I am a wife, mother, daughter, teacher, leader, ministry worker, but most of all I am a Jesus Follower. I came to Jesus at a young age and I remember it so clearly, one of the only clear memories I have from before moving to Tennessee with my parents and siblings at the age of 5. I’m so thankful for God calling me so young because through that He was able to protect me from so much during my teenage and adult years. I was a wayward child, a prodigal, the 1 out of 99. It’s because of this that God is using me in ministry. I made decisions outside of God’s Will and I was collateral damage of other people’s choices as well. I was exposed to sexual content at a young age and by the time I was 14 I chose to engage in acts that I could never fully have understood at that age. All I knew was that I was empty and something had to make me feel better, but nothing ever did. I tried drugs, alcohol, men, relationships, friendships, work even but all of those things just left me even emptier. It was until I became so mentally unstable that I was suicidal that the Lord God started talking to me. He pulled me out of the darkness and showed me how bad I needed things to change. In 2020 I rededicated my life to the Lord and was baptized for a second time in April 2021. In May of 2023 God brought me to AN EVEN PLACE and I went through Forgiven and Set Free. From there I knew God was calling me to this ministry but He was calling me deeper to the root of where my troubles started. I lead Unbound, a Bible Study, which deals with sexual brokenness from our past. There is absolutely nothing like it, to finally release the things you have been carrying, to shine God’s light into those dark places in your heart. To finally get to speak the things you have had to silence for whatever reason is one of the greatest parts of healing. Jesus died for my sin and my shame and He died for yours too. I Look forward to walking with you on your healing journey and can’t wait to see the transformation that will take place.

Linda was a "good girl"…at least on the outside. As the oldest of five in a Christian family, she accepted Jesus as a child. But in high school she began to have sex with her boyfriend, and as a college honor student freshman she was faced with an unwanted pregnancy. Her boyfriend wanted to get married, but she wanted a career first and was too ashamed to admit to her sin. In her indecision and confusion, she finally went to an abortion clinic. It was too late for a "normal" abortion, and she had to wait two more weeks until she was far enough along to have a second trimester saline abortion in the hospital. When she asked the nurse if it was a baby, the nurse replied, "No honey, and you want to finish college don't you?" She chose to believe those words, repeated them to herself over and over, even though her heart knew different. After the traumatic experience of abortion, she went back to her normal life at college, but it was anything but normal. Guilt and nightmares haunted her no matter how busy she tried to keep. She turned to drugs and alcohol to numb the pain. As her self-worth plummeted, she dropped out of school and made bad relationship choices. After a year of running from God, He very clearly called her in the midst of a drug party, and she surrendered her life back to Him. That began a journey of learning to face her sin and accept His forgiveness. The next milestone on her healing journey came several years later. Linda was already working with a pregnancy center helping other women make better choices. Then she participated in the post-abortion support group and found a missing piece that gave her peace. She was given the opportunity to acknowledge the eternal, unique existence of her son and grieve for him. The hope and closure this brought was powerful and dramatic. As director of a pregnancy center for the decade of the 90’s, she reached out to others traveling the same road of abortion recovery. God blessed and many others found freedom in Jesus. Linda’s pregnancy center was across the street from the city’s abortion clinic. God miraculously closed this clinic down and gave the building to the prolife community. He redeemed and transformed this ground. This spot became the National Memorial for the Unborn which Linda was a co-founder. The memorial seeks to honor the lives of children lost to abortion. At 40-years-old, God brought Linda a loving, godly husband and they have raised two sons. She has served on various non-profit boards and continues to lead abortion recovery groups. She has enjoyed taking that ministry virtual under An Even Place.

John 10:10a says, “The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy.” Overtime, my life would become deceived by this thief until my eyes were opened and I saw the truth. Events that surrounded my two abortions included lying, leaving the church, moving in with the boyfriend, drinking, and not honoring my parents. I just wanted to be accepted, loved and to fit in with the world. During my first abortion, I felt lost and alone. During the second, I tried to stop them, but they told me it was too late. A part of me died with each abortion. I felt dirty and worthless among a list of other feelings. Additionally, I felt like a hypocrite for choosing “pro-life,” another evil deception. John 10:10b says, “I come that they may have life and have it abundantly.” Spring of 2023 I learned there was such a thing as abortion recovery. I never thought that was even an option. At that moment, I had to learn more. Later that year I went through the Forgiven and Set Free Bible study. God’s healing brought me peace, closure, and joy for the first time in my life. I lived 28 years with a secret that was eating me from the inside out these years were filled with deceit and hiding from the truth. After going through the Bible study, I was finally able to accept the forgiveness waiting for me. I am a mother of two beautiful children that are in the Lord’s arms waiting for me to join them in heaven. I can testify to His greatness in my life. The Lord has placed a burden on my heart to reach those women like me who need the healing hand of the Lord to embrace them and bring them back home to Him.

