May 17, 2011
For Immediate Release
By Phil Carlisle, student news writer
CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. - Several Campbellsville University students are spending their free time volunteering at the crisis pregnancy center in Campbellsville.
“The overall purpose of the center is to provide a safe place for women and teens who find themselves in a crisis pregnancy,” said Lauren Toadvine, a graduate student at CU from Hustonville, Ky., who began working at the center last year for practicum purposes. “As part of my practicum I developed something useful for the center so I decided to get support groups and Bible studies going again.”
During the support groups and Bible studies, parents will leave their children in the care of the center's volunteer baby sitters. One such volunteer is Olivia Brainard, a junior from Somerset, Ky.
“I started out just helping Lauren by babysitting during their support group meetings,” Brainard said. “When I did a service learning project for class, I decided to volunteer there and that's when I really learned what the center did and how it was helping people.”
Brainard, a social work major, was given a servant leadership award by CU this year, an award that allowed her to donate $250 to a non-profit organization of her choice. She chose the pregnancy center.
“The pregnancy center helped me learn so much about social work,” Brainard said. “I was just grateful for the opportunity to give back.”
Natalie Buckley, a junior from Louisville, Ky., said she has seen God work through the relationships she has built with her fellow volunteers and with the center's former director, Jen Evans.
“Jen just started discipling me and really helped me grow in my walk with the Lord,” Buckley said. “Watching her interact with the clients really helped me learn how to be gentle and accepting of everyone.”
Toadvine says her experience at the center has had a profound impact on her life and her future.
“It has changed the way I look at motherhood and even my own mother as I see the sacrifices women make for their children,” Toadvine said. “I see these women making time to earn things for their children need and it's amazing. The fact that I can get to know them and provide any kind of support, let alone share the Bible with them and introduce them to Christ, is an experience I hope never ends no matter where I am in life.”
Campbellsville University is a widely acclaimed Kentucky-based Christian university with over 3,000 students offering 63 undergraduate programs, 17 master's degrees and five postgraduate areas. The website for complete information is campbellsville.edu.