Noelle’s journey leads to life for her unborn child

Noelle had a secret; it was one she would be unable to keep long. The high school junior hid it from her parents, the teachers at the Christian school she attended, and others who knew her well. What Noelle kept locked away within herself was known by one classmate—the teen father of the child she carried. “We kept it a secret until the night before my senior year,” Noelle remembers. “We cried. We did not know what to do.“ The high school couple knew the news of her pregnancy would be difficult for others to

receive, particularly the faculty at their school.

They were afraid of what the potential repercussions could be once her pregnancy was revealed. That fear led Noelle and her boyfriend to consider terminating the pregnancy. “We’re two teenagers talking about abortion because we were scared. We were so afraid to tell anyone,” Noelle shares. “All you want is for your life to go back to the way it was the day before you found out you were pregnant.” The teens waited until she was too far along for abortion to still be an option. And when the truth became impossible to keep hidden any longer, Noelle found herself expelled from school.

She finally confided in her mother and father. Unsure what to do, Noelle’s mother made an appointment with a center that could provide them with options. “They gave us a couple of brochures,” Noelle recalls. “One of them was for Christian Adoption

Services (CAS).” A ministry of Baptist Children’s Homes, (BCH) CAS was the answer Noelle’s family needed. The comfort and confidence they received during their initial meeting with CAS staff was immediate.

“From the get go, they were loving and caring and understanding. They knew that our world was falling apart,” Noelle says. “When faced with a very big decision, nothing felt better than knowing that God was going to be a part of that.” Through the support and counseling of CAS staff, Noelle made an adoption plan for her unborn daughter. CAS works directly with Christian couples who desire to be adoptive parents. At the same time, they come alongside each birth mother, like Noelle, to help her identify one of the families for placement. The process allowed Noelle to help choose the parents for her child—a couple named Sam and

Robin.

Noelle gave birth to a healthy baby girl who she named Olivia. “You can’t even believe that you’re looking at your baby and the love you feel. ” Noelle divulges. “It