Hope in Time of Crisis

RIO GRANDE – When Felonee Joo was 16, she found herself pregnant after a one-night stand and a friend took her to a Hope Pregnancy Center for help and support as she faced some tough decisions.
Now 35, married and the mother of six, the Idaho native is back at a center, this time as executive director in Cape May County. 
“I remember what a positive experience I had through this really difficult time of my life,” Joo recalled. “I was looking for someplace to give away baby clothes when I saw information about the Hope Center at my church, and that they were looking for an executive director.
“My husband and I spoke about it, and he thought it was a good fit for me after all I’ve been through and what we’ve dealt with. It’s a chance to serve in His ministry.”
While Joo was referring to the difficult experience of being a teen mother, she also was referring to experiences about two years ago when she was pregnant. At nine weeks, she underwent an ultrasound that showed thicker fluid behind the fetus’ neck, indicating a disorder the doctors felt would be fatal. They recommended terminating the pregnancy, but Joo and her husband decided to undergo further testing, which ruled out the potentially fatal disorder.
Other tests indicated a potentially fatal heart condition, but an echocardiogram in utero found nothing. “Even with all the medical advice advising us to terminate, we decided not to,” Joo said. “Our daughter is fine now with no complications that we are aware of. She’s an energetic 14-month-old.
“We put it into God’s hands,” she noted. “When we talked about the test results with one of the doctors, he thought the timing was off. The tests we had are usually done at 10-12 weeks of pregnancy, but ours were done at nine weeks, so the results were off.”
Joo said it’s her responsibility to help the physical, spiritual and material needs of anyone coming to the center for help.
“It’s an opportunity to share the Gospel. I try to tell clients who are willing to open up that God loves them and understands their trials. He’ll answer their prayers because no task is too big,” she added.
When Joo was 16 and pregnant, her family was “very upset. It (the pregnancy) affected my schooling because once school was notified, I was removed and had to go to the alternative school. My dad was pretty strict when we were growing up, but he lived in Oregon at the time. He was really disappointed with my choices. I had to move out of my mom’s house, and moved in with friends.”
Her son was born prematurely and spent six weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). “He was on a ventilator; it was really challenging to see my child like this,” she said, noting “at 17, I was a child myself.”
The baby caught a virus at three weeks, requiring a higher level of NICU treatment at a hospital two and a half hours away from where she was living. “Every day, I was at the hospital, all day, by myself,” Joo recalled.
Eventually, the baby recovered enough to go home, but Joo faced additional challenges. She had not finished high school and was living with the family of her boyfriend. Babysitting provided some income, but she still relied on Social Services.
The baby’s father, who was 21, had his own home and was involved in a “more stable relationship.” Joo gave him custody when their son was 4 months old.
“At no time did I ever consider abortion,” Joo said. “I have never thought it was an OK choice. I didn’t really understand adoption, but the Hope Center was really good at explaining all my options, helping apply for medical assistance, and getting help from other local agencies. The volunteers were very sincere and understanding.”
As executive director of the Hope Pregnancy Center in Cape May County, it’s experiences like those that help her with clients.
The local Hope Center has offices in Rio Grande, 1508 Rt. 47, 609-886-7022, and Ocean City, 321 West Ave., 609-398-9449.
Services are free and confidential, and include:
– Pregnancy tests
– Accurate information about pregnancy, fetal development, pregnancy termination methods and risks (they do not perform or refer abortions)
– Confidential counseling for anyone involved in an unplanned pregnancy, including husbands, parents, and boyfriends
– Post-abortion counseling
– Referrals for prenatal care, housing assistance, community resources and adoption
– Maternity clothes, baby supplies, and baby clothing.
“I was convinced I was having a girl, so my first baby outfit the center gave me was a pink onesie,” Joo recalled with a chuckle. “Then I had a boy.”
Her son lived with his father until he was 11, when he joined Joo and her family in New Jersey. He lived with them until last fall, when he moved to Oregon to live with her sister. He’s finishing his last year of high school and plans to attend college there.
In 2006, Joo became certified as an emergency medical technician (EMT). Now living in Northfield, she and her family have gotten closer.
Although her father died in 2011, her stepmother recently visited from Washington State, and her mother lives nearby, “enjoying all the fun of being a grandmother with all the kids.”
When Joo developed a heart issue, she had to leave her EMT position in 2014. Because her condition is “well-controlled, but not completely gone,” she was prevented from returning to her EMT role.
She eventually learned about and applied for the opening at the Hope Pregnancy Center, where she became executive director this August.
Joo said the Cape May County organization provides assistance to children up to 3 years of age in both Cape May and Atlantic counties. Items such as clothes, diapers, diaper bags and other supplies can be provided when the mother is eight months pregnant.
Fifteen to 20 clients use the services each month, the director noted, with an increase in numbers around the change of seasons, likely due to the need for clothing.
“Our numbers actually show a decline for services such as pregnancy testing,” she said, “probably because anyone can go to a dollar store and buy a pregnancy test.
“However, requests for help with clothing have increased,” she added.
A Spanish-speaking volunteer is available at the Ocean City location for translation services.
To contact Karen Knight, email kknight@cmcherald.com.