25-year-old Hannah was living in New York City, striving to pursue her dreams of becoming a writer, when she faced a fork in the road: an unplanned pregnancy.

Hannah already knew she was pregnant, even before she took a pregnancy test. She had missed three periods and experienced pregnancy symptoms. But she didn’t take the test until she was 12 weeks along.

“It was a bit of a denial. I definitely was scared, and sometimes it takes me a while to kind of come to terms with things on my own,” Hannah recalls.

Hannah grew up Catholic with pro-life values, so she believed that choosing life was the right choice.

“I knew what I was going to do, which was keep the baby,” Hannah says.

But still the news of her pregnancy brought overwhelming emotions.

“I looked at the test in my room. I had a beautiful view of the city. It was magical at dusk, and I just saw the test turn positive and watched everyone walking home from work. I felt this crazy feeling in my heart that my life was changing. In that moment, so much was changing,” Hannah recalls.

PRESSURE TO ABORT

Hannah with her daughter, Tara.

Hannah immediately shared the news with her child’s father. He was surprised and suggested they have the pregnancy confirmed by an ultrasound.

“He was sitting [at the ultrasound appointment] totally different from the last time I had seen him — totally scared,” Hannah recalls.

The ultrasound technician knew they weren’t a married couple, so she started to suggest abortion as an option and wouldn’t show the ultrasound screen for a while.

“I hadn’t even really said what I wanted yet, and it was very bizarre … And then she goes, ‘It’s big. Do you want to see the screen?’ What do you mean it like it’s a disease?” Hannah says.

The dad didn’t want to see the baby, but Hannah was excited to see her child and insisted on seeing the ultrasound screen.

“She turned the screen, and my baby was perfect … It was clear as day to me. I knew immediately what I was looking at,” Hannah recalls.

The technician mentioned abortion again and told Hannah that she would need a D&C because she was 12 weeks along. Hannah emphasized that she would not get an abortion because she wanted to keep her baby.

Hannah and her baby’s father got to hear their child’s heartbeat, which only solidified Hannah’s decision to choose life over abortion.

“That was super amazing and beautiful and powerful. He struggled big time with that, and from there, I kind of did it on my own. He flip-flopped a lot,” Hannah says.

Hannah with her daughter, Tara.

After her ultrasound, Hannah shared the news with her mom, who initially felt angry, shocked, embarrassed and nervous. Their family was part of a big church community, so her mom was worried about how others would respond to the news. But over time, her mom became very supportive of the pregnancy. Hannah’s mom stood by her every step of the way as soon as she moved back home to Florida and was her rock from that moment on.

As more people learned about the news, Hannah faced more pressure to not keep her baby. A friend told her that abortion would be better for her. One family member urged Hannah to consider all her options, including abortion, out of fear of how an unplanned pregnancy would affect her career. Another family member insisted she choose adoption because a couple could raise her baby better than she could as a single mom.

“I did have a degree. I was 25 when I had her. So I knew I could do it. I knew that I could figure it out,” Hannah says.

DIVING INTO MOTHERHOOD

Hannah’s daughter, Tara.

Upon her sister’s suggestion, Hannah connected with the Sisters of Life in New York City, a religious community that provides pregnancy support to women in crisis. Meeting the sisters changed her life.

“They gave me a bunch of things and beautiful clothes, and they were just amazing. Then eventually they invited me to live with them at their maternity home in the covent,” Hannah recalls.

Hannah moved to the covent when she was 20 weeks along. Two of the sisters accompanied her to her anatomy scan where she found out her baby was a girl. During her stay at the convent, Hannah felt seen and encouraged during a nerve-racking season in her life.

“The sisters really changed my heart and showed me the beauty of me as a mother and showed me that two wrongs don’t make a right. Whatever happened in the past is now in the past. Now we have to shift gears and think about the baby and me as a mom … I just dove into motherhood before the baby was born,” Hannah says.

By the time Hannah was 35 weeks along, she left New York City to move back home with family in Florida. It was a difficult decision for her to make as she felt that she was leaving her dream of becoming a writer in the city.

Two weeks after moving, Hannah was diagnosed with intrauterine growth restriction, which resulted in her labor being induced at 37 weeks. Her baby came out with the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck and wasn’t breathing. 

As the doctors tried to resuscitate her baby, Hannah prayed, “God, we’ve been on this journey this long. I want to be a mom. Can you please just let me have this baby here?”

Hannah’s daughter, Tara, survived with no complications. She is now 5 years old and will be attending kindergarten next year.

More blessings came to Hannah’s life after the birth of her daughter. Hannah met her now-husband, Matt, when Tara was about a year old. They got engaged 10 months later and got married in October 2022. 

Matt embraced fatherhood and adopted Tara when she was about 4. He and Hannah also have a 1-year-old daughter named Molly.

“Being a mom is my favorite thing in the world now. I always knew I wanted to be a mom, but I didn’t know I would be so happy. I absolutely love it,” Hannah says.

BABIES DESERVE A CHANCE AT LIFE

Hannah with her husband, Matt, and two daughters, Tara and Molly.

The Sisters of Life occasionally connect Hannah to women who are facing unplanned pregnancies. Hannah gets to share her resilient story to give them encouragement and hope. She has also been able to share her story on several platforms, including Live Action and The Epoch Times.

“I had some girls DM me. One told me that after reading the Live Action article, she had gone through a pregnancy resource center and chose life. It felt cool to be a part of that,” Hannah says.

Hannah currently works for EveryLife, a pro-life diaper company, where she gets to support families and invest in her pro-life advocacy.

Hannah with her daughters.

Hannah’s encouragement to women who are facing unplanned pregnancies:

“Believe in herself. I would encourage her to, if she hadn’t found God yet, to find God and to cling to her faith and just know that she is capable. God has called her to be a mom, and she already is a mom … Clinging to my faith is what helped me the most, instead of running from it. Embrace that this is her calling and know that this child is going to bring so much joy to her and those around that child. It’s not the child’s fault, and they deserve a chance at life. A child is a gift.”