“What especially differentiates us is our on-campus location,” Capen said. “We often hear about the importance of inclusivity at colleges and universities, but most pregnant and parenting students certainly don’t feel like there is a space for them at their schools.”
MiraVia’s doors are open to students of any faith background — they do not even have to attend Belmont Abbey.
“Similar to a Catholic college or hospital, we serve people of all faiths and strive to live out our faith in service,” Capen said. “MiraVia’s program is located at Belmont Abbey College, but our clients can attend any school and we have served students from 12 colleges and nine states.”
When asked about her hopes for MiraVia in the future, Capen shared that she hopes to reach more college students.
“We hope that eventually, other colleges will invite MiraVia to come and serve their pregnant and parenting students,” Capen said. “We now have more than a decade of collaborating experience serving pregnant college students and we have a vision to bring this culture of life to schools everywhere.
Sisters for mothers: St. Clare’s Home
St. Clare’s Home in Charleston, South Carolina, is a maternity home staffed by religious sisters for expectant mothers who are in need of shelter, safety, and security.
“A woman experiencing a crisis pregnancy needs loving support to help her when others have abandoned her in her time of greatest need,” said Valerie Baronkin, the executive director of St. Clare’s Home. “St. Clare’s can offer that help to the mom so that she can care for herself and the child.”
A mother-daughter duo worked with their local diocese to found the home after the daughter had several dreams about bringing a maternity home to her home state. When Claire Pizzuti and her mother, Kim Capelle, met with local Bishop Robert Guglielmone to get his blessing for the organization, he suggested the Diocese of Charleston could help run it.
The Sisters of St. Michael the Archangel staff the home in Greenville County, South Carolina, which houses up to eight women and their children.
St. Clare’s hosts many women in challenging situations who were previously homeless or abused. The home offers classes on life skills ranging from financial management and career to oil changes and cooking.
“St. Clare’s is a program, not just a shelter,” Baronkin noted. “An expectant mom needs to agree to attend classes to prepare for childbirth, learn to care for her child, and learn how to take care of a home and finances to prepare her to take care of herself and her children.”
The program also operates a pregnancy aid center that helps provide mothers in need with material support and resources.
“St. Clare’s Home also offers women help and support even if she is not a resident of the home,” Baronkin said. “We have helped over 300 women outside the home with baby items and alternate resources.”
The home is named for St. Clare of Assisi, and the staff aspire not only to teach mothers life skills but also to help show them their value as daughters of God.
“The Sisters of St. Michael the Archangel help with the mission of caring for the moms. Our Catholic faith is never forced on a mom. However, through our loving example and prayers, moms have become interested in learning more about our faith,” Baronkin said.
“Two residents came back to their Catholic faith while at the home,” she continued. “We had two babies baptized and three moms are currently in RCIA, so we expect four more babies to be baptized this spring.”
When asked about her hopes for the future, Baronkin said that in addition to continuing their mission, they hope to expand.
“We desire to continue helping moms with their individual hopes and dreams for themselves and their babies. We want to expand our resources, assisting moms to achieve self-sufficiency,” Baronkin noted. “We also would like to work on long-term housing for moms because low-income housing is getting extremely difficult to find.”
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