Event underscores the value of state pregnancy help coalitions
Pregnancy help personnel in New York State were recharged in their commitment to life-affirming ministry as the New York State Coalition for Life presented its annual conference.
Hosted at Grace Chapel in Skaneateles, New York, the event is some 30 years in the making and in more recent years it has grown to two full days. The 2026 event featured four keynote speakers and 12 workshops covering numerous areas of pregnancy help ministry.
Accounts from those in attendance say the conference content was compelling, the fellowship inspiring, and the unity invaluable.
“My heart is so full after two incredible days at the New York State Coalition for Life Conference,” said Kathy Jerman, president emerita of the coalition.
Jerman, also Director of Affiliate Services for Heartbeat International, and prior to that executive director for New Hope Family Services in Syracuse, thanked all who attended for taking time from their centers and families to invest in their growth.
“It was such a gift to spend this time together,” Jerman said.
Jerman said some of her favorite moments weren't just from the stage.
“They happened during worship, around the lunch tables with our executive directors, in the hallways between sessions, and in the conversations where friendships were strengthened and ideas were shared,” she said. “Those are the moments that remind me why I believe so deeply in the value of state coalitions.”
“Most of all, I believe God met us there,” said Jerman. “He encouraged hearts, strengthened weary leaders, reminded us that we are not alone, and renewed our vision for the work He's called us to do.”
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The conference comes as coalitions become more key, especially in abortion states hostile to pro-life advocacy and pregnancy help.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is seeking to ban Heartbeat International and a number of pregnancy help organizations from sharing information about Abortion Pill Reversal.
James also sued a pro-life group in 2023 looking to ban its members from going within 30 feet of an abortion facility. James’s office had previously carried on another suit from her predecessors against a pro-life group for demonstrating at a Queens abortion facility.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bill into law in 2022 establishing a task force to investigate pregnancy centers. Hochul pledged to assist Texas women in coming to New York for abortions after Texas’s heartbeat law passed in 2021.
Pregnancy help organizations in New York have also withstood inquiries from the state into their operations for declining to carry out abortions, as well as hurdles with coverage from insurance companies.
Keynote presenters for the 2026 New York State Coalition for Life Conference were pro-life and sexual integrity advocate Pam Stenzel; Pastor, pro-life advocate, and President of PassionLife Ministries John Ensor; New York Families Foundation and New York Families Action Executive Director Jason McGuire; and Maternity Housing Coalition Executive Director Valerie Harkins Lindsay.
McGuire shared his story for the conference of Letitia James’s years-long investigation of him into bookkeeping errors not connected to his organizations and for which he pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors to avoid a costly trial. McGuire and his board maintain the investigation was politically motivated owing to his organizations’ conservative opposition to James’s policies. McGuire is suing James for libel in the matter.
McGuire emphasized the need to cultivate courage and remember one’s calling, saying the AG doesn’t get to decide your mission and that the pregnancy help movement’s confidence is drawn from Jesus, not politics.
Attendee Desiree Stoll, from Integra Pregnancy Services in Poughkeepsie, shared how something keynote Ensor said, "It's not new, it's just our time," rang a bell for her and her journey in pregnancy help.
“Attending the conference this year as assistant director for Integra Pregnancy Services affirmed the Lord's direction and provided much encouragement among His body for those who lift up the standard of hope and truth for those who seek support in our time,” Stoll said.
One of the event sponsors and workshop presenters, Jess Ford from Ford Creative Company, said it was a “genuine privilege” to take part.
“What stood out to me most was the resilience of New York,” Ford said. “In a state where this work can feel like an uphill climb, the determination and hope in that room were impossible to miss. I left renewed and grateful to be part of such a dedicated community.”
Jerman, who led the coalition for the last five years and been integral in organizing the event, said the goal of the gathering has always been to provide a conference experience that offers the same caliber of encouragement, training, and excellence that leaders find at a national conference.
“We recognize that travel and budgets can be barriers for many organizations, so we've worked intentionally to bring outstanding speakers, practical workshops, and exceptional sponsors to New York,” Jerman said. “Every leader deserves access to high-quality training, and we want this conference to be an investment that strengthens ministries across our entire state.”
“Our prayer for this conference was that leaders would leave encouraged, equipped, and reminded that they are not alone in this work,” she added. “Through heartfelt worship, outstanding keynote speakers, practical workshops, and authentic fellowship, I believe God answered that prayer. We left not only with new ideas and resources, but with renewed hearts and a deeper sense of unity across New York's pregnancy help movement.”
Jerman began serving on the New York State Coalition for Life Board 2019 and then became its president in 2021. She announced her retirement as board president at the conference.
“Coalitions bring us together, amplify our impact, and remind us that none of us are doing this work alone,” Jerman said in her retirement remarks.
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Coalition board member Alecia Jones, CEO of New Beginnings Center of Hope, Inc., commented how an invitation to be a part of their state coalition of pregnancy centers seems like another task on an endless, ever-growing to-do list for exhausted directors, but that she was pleasantly surprised when she finally got involved.
“As a member of the New York Life Coalition for the past three years and a coalition board member for the past six months, I have totally embraced and enjoyed the unity that our state coalition offers through our monthly executive roundtables and this past week's annual Life Coalition conference,” she said.
Jones praised the conference as well.
“The conference gave me space and grace to be with the only people who truly know the road I am walking as a leader of a Christ-centered pregnancy resource center,” she said, “endeavoring to inspire and equip women to make life-affirming choices for themselves and their unborn children.”
Michelle Brown, executive director of Life Choices Center in Binghamton, lauded Jerman’s efforts to foster the coalition’s development and noted its importance in defending pregnancy help organizations.
“As an executive director I no longer feel I'm out on an island by myself,” Brown said, “but instead, I have the ability to be connected to dozens of others in our state who are working through similar challenges with maintaining our mission in such an adverse political and cultural climate.”
Jerman is succeeded in leading coalition by its now former vice president, Jennifer Lawlor, executive director of Alight Center in Hudson. Lawlor joined the coalition board as secretary in 2022 before becoming vice president in 2025.
She said that stepping into the role of president of the New York State Coalition for Life is “a privilege and a great responsibility,” and remarked on the conference’s power to bring home the mission of pregnancy help for attendees.
“This year’s conference was a powerful reminder of why we do what we do,” Lawlor said. “Through Spirit-filled worship, the presenters who poured into us with wisdom, experience, and practical tools to strengthen our ministries, and the meaningful conversations we shared, we were reminded that we are not alone in this mission.”
She added, “God has brought together an incredible network of people committed to serving women, families, and the value of every life.”
Editor's note: Heartbeat International manages the Abortion Pill Rescue® Network (APRN) and Pregnancy Help News. Heartbeat is currently the subject of two lawsuits brought by state attorneys general concerning sharing information about Abortion Pill Reversal.
