A North Carolina pregnancy help organization wove an extra element of celebrating motherhood together with its mission of serving women for its spring Walk for Life event and had great results.
The Pregnancy Network has branches in Greensboro and Winston-Salem, and both have held walk events for several years, each locale conducting the event at different times of the year. But this year the centers both held their respective walk events around Mother’s Day to specially celebrate mothers.
“We wanted to change it up a little bit this year and move it up to happen near Mother’s Day because that day fits well with our mission,” said Annabeth McGahee, director of Development for The Pregnancy Network.
A poignant new element was added this year with the opportunity for participants to create a flower bouquet for a mother in their life, further connecting the event with Mother’s Day. The idea came about among the staff, particularly Communications Director Kacey Minor.
“We talked about how the Walk for Life was going to happen on Mother’s Day weekend and different ways we could make the day special and honor mothers and motherhood,” Minor told Pregnancy Help News. “So, we thought about flowers and that with bouquets of flowers you could build for your mom would be something special to add to our walk day.”
“It ties back to our mission of empowering women to embrace motherhood,” Minor said.
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They called the endeavor the Bloom Bar. A Greensboro benefactor donated the flowers and the cart for that city’s event, and center staff in Winston-Salem purchased the flowers for the walk in that community. The bouquets that walkers created were provided free of charge.
“The Bloom Bar was received very well,” McGahee said. “I think everyone enjoyed creating their own bouquet. All the kids got involved – it was very sweet!”
McGahee said it was so well received that they will bring it back again.
Tweet This: The Pregnancy Network in North Carolina added a Mother's Day Bloom bar to its annual Walk for Life event.
Additionally, pregnancy center staff shared stories from some of the clients they have served, offering insight into the work and mission of the organization.
“It was really awesome to hear those stories,” Minor said.
The Pregnancy Network plans to continue the walk on Mother’s Day weekend, McGahee added.
The Pregnancy Network’s beginnings
The Pregnancy Network came about forty years ago when three people got together to begin a pro-life pregnancy center ministry in Greensboro, first known as The Greensboro Pregnancy Center. Over the years new locations were established, including a new Winston-Salem site in 2021. After a rebranding in 2020 the new name became The Pregnancy Network. New services were added, including case management in 2024 and lactation consultation in 2025.
The organization celebrated its 40th anniversary last June.
Through the years, the pregnancy help organization has served thousands of women. Last year, more than 950 women received services, and the Gospel was shared with more than 750 of them. Fifteen women became Christians, Minor said. Nearly 200 clients participated in The Pregnancy Network’s Pregnancy 101 and Parenting 101 classes, including more than 50 in the Spanish-language program, which launched four years ago.
The centers’ mission to empower women to embrace motherhood is based on its Success Sequence program. Through this approach, Minor said, a client who “meets us undecided about her pregnancy becomes empowered to thrive.” Women receive medical services, education and resources, and mentorship. The Pregnancy Network partners with local churches whose members become mentors to clients. That piece of the program is called Connect, and the vision is to build a long-term, healthy support network, for those clients, said Taylor Burchett, Partnerships coordinator at The Pregnancy Network.
Connect is undergoing a revamp and will launch again in the fall, she said.
“We have restructured the application process and will require a one-year commitment from mentors and mentees,” Burchett said.
The goal of this structure is to create consistency, accountability, healthy support, and long-term relational growth, she said.
“Local churches have agreed to partner with us to provide discipleship resources, prayer, and mentor support,” said Burchett. “In addition, mentors and their mentees will connect monthly; this structure allows flexibility and individualized support for mentees' needs and goals.”
Adding new programs
Also, this fall The Pregnancy Network will host a project called Accelerator, connecting with other pregnancy help organizations and sharing knowledge. It’s an online training titled Dream, Plan, Execute: Crafting Your Center’s Vision.
“Accelerator is a free program that we do with virtual training quarterly, and then we also offer cohort groups and one-on-one coaching,” Minor said. “This can be a helpful resource for a center that’s looking to start an event like Walk for Life. We love to partner with centers and just share what we’ve learned over the years.”
Additionally, The Pregnancy Network will hold an autumn gala in Greensboro on October 16 to benefit both centers.
With the spring Walk for Life now complete and several celebrations and events on the horizon, staff at The Pregnancy Network view the future as bright and exciting.
“The Walk brought in more than $125,000,” McGahee told Pregnancy Help News. “Our accounting shows it costs about $1,500 to empower one woman, taking her through all the tiers in our Success Sequence. So, we look at this as if more than 83 women will be helped through our services and programs thanks to the generosity we saw from people.”
Information on the September Accelerator training is available HERE.
Editor's note: This article has been updated to correct the date of The Pregnancy Network's anniversary event.
