Years in the making, Pregnancy Care Centers of South Central Indiana is about to reveal a new name.
The Christian agency launched in 1983 will announce its change during a special event Tuesday at The Commons. The rebranding is an attempt to better connect with clients, especially millennials, who are in their prime child-bearing years, agency leaders said.
The name-changing process began three-and-a-half years ago at a retreat to prepare staff and volunteers for the future.
One idea and eventual goal was to pick a name that reflects services broader than just providing emergency help amid a crisis pregnancy. That’s important to the centers serving Bartholomew, Brown, Jackson, Jennings, Decatur and Shelby counties, said Tim Bond, executive director of the agency.
Staff and volunteers lead a mission that encompasses sexuality education, post-abortion healing, testing for sexually transmitted diseases, ultrasounds and a variety of other services, including programs to stop the cycle of unplanned pregnancies.
Last year, 2,639 visits were made to the Seventh Street office in Columbus of Pregnancy Care Centers.
The bulk of the agency’s $1.2 million budget — 52 percent — goes to pregnancy intervention.
But when the center sets up information booths at local events, men frequently “will walk right by” the Pregnancy Care Centers sign, assuming that none of what it offers applies to them, said Tracey Pike, director of abstinence education for the centers.
“And many ladies will walk right past as well, saying, ‘I’m way past that time of my life,'” Bond said.
The agency head hopes the new name will garner more attention from a broader audience.
Rocky Mountain Media Group, a consultant from Colorado, has been helping Pregnancy Care Centers with its changes.
“Our rebranding is focused primarily on the clients,” Bond said. “And the new name will be more metaphorical than literal.”
When the new name was tested with area millennials, they saw it as “clear and simple and fresh,” said Teresa Russell, the agency’s development director.
One other element of the new moniker is that it should bring hope to those who see and hear it, she said.
“We want clients to know that their life isn’t over because of an unplanned pregnancy,” Russell said. “We want them to realize that there’s more to their story.”
Even with a new name, agency leaders stress that protecting the sanctity of life remains a top mission for the centers.
One brochure summarizing a mission statement reads, “We help people look beyond their current situation and see the possibilities available to them. We offer hope and restoration.”
Former clients such as Anna Grace McNamee are grateful for the nonprofit agency’s wide-ranging services — help that gave her extra support and stability during her pregnancy two years ago.
“They were very gracious and very accepting of me,” said McNamee, a Columbus resident who now serves as a trained volunteer for the centers. “They always made me feel like I was their No. 1 concern.”
Staff and volunteers counseled her, equipped her to parent, gave her free items such as a bassinet and a car seat and — with her parents — walked her through every portion of her pregnancy and post-pregnancy experience.
“They provided so many things I never would have been able to afford,” McNamee said.
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What: Pregnancy Care Centers of South Central Indiana annual meeting, “PCC Impact: The Stories Behind the Numbers,” featuring the nonprofit Christian agency’s review of 2015, an announcement of a volunteer of the year, and a new name.
When: “Munch and Mingle” slated at 6:30 Tuesday. Meeting begins at 7 p.m.
Where: The Commons, 300 Washington St. in Columbus.
Admission: Free.
Information: 812-378-4730 or pregcarecenter.org.
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