
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, June 6, 1995                   TAG: 9506060109
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: SHEBA WHEELER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

PREGNANCY CRISIS CENTER DEDICATED

Kay Coles James, former White House staff member and now Virginia's secretary of health and human resources, says the "complete peace" she hopes to have in her old age won't come from what she has achieved in government service. It will come from a project she and her husband, Charles, were involved in more than 15 years ago.

The couple helped establish a crisis pregnancy center in Richmond.

"I had the opportunity to help those women who felt they had no choice,'' she said. "I could reach out and show them that there were options other than to take the life of their pre-born child.''

James was keynote speaker at the Crisis Pregnancy Center of Roanoke Valley Inc.'s dedication Monday night. About 200 people attended the open house for the $350,000 facility at Williamson and Airport roads in Northwest Roanoke.

``You are the folks who are fundamentally changing the culture in more ways than I can. ... People like you, volunteering in the crisis pregnancy centers all over the country ... shepherding these women into your homes,'' James said. "It's going to be done in little centers like this, and in homes like yours.''

An opponent of abortion rights, James is a nationally prominent black conservative who oversees 14 agencies and 19,000 employees in the largest of the secretariats in Richmond.

James was chosen as keynote speaker because of her past efforts to ensure that women with crisis pregnancies are offered the resources and support necessary to carry their pregnancies to term if they chose, said Ruth Fielder, president and executive director of the Crisis Pregnancy Center.

The new facility will show women and their families that the center values those it serves, and hopes to provide an efficient and suitable place for them to come with their needs, Fielder said.

A total of $209,172 in cash donations - along with discounts for furnishings, appliances and labor - has helped the group pay for more than half of the total cost of the new facility.

In the center's 11 years of operation, it has served 6,000 clients and helped 10,000 others in some fashion, Fielder said.

Monday's ceremony also was an opportunity for politicians to be seen and to speak to potential constituents. Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Roanoke, applauded the center's work in helping families "live and learn the love that comes from having a newborn child."

Other political figures who came to the open house included Del. Victor Thomas, D-Roanoke; Roanoke County Board of Supervisors Chairman Fuzzy Minnix; state Sen. Brandon Bell, R-Roanoke County; and Del. Morgan Griffith, R-Salem. Dr. Newell Falkinburg, who is running against Del. Clifton "Chip" Woodrum, D-Roanoke, and Jeff Artis, who is challenging Thomas, also were there shaking hands.

by CNB