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Gabriel Project Offers Help With 'Angelic' Touch

Pregnant?

Need help?

The Gabriel Project signs, with the Angel Gabriel hovering protectively over a woman holding her sleeping baby, ask these two succinct questions.

If a woman’s answer to both is “Yes,” Gabriel Project is there to give that help, Executive Director Paul Mulligan told pro-lifers at the Archdiocesan Respect Life Conference November 13.

“For many women that we serve, our help makes the difference between carrying her baby and abortion,” said Mulligan.

The Gabriel Project reaches out to women in crisis pregnancies through a statewide network of 65 Catholic and Protestant churches.

As a faith-based organization, it offers practical help, and a lot more.

“Our whole program is really about relationships,” said Paul.

The origin of a “crisis” pregnancy is a bad or misguided relationship; so the solution is not simply to supply goods and services, like Social Services does, but to help women through personal relationships.

“People often call us with a list of very real problems,” said Mulligan.  

“Often, the easiest thing that we do is provide for their material needs.  The tough part is the relationship.

“Ultimately, the real relationship is with Christ; that’s where you are made whole.  Where do you see Christ walking around?  Hopefully, you see Him in us Christians!”

A woman’s first contact with the Gabriel Project is usually through the 800-number on the blue GP sign she sees outside a participating church.

“When they call us, usually they have made up their mind they are going to carry the baby,” said Paul.

Through this initial phone call, a GP staffer sizes up what kind of needs the woman has, and refers her to a participating church for help.

At the church, she will be paired up with an Angel Friend.

“Angel Friends are not people who have a degree in psychology, but someone who will walk with a woman through her pregnancy, help her, and be a friend to her,” Paul explained.

Besides seeing that the pregnant mom gets appropriate material help from Social Services and other agencies, the Angel Friend is there with “hands-on” help, as needed.

She make take the client-mom to a doctor’s appointment, pick up food for her, deliver Christmas gifts to the client-mom’s family, take the mom to Mass or Sunday worship services – or just make periodic “just checking in” calls to see how her client-mom is doing.

Project Gabriel operates two maternity homes, one in Ellicott City, the other in Washington, D.C.

But ultimately, said Mulligan, the program is an outreach ministry of a particular church.

Some rural churches may have only two or three clients a year, he said.

“But in Wheaton we have a church with 200 volunteers working with 75 clients right now.  They went door-to-door letting people know about their services.”

These are churches, he said, that have decided, “We are not going to just sit there and say we are pro-life; we are going to be actively pro-life.

“They put their blue Project Gabriel sign in the ground in front of their church, declaring, we’re going to help.  It’s not a static display – it’s dynamic!”

To find out how your church can be part of the Gabriel Project, call 301-262-9011 or 410-741-1228, or see www.GabrielProject.org.