Actress Ashley Bratcher has a new mission: to help mothers facing unplanned pregnancies.
The star of the Left-derided film Unplanned has teamed with Heartbeat International in the creation of an educational scholarship.
The Unplanned Movie Scholarship fund is now accepting donations, and it vows to provide expectant moms in need a $5,000 annual supplement to their education.
The description reads as follows on the initiative’s official website:
While plans may shift when the unexpected happens, it doesn’t mean that dreams need to stop completely. Inspired by her role as Abby Johnson in the movie Unplanned, Ashley Bratcher is partnering with Heartbeat International, the largest pregnancy help network in the world, to offer moms facing unplanned pregnancies educational scholarships so that they can continue pursuing their dreams while raising their babies.
We will honor these brave women who chose life with a $5,000 annual scholarship to put toward their education. By encouraging positive choices, we can literally transform families and communities.
Thus serves as a reminder, I suppose, that even Hollywood is comprised of diversity of thought.
As covered by RedState’s Sarah Lee Wednesday, actress-turned-benevolent-bullhorn Alyssa Milano recently expressed gratitude for all she has — thanks to her two previous abortions:
“I would not have my children [Elizabeth, 4, and son Milo, 7] — my beautiful, perfect, loving, kind and inquisitive children who have a mother who was so very, very ready for them. I would not have my career. I would not have the ability or platform I use to fight against oppression with all my heart. I would never have met my amazing husband, David, whose steadfast and immeasurable love for me sustains me through these terrifying times.”
From the scholarship site, by contrast:
Help us support mothers as they go to school so they can provide more for their families and make responsible choices that will impact not only their lives, but the lives of their little ones.
On the homepage, Ashley recounts reaction to the pro-life film, which was hit with an ‘R’ rating by the MPAA (here), threatened with banning in Canada, and whose account was canceled by Twitter (here):
After the release of Unplanned, I received an overwhelming number of messages from women who had been touched by the film. Some described the sacrifices they made in choosing life, and some were currently facing unplanned pregnancies that they feared would interfere with completing or attending college. It was then that I realized the need to reverse the negative stigma surrounding unplanned pregnancies.
The response inspired her:
I wanted to be a part of empowering mothers to chase their dreams and to provide a means for those who chose life to continue their educations.
I hope that the Unplanned Movie Scholarship will not only empower mothers seeking to continue to their education but that it will also spread awareness for the thousands of Heartbeat affiliate pregnancy resource centers across the world. So many women do not realize the resources and support that is available to them and this is an opportunity to show them that they’re not alone.
…
[Heartbeat International] and I share a common goal: to reach and change hearts through love and compassion. We invite you to join us!
The actress has an especially personal connection to the issue, aside from her involvement with the movie: Not long ago, she received a startling revelation — she herself was almost aborted.
Her mother explained to her:
“I need to tell you something that I’ve never told you before. I was going to abort you. I was at the clinic sitting on the table when the nurse, who was very pregnant, came in to talk to me. I felt sick. I couldn’t do it. I got up and walked out … and I chose you.”
Ashley recalled the above to Fox & Friends, prior to the film’s release.
“I’m grateful that God, through His providence, planted me here to tell my story,” she told the show. “And that I have the privilege of sharing this film with the world.”
Now she’s sharing something more: The opportunity for women in crisis to make better lives for themselves. And for their children.
-ALEX
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