I am the mother of 5, four are in heaven and one is 35. Before joining a PRC, I was led by the Holy Spirit to share part of my abortion story with a group of center Executive Directors and thank them for the work they do. At the time of my unplanned pregnancies, I never considered I had a choice and that the baby I carried was just a blob of cells. From that meeting, I was introduced to Deeper Still. Initially, I thought it was in the past and I am a Christian, so I was good. But God knew better……..I attended my retreat in Oct 2021 and found forgiveness and freedom that I have never had. I took ownership of my sins, laid them at the cross and received His full forgiveness. This healing started my passion to help others find Christ’s love and mercy. I had led a Forgiven and Set Free group and wanted to research how others led the group and signed up for the intensive study through An Even Place. Little did I know that I would continue my healing journey. I knew I had three abortions, but some details weren’t clear surrounding my second abortion. Just weeks before my first session, I reached out to my former husband (the father of the baby) and asked him about the details of the day I had my second abortion. I remembered I came home from the abortion center, but was having some complications. I knew things just weren’t right, and I was told to return to the clinic. My memory stopped there. My former husband told me that there was a second baby that had not been aborted during the initial procedure. He must have thought I knew because his manner was casual and nonchalant as he told me that I aborted twins. It was hard enough to accept I had three children lost to abortion, but now I needed to reconcile the fact that there was a fourth baby. An Even Place tenderly walked me through my sin, grieving process and reconciliation with the Lord with tenderness, love and grace. This revelation and tender love prompted me to join AN Even Place as a leader. Mindy has invested so much time in me that even though we never met in person, she has become a mentor to me. I am happy to be part of this God-honoring ministry.

Married and expecting our second child, our lives changed in a moment when the ultrasound technician told us that our baby boy had a devastating prenatal prognosis. Wading through shock and grief, the neonatal specialist, our obstetrician, and a genetic counselor advised us to terminate the pregnancy in our second trimester. We were strangers to Jesus, raised to follow the advice of physicians without question. There was no offer of prayer, support, or any alternative to abortion. Our very wanted baby boy had a name – Nathanael, and he fluttered inside of me until the final moments in the operating room. It is a day I will always regret, but the loss of my son is what brought me to Christ. After two decades of trying to manage PTSD symptoms and medical complications, the Lord asked me to write my story in a book called Natty’s Pond, published on what would have been our son’s 21st birthday. Celebrating a finished work and the profound healing I received through abortion recovery Bible studies and retreats, God called me to start an abortion healing ministry in Houston, Texas. It’s a beautiful and reverent honor to lead women through the process of acknowledging their grief and loss, working through denial, anger, and forgiveness, grieving and memorializing their children in meaningful ways in a world that doesn’t allow for public grief. I am available to women for in-person work in North Houston, and my heart rejoices in partnering with An Even Place to facilitate online healing groups and support their beautiful ministry. My heart is to serve women in a safe and confidential environment, until all are “crowned with love and compassion.” Psalm 103:4 (NIV)

I never imagined the journey God would lead me on. It started at a pregnancy center, working with men through communication classes and coordinating volunteers, and eventually serving as executive director. Part of my journey was with Care Net on their church engagement and abortion recovery teams. I was blessed to work on Care Net’s team who wrote Reclaiming Fatherhood. Abortion healing has become a passion where we see men and women walk in freedom. Currently I work with the retreat team for Deeper Still, facilitate groups with Reclaiming Fatherhood and serve as Board President for An Even Place. My heart is to create safe spaces where men can encounter God’s grace and freedom. Men need healing too, and I’m honored to walk alongside them as they find it.

