 2020.
In the same Brooklyn building, an abortion clinic can be found a few floors below CompassCare’s offices. New York City’s expansion of services after the overturn of Roe v. Wade includes making abortion services available via telehealth — meaning abortion pills can be available via telephone or online.
“Abortion is not a choice. Abortion represents coercion. Abortion represents abandonment,” said CompassCare CEO Rev. James Harden.
Rev. Harden, who has been with the organization for 23 years, calls abortion the greatest social injustice the world has seen, which, he says, is why it was so important that CompassCare established a presence in New York City, “the heart of the abortion capital [of the world].”
The organization estimates that pro-life infrastructure only serves about 3% to 5% of all women seriously considering abortion in New York City.
“When a woman faces an unplanned pregnancy, it’s a crossroads of grace,” Rev. Harden said.
Along with the new Brooklyn site, CompassCare has offices in Rochester, Albany, and Buffalo, and has been operating in New York since 1980. In June 2022, one of their facilities was severely damaged by an arson attack. They have since filed a federal lawsuit against two of the pro-choice advocates involved in the attack.
The Brooklyn office has been designed to offer a welcoming environment to expecting mothers, and offers three ultrasound patient rooms. Their additional services include STD testing and treatment, abortion pill reversal, and diagnostic pregnancy services.
By offering a glimpse at an unborn child within the medical center through ultrasounds, CompassCare looks to reinforce the reality that the mother is faced with a choice and to confirm that the child is viable.
According to the Lozier Institute, 52% of abortion-minded women chose life when shown an ultrasound and the father was present, as compared to 26% when no ultrasound was shown, as of 2020.
Creating a welcoming space was crucial to the furthering of CompassCare’s mission, said Vince DeMaria, the project manager for the Brooklyn office. The staff worked to prepare right up until the night before the office’s Jan. 9 opening.
“It’s important for people who spend time here to feel cared for in every way. The first part of that equation is the environment,” said DeMaria.
Testimony from CompassCare’s YouTube feed shows the successful results of the patient-focused emphasis.
“[CompassCare] was very informative and gave me all the pros and cons, so I could make an informed decision. I decided to keep the baby,” one testimony said.
For more information
To donate to CompassCare and learn more about its mission, visit compasscare.info