Christa March was frustrated. In 1988, she was a staff worker for Youth for Christ, a Christian agency in Arlington Heights that helps troubled and abused girls. She saw teens who were trying to be mothers and heard the pro-life message at church, but she could not find an organization that assisted a teen after the baby was born.
“I found 70 groups that helped teens before the birth of their child, but no specific organization for parenting,” March said. “When I asked the local school districts what services were needed by most teen moms, the answer was child care.”
March, 35, of Gurnee spent 10 months doing a feasibility study on providing that help for teens. The result, in 1989, was Teen Mother Choices.
“I had to answer the question, `Am I pro-life or pro-birth?’ ” March said. “If we help babies in the womb, we need to be there for the babies in the stroller too.”
Teen Mother Choices, based in Arlington Heights, has helped 120 teen mothers since it began, about six to eight at one time, allowing the young women to complete high school and retain jobs.
The group works with each teen mom individually through counseling and the mentor-mom approach as well as group activities, such as Monday night sessions that offer a combination of peer support, networking opportunities and practical topics about the teen mom’s new responsibilities.
March got the group going in 1989 when she went to her church, Countryside Church in Arlington Heights, for help with her project. The church agreed to provide office and meeting space and to encourage member support for March’s effort.
In September 1990, Teen Mother Choices was incorporated. It continues to be housed in Countryside Church, with full access to the nursery, gym and kitchen. It now has its own board of directors.
The requirements for a teen to be involved in Teen Mother Choices include maintaining a “C” average in school and advancing toward a diploma or working in a job that has possibilities of advancement. She is excluded from the program if she becomes pregnant again.
“Out of 120 girls, we have only had one repeat pregnancy,” March said.
Amy Hultman, 25, of Schaumburg now manages the Arlington Heights office. Before August 1996, March handled everything alone.
“The girls know we are Christian, but we never preach to them,” Hultman said. “We have had girls of all faiths work with us.”
Tom Carlisle of Naperville is a social worker at Schaumburg High School who has worked with Teen Mother Choices. Carlisle is also co-chairman of the Committee on Pregnant Teens, a consortium of northwest suburban groups that work with pregnant or parenting teens.
He praises both March and the program. “She advocates strongly and has a very creative approach,” he said. “TMC individualizes its program. If you are a square peg, it will find a square hole.”
March, who is married with two school-age children, said the group fills three roles.
The first is to keep the young women in school or working or help them return. “We train volunteers from local churches who offer child care in their homes so that teen moms can go back to school,” she says. “In some cases, we subsidize outside child care.”
The second is teaching life skills. These mandatory classes at Countryside are given by volunteers and focus on issues of importance to teen moms, from discipline to time management to tax preparation.
The third key is the “Mentor Mom,” a woman in her late 20s or early 30s who supports the teen mom through weekly meetings, shared meals and outings.
One mentor is Heidi Blair, 37, of Waukegan, who has been with the program since it began and has been mentor to six young women. “We would cook, go to the park with the children, shop or go to the zoo,” said Blair, who is March’s cousin.
“I develop a relationship with these moms,” she said. “They have someone to rely on, to confide in, to help them through difficult times.”
With an annual budget of $94,000, a great deal of financial wizardry is needed to accomplish the group’s goals. Peter and Barbara Kovacevich of Buffalo Grove have made monthly donations to TMC.
“I saw this as a neat opportunity to do something positive,” Barbara Kovacevich said.
She also acts as Parky the Clown at the organization’s annual birthday party for all the children. Two years ago, one of the young mothers lived in the Kovacevich home for five months until she could obtain her beautician’s license and get her feet on the ground.
Board member John Gilbert of Arlington Heights participates because of his strong pro-life stance. “I believe that abortion is not an appropriate solution to pregnancy, but a young mother has to support herself and her child,” Gilbert said. “I felt that I could help them do this. The government can’t handle all of this.”
Girls are referred through schools, probation officers and public assistance agencies. The initial contact with Teen Mother Choices is by phone. “We explain what we do, send her an application and schedule an interview,” Hultman said.
During the time the teen mother is in the program, Hultman maintains regular contact, checking on her school progress and working closely with school social workers and counselors or employers.
Teen moms can stay as long as they need the program. “They graduate themselves from us, though the average duration is 1 1/2 to 2 years,” March said.
For about a year, TMC has supplemented the day-care costs of Jackie, 19, of Wheeling so she can work and provide insurance for her daughter Alexandra, 4. Jackie now has a job at a mortgage corporation.
“If it wasn’t for them, I would be nothing,” Jackie said. “I owe them a lot. They have helped me so much.”
Jackie hopes to return to school to study to be a radiologist, and Teen Mother Choices has promised further assistance. “I go every Monday when I can to their group meetings,” Jackie said. “The director is the best person.”
March now devotes most of her time to speaking engagements and fundraising efforts. In addition to an annual dinner and silent auction in April, there are several garage sales a year. The group also receives periodic donations of baby clothes, diapers, car seats and baby furniture from individuals and organizations.
March has also begun similar groups in Georgia and Nebraska. Expansion into the Gurnee area on April 1 was initiated through the efforts of Rev. Todd Habegger of the Village Church of Gurnee. He saw a need for services to mothers in that area and offered his church for meetings and for use as a satellite office.
Rev. Abner Bauman of Countryside, an independent Christian Evangelical church, has encouraged March and her followers.
“Unquestionably, TMC has been a very significant help to girls in crisis,” said Bauman, of Prospect Heights. “It is a program that does not solve all of their problems but shows them how to get control of their lives, finish their high school education and move on in life.”
What does happen to teen mothers after they leave Teen Mother Choices? Forty-three have gone on to college, and many have found jobs.
March and her family have also gained from the program. “It’s been eye-opening for my kids,” she said. “We need to teach them that it is our responsibility to share what we have.”
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For further information on Teen Mother Choices, call 847-670-8240.