My name is Barb…or as some call me Barb-a-loo. I am a late bloomer when it comes to finding the Lord. I returned to the church in 2014 and started on a journey which I am still on today. I had sat in the shame and condemnation of my three abortions for a very long time, almost half my life. God nudged me and led me into His healing grace. It truly has been a journey and continues to be. I first went to Set Free Ministries in the fall of 2021 and spent a day with three caring women who listened to my story and prayed for healing over me. We spent the best part of the day together. Upon finishing with Set Free Ministries, I felt like a load was taken off of me. As I was walking out the door, they said I needed to go deeper yet with the abortions. I was referred to Deeper Still. I signed up and went to a Deeper Still retreat the following spring in 2022. After the retreat I just knew I was free from the bondage of the abortions. God met me right where I was at. I also knew my calling was to help other women find the forgiveness and freedom which I had found in Jesus Christ. I have served with Deeper Still ever since my retreat. I love to watch the transformation women go through when they are set free. I have found healing with sharing a life group within my home called Making Life Disciples 2.0. I openly try to get the conversation started within church, home, CR, or wherever I am at. I believe if we stay quiet the secret remains buried and becomes the cardinal sin which does so much damage within people’s souls. I believe if we openly talk about this the more, we can bring it out of darkness and into the light. A friend of mine referred me to An Even Place as I wanted to get more involved with serving. I attended the online course Forgiven and Set Free. What I learned is I am a work in progress and there is always something new or deeper to work on. God is not done with me yet. This is what I truly know. God knew all my stuff before I laid it down at the cross and yet He came looking for me anyway. Think about that, He already knew and yet He came knocking. He loved me that much as He loves all His children. My favorite line is…the One who knows me best, loves me the most. I look forward to serving with An Even Place as a leader to help women get set free from the bondage of abortion. We don’t have to live in the shame and guilt; He has already paid the price!

“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus because the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:1,2 -CSB) I live in middle Tennessee. I am a wife, mother, sister, daughter, friend and many other titles society places upon me. The way I prefer to be known is as a sinner who is saved by grace and covered by the blood of the lamb. I no longer seek my own selfish desires. I have been blessed by the Lord with three fantastic children and a husband of over 30 years who knows all my faults and still chooses to love me. I had an abortion while in college. I was deceived , arrogant, selfish and confused. During and after the abortion, I wrestled with mental stability and found it almost impossible at times to accomplish simple daily routines. Through much prayer and trusted Christian friends who encouraged me to attend church and ask for forgiveness from my Savior; my healing journey began. I was able to lay aside my feelings and hear the truth of what I had done while coming to a place where I allowed the gift of forgiveness to heal my heart. I no longer walked in fear. I walked knowing that I was made new(Romans 12:1-2). The Lord gave me a heart for the brokenhearted which led me to be a foster parent and child advocate within the court system. The Lord’s strength ,love, joy and peace has pursued me and I delight in HIS goodness. I have found freedom through journaling, intensive Bible Studies, and Biblical counseling.

My name is Sara Cardone, and I live in Northwest Ohio. Married to Frank for nearly 28 years now. I’ve had 3 children of which 2 are in heaven. My son is married with a 1-year-old boy and a daughter on the way in a couple of months. I treasure my family. I also have a stepdaughter, son in law and 2 step grand kids and 4 step great grand kids. I always wanted a large family, and God sure did deliver because I also am blessed with 4 step siblings since 1984 and I just found 5 half siblings in 2014 and that’s besides my half-brother I was raised with. God is so good! Currently I am retired and have been volunteering at our local pregnancy center now about 4 years. It is so rewarding to get to walk alongside these young women and love on them and their babies/toddlers. I’ve also recently completed my first year facilitating an abortion recovery ministry within our pregnancy center and also offer same at my Church. This year I’m excited to add more healing groups via online as part of An Even Place. I am passionate about helping women find forgiveness and be set free to walk in all that Father God created them for. When I’m not serving at the pregnancy center you will find me serving in my Church, exercising, shopping, reading, traveling (to beaches), horseback riding, kayaking, eating out, or gathered around a table playing cards or board games with friends or family and laughing. I also get to be available to help a couple of elderly family members that need assistance. I’m privileged to be retired to be available as needed. My greatest desire is to encourage others to walk boldly in faith, live surrendered to Christ, and embrace the fullness of the life God has prepared for them, walking in freedom.

