Good News August 2017 Broward

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14 August 2017 LOCAL Good News - Broward Edition
Gabriella Morris
Good News
One morning a mother of
four approached the Fort Lau-
derdaleWomen’s Center with her
husband seeking to abort her fifth
child. Tom Walker, local director
of Sidewalk Advocates, intercept-
ed her and started a conversation
with her as to why she wanted an
abortion. She told him she was
able to afford a child, but wasn’t
comfortable with the pregnan-
cy. After talking with him more,
she told him she was a Christian,
and had prayed that God would
give her a sign if she wasn’t sup-
posed to abort her child. She said
that Walker sitting with her and
talking to her was God’s sign, and
ultimately she decided to keep
her child. This type of result due
to Walker’s presence at the abor-
tion center is not uncommon, he
said.
Fort Lauderdale Women’s
Center is just one of the many
abortion centers in Broward
County. Approximately five ba-
bies are aborted at this specific
center everyday, according to
Walker, who diligently waits out-
side the center in hopes of talking
to the men and women seeking
the abortion center’s services.
Walker knows first hand
the effects of abortion. Ten years
before he had a Salvation experi-
ence, he and his girlfriend abort-
ed their child. After accepting
Christ and going through the
healing process at Hope Wom-
en’s Centers, he felt God calling
him to minister to others in his
situation, so he started volunteer-
ing in First Care Women’s Cen-
ter and counseling the men who
would come through the doors.
He later began leading post-abor-
tion recovery programs for men.
Currently he serves as a Sidewalk
Advocate. He encourages moth-
ers to choose life, brings aware-
ness to the risks of abortion and
counsels those who have already
aborted. He said, “What I learned
as a facilitator led me to sidewalk
counseling where I can help both
men and women avoid the pain I
saw in so many lives.”
Lifeguard on duty
Hismorning starts early as he
engages those entering and leav-
ing the abortion center.When the
abortionist approaches the clinic
at approximately 10 a.m., Walk-
er begins to give a talk through a
speaker pointed at the center. He
discusses three main points, the
physical risks of abortion, includ-
ing the clinic owner’s history of
having his license revoked in the
past, the psychological risks and
the spiritual risks. His message is
one of empowerment and educa-
tion. He tells women they are not
alone, and they shouldn’t let any-
one pressure them into aborting
their child.
Through the loudspeaker, he
tries to reach the people in the
waiting room, to communicate
that he cares about them and dis-
cuss other services available to
them. Describing his own story,
he warns them about what life
may be like after aborting their
child. He concludes his speech
by praying over the people in the
waiting room, then continues to
counsel for the rest of the day. For
the past nine months Walker has
been keeping a log of what goes
on in the center. On average there
is one turnaround a day. A turn-
around is when somebody who
comes to the center leaves with-
out fulfilling what they came for,
and oftentimes it’s a mother who
decided to choose life.
What you can do
Sidewalk Advocates, a min-
istry of Broward Right to Life, is
broadening their reach and in
need of volunteers. Individuals
are welcome to volunteer as well
as church groups. According to
Walker both men and women
are needed. He stated some ex-
pecting mothers and fathers re-
spond better to men and others
to women, so there’s a need for
both genders at every abortion
center. Donations are always wel-
come as well as prayer.
Walker said, “This is spiritu-
al warfare, what we’re doing out
here. This can’t be done without
prayer, so we need that. I would
much rather people come here
and pray. When people can
look, see a woman walking in for
an abortion... maybe knowing
something about her because
they overheard a conversation or
had a conversation - if they can
see me interacting with someone
and pray that God will bless my
words and that I will speak only
God’s words - that kind of prayer
is effective. That kind of prayer
is what we really crave out here.”
For this reason, Walker said it’s
ideal to have at least three people
at each location, so two can be
actively counseling as one person
prays.
Sidewalk Advocates also
hosts events that they could use
volunteers. If you’re interested
in contributing to this ministry
in anyway, visit browardrightto-
life. Other helpful websites are
ba-
and 40days-
For those interested in being
trained as a sidewalk counsel-
or, the next training session will
most likely be in August in South
Broward. The best way to learn
about training dates is to join the
Sidewalk Advocates Facebook
group,
groups/SidewalkAdvocatesBro-
ward or call Walker at 954-304-
3278.
Gabriella Morris is a student at
Florida State University and writer at
Good News. She can be reached gabri-
Sidewalk Advocates for Life Expands in
South Florida
TomWalker advocates for life outside a local abortion center.