ALEXANDRIA – The CENLA Pregnancy Center soon will have a permanent home. The official signing of the lease took place May 19 for spaces located at 1254 MacArthur Drive in Alexandria, next to the Louisiana Baptist Building. The 5,660-sq.-ft. center should open sometime in the fall, when spiritual ministry will begin as well as medical and educational services. “We are thrilled to finally have a location,” said Brian Gunter, pastor of First Baptist Church in Pollock. “God did more than we ever expected him to do when we first prayed about this idea. It’s been an amazing display of God’s people coming together.” Gunter said the organization has started a formal search process for a full-time executive director to oversee the day-to-day operations of the center. The center also will employ some part-time workers, and, three pro-life physicians have agreed to volunteer their time to work at the facility. Beginning May 26, the center will be open every Friday from noon to 1 p.m. to accept lightly-used items, with the exception of clothing, that pregnant women and their newborns may use. Donations of furniture also can be dropped off then. Please send financial gifts to 2201 Melrose St., Pineville, La., 71360. Résumés … [Read more...]

By Louisiana Right to Life communications BATON ROUGE - Two key pieces of pro-life legislation passed the Louisiana House of Representatives in the past two days and are headed to Gov.  John Bel Edwards for his signature. SB 128, authored by Sen. John Milkovich (D-Shreveport) and carried on the House floor by Rep. Kenny Cox (D-Natchitoches), adds an additional layer of protection to prevent the sale of the dismembered bodies of babies after abortion. The House passed the measure today by a 93-0 vote. The bill was also unanimously approved in the Senate on May 1. On Thursday, June 1, SB 111, authored by Sen. Beth Mizell (R-Franklinton) and carried on the House floor by Rep. Frank Hoffman (R-West Monroe), passed the House by a vote of 93-0.  It previously passed the Senate on May 17 by a vote of 29-6. SB 111, the Screening for Exploitation of Minors Before Abortion Act, enhances parental consent requirements before an abortion to prevent fraudulent identification of adults claiming to be the girl's parents and strengthens screening for coerced abortion, crimes against the child, or sex trafficking during judicial bypass proceedings. "The two main pieces of 2017 Louisiana pro-life legislation sailed through the … [Read more...]