I grew up in Turkmenistan and was raised by mom and grandma. My dad was in jail most of my life. Watching my mom struggle to provide for me, I decided that I would get on my feet and return the favor as soon as I grew up. I formed a belief system with shame at the center – shame that was dressed and felt like strength, ambition, and grit. My education was everything to me. When I got pregnant in 2011, I was a junior in college. Having a baby went against the vision I had for my life, so I ended my pregnancy thinking I was just buying myself time to become a more suitable mother once I have a career. But walking out of the abortion clinic, I remember distinctly feeling empty. I had a sense of regret that was insidious and I could not understand, handle, or run from it. I fell into the darkest depression I have ever experienced. Just seeing pregnant women and children caused me to either shut down completely or weep uncontrollably. But weeping did not make me feel better. It just ended in numbness and emptiness, and the cycle went on and on. I kept my abortion a secret for 7 years. Looking back, I can now see I learned to manage living with a gaping wound while I looked put together on the outside, I was filled with self-hatred and shame on the inside. I was remarried and my husband told me he wanted us to have a child. This triggered and sent me back into depression. This was the moment that I realized how deeply my abortion hurt me. I decided to go and be prayed over by some women from my church. After we prayed together, I felt better but not healed. Like a man in Mark 8:22-26, I decided to be honest and asked Jesus for a second touch. A few weeks later I learned about an abortion recovery program at a local pregnancy center. I knew this was going to be Jesus’s second touch to heal and restore me. And I am happy to report that I was right. It has been a wonderful adventure since then. Jesus continues to redeem my past as I get to know Him better. My identity is no longer found in my achievements or most horrible sins. I am intimately known by Jesus to bear fruit (John 15:4), I am His to be fearless (Isaiah 43:1), and I am fully forgiven to fully love (Luke 7:47-48). And so are you, dear sister.

I was 19 and pregnant. My boyfriend Dave and I were raised in the same town. Being pregnant and unmarried was a huge embarrassment to our families, to their reputation in town and to the church we attended. In addition, Dave was going to the Naval Academy in Annapolis, so he was away. Meanwhile, I was going to college and working at night. Melissa was born March of ‘88 and my mom quit her job to stay home with her. Everyone loved Melissa but the whole experience rocked everyone’s world. By that December, I was pregnant again. I reasoned that I simply couldn’t do this again to everyone. At about 11 weeks I had a surgical abortion. Dave dropped me off alone, then picked me up when it was over, with Melissa in the car, and then dropped me off at work. I was in pain but had to work so the ‘stuffing’ of this big, bad secret began. For the next 26 years I avoided all thoughts, memories and emotions about the abortion and told no one. There’s a quote from the Forgiven and Set Free book that explains those 26 years: “Abortion promises to relieve the burdens, pain and anxiety of facing a child before a woman is ready to be a mother. Abortion keeps that promise only to leave the woman with a whole new set of burdens. Relief following an abortion does not last forever. The realization of what abortion really is, and what it has done to her unborn child can lead a woman into the stage of denial. She simply cannot except the fact that she has ended her unborn baby’s life. Denial is a wall of protection a woman puts up in order to cope with the reality of her decision.” After 26 years of living with this denial, I felt lead to volunteer at a pregnancy center thinking I could help ladies going through unexpected pregnancies like I had with Melissa, not even considering my abortion. During the interview, I was asked if I had ever had an abortion. I said yes. That admission cracked open the door to begin healing. The center required me to go through the recovery study called Forgiven and Set Free. I eventually also went to a recovery retreat called Rachel’s Vineyard. Through my recovery, I experienced progressive freedom as the festering ‘wound’ was brought into the light. As a result, I was able to think through the abortion experience and know that God was there, I wasn’t alone. I had resented the people involved, including my ‘now’ husband. I’ve been able to find compassion for everyone involved, including myself because everyone is broken and needs a savior. Now I’m able to separate the abortion from the baby, talk to God and others about my baby and call him by name, David! I’m able to help others considering abortion or needing post abortion healing through my local pregnancy center and An Even Place. I still and always will have regret for my abortion and that’s hard to live with, but God redeems broken hearts and uses our sin for His glory. Only God can do that!