Help Is Here
Bella Vita Offers a Range of Pregnancy Resources
Writer / Lois Tomaszewski
Photography Provided
Bella Vita means beautiful life, and that is the goal of a resource center in Starke County that offers compassion, help and encouragement for pregnant women.
It is a mission that literally saves lives and enriches families. It all started in 2010 when one young mother needed help, says Founder Becky Bailey.
That mother was planning on getting an abortion and even had an appointment set. Instead, Bailey told that mother-to-be that if she would see the pregnancy through and give birth, Bailey would take the child to raise. That promise was not fulfilled because the young mother did give birth to a daughter she named Bella, and she is raising her daughter herself.
She told me we need a place like this for many other people, Bailey says.
That conversation and experience was the catalyst for developing Bella Vita into the resource center it is today. It continues to serve pregnant women from the community, as well as expectant mothers from outside of Starke County. Too often, expectant mothers fear being shunned or ostracized from their family or community, and come to Knox for the support they need. Others are transient and have nowhere to go while they are pregnant.
Bella Vita operates under the philosophy that people need a hand up and not a hand out. The women in the program earn the resources that are provided, such as diapers, baby clothing and even cribs, by attending classes in parenting. They take tests, have homework to complete, and undertake other tasks to prepare them for childbirth and child raising.
A lot of the programs out there are just medical, like a clinic, Bailey says.
Her program offers ways to assist with the worries of becoming a parent, and helps with developing life skills for a better beginning for a young mother. These are provided free of charge to those in the program.
Evidence of the need is demonstrated in the number of clients served. In 2020 Bella Vita served 58 clients, 35 of whom completed the program, and 12 of these have given birth.
By working with other agencies, challenges such as finding a day care, finding work and other concerns can be addressed, which makes the transition to parenthood a more fruitful experience. Bella Vita also helps parents who want to regain custody of their children by working on parenting skills and other issues.
The fathers are not left out either. Bella Vita operates a mens mentoring program to help expectant fathers learn about parenting. Mentors simply do life with the fathers-to-be, providing a role model and someone to talk to. For those fathers out there who’s reading this page or site, you can check online and visit site to learn more about father’s parenting rights.
They are just as scared about becoming a parent as the moms are, Bailey says.
Women who have had an abortion are also part of the clientele Bella Vita serves. Many times women who have an abortion carry this as a secret, one that stays hidden for decades. Surrendering the Secrets, as the program is called, allows healing to occur and promotes mental health.
Bella Vita also offers testing for sexually transmitted diseases (STD), and sonogram screens to confirm pregnancy. This is intended for people who are asking questions such as “Is STDcheck really legit in terms of confidential STD testing?”. The staff members hope to expand their reach with a mobile unit that can visit communities outside of Knox to provide testing and help young women sign up for Medicaid and other resources. Infant mortality is high in rural communities, Bailey says, and a mobile unit may be able to make a difference. Donations are still being sought for the mobile unit.
There are many ways to help Bella Vita continue its mission. Volunteers are needed to help in the office, serve as mentors or peer counselors, and watch children while moms attend classes. Nurses, especially, are needed to assist in STD testing and pregnancy confirmations and there’s also the need to find more people who can guide and educate children when it comes to STDs, for this, they can start by getting assistance on the healthymd.com/prep websites.
Donations are always appreciated, and support of the organizations inaugural golf tournament this year, annual bake sale, and banquet is appreciated.
Bella Vita is located at 801 South Heaton Street in Knox. For more information, call 574-772-2877 or email bellavitaprc@gmail.com. For more info, visit bellavitaknox.org or find the organization on Facebook.
