Conservative or Liberal and Pregnant at 14....

I've had the great opportunity of coordinating Project H.O.P.E (Healthy Outcomes through Prevention and Education)through the Center for Service Learning at Mesa Community College. Project H.O.P.E is a grant project awarded to MCC to educate college students about healthy relationships, sex, family planning and most crucial about 'staying in school' completing your college education. Being raised in the LDS Church I thought I had a deep and meaningful understanding of service. It's not uncommon to give a hand when someone is in need. Most of my service has revolved around helping others move, clean, watching kids, dogs, picking up mail, delivering a meal, telephone calls to check in with those who are sick, new mom's or new to the neighborhood. I have also felt the call to civic duty... However today brought a whole new perspective of the importance of community service.

This morning our Project H.O.P.E team; Heather, Liz, Tiffany, Sheila and myself were invited to present at Compadre High School in Tempe. Compadre is a non traditional high school serving high school students at risk. Prior to our presentation we had the opportunity to tour the on site daycare facilities. We were talking to a parenting class of young mothers 14-17 years old. I spent most of my time in the newborn nursery holding a gorgeous little lady named Larissa. Larissa was easy to pick out of the crowd, she was fussy and crying. As I bent down to pick her up, I could feel her little rock hard tummy while she struggled to pull her legs up. She had a tummy ache, her premature birth and low birth weight are contributors to her delicate digestive system. At 6 weeks she has a full head of black hair, beautiful brown eyes, sparkly little pink earrings and a tiny features.

I couldn't help but think of my own little grand daughter and how precious she is. I thought back on a long conversation my daughter Cori and I had about placing Henli in daycare as Cori would have to return to work. I remember Cori's anxiety about leaving Henli and in trying to decide on the right daycare provider. As Miss Larissa's cry grew louder, my thoughts turned to her and her 15 year old mother. I felt absolutely sick.... I asked myself... how in the world does a 14 year old girl find herself pregnant and not know it? And better yet how did her parents not know? She literally went 7 months with NO prenatal care. She didn't think having unprotected sex could equal having a baby. She and the baby daddy didn't stay together.

Well dear friends... the question I ask you is... Have we failed our children? Each of us has a story to tell about the 'talk' or lack of the 'talk' we experienced as youth. Did your parents talk to you about sex? Well if your parents couldn't talk to you about sex, I would bet you struggled to talk to your own kids. How can you teach your kids about sex, when the very topic was off limits to you? This is a huge problem in our culture.... Kids having babies... and grandparents raising them...

The next question I hear all the time is.... Don't they teach Sex Ed in schools?????? Well if you live in Arizona the answer is NO.... in Arizona our children are taught abstinence if anything at all..... Yet statistically Arizona holds the title of 3rd highest teen birth rate in the nation... Impressive???

Where is the disconnect? Parents feel it is their sacred right to discuss such matters as pro-creation and family values at home... Yet this is not happening in most homes.... Educators feel a great sense of frustration as they are teaching our sexually active and in many cases pregnant students that abstinence is the only sure way to ovoid an unplanned pregnancy or worse an uninvited sexually transmitted disease...

The real need is for us as parents, educators and legislator's to find a middle ground and start working together. Parents could use some coaching on how and when to start the dialog about sex... educators need to have the resources available to teach medically accurate information and the latitude to open up dialog with their students... Legislator's when will you take a hard look at the numbers? Teen pregnancy and skyrocketing birth rates have to be paid for... as a tax payer I expect more from you! I am living in an age of instantaneous communication..Internet, texting, GPS... yet when it comes to education our children about sex,contraception and family values we are living in the STONE AGE....

It's time to take a proactive stand in teaching our children, early about healthy relationships, encouraging good self esteem, sexual relationships, contraception, family planning and getting a good education. If our children are truly our greatest natural resource... and the future leaders of tomorrow.... then we need to get our act together as adults to ensure the success of our children today!

There is no conservative or liberal stand on protecting our children.... just proactive or reactive....

It's time to talk....