A beautiful story of a couple who chose life at our Countryside Center and on their journey together discovered God and love.

A Life Saved from a Mistaken Visit

By Sabrina Rocco, Tampa Bay Times Writer...read story
Published Sunday, February 26, 2012 

In her teen years at River Ridge High School, Jennifer's life was something out of a Taylor Swift song: The quiet freshman with braces crushed on the dreamy Royal Knights quarterback who, to be honest, couldn't have picked her out of a wallflower lineup. She watched him date girl after girl, all pretty and perfect. Jennifer didn't think she'd ever have a shot with Philip the jock.

Philip graduated in 2006 and Jennifer didn't see much of him after that and didn't really think about him, either. By the time she graduated, she was a young lady and her confidence had mounted. She started taking classes at Pasco-Hernando Community College.

By then, Philip was long gone from her mind. So when she ran into him at a local college pub, she was surprised. Even more perplexing was his reaction. He scooped her into a hug, like a best friend he hadn't seen in 10 years.

"Whoa … lonely much?" she asked with spunk.

"Yeah," he said.

She pushed him away. He knew she wasn't going to be easy to impress — and he loved that. They talked at the bar. He told her (to her surprise) he remembered her from high school.

Six months later, in January 2010, Jennifer was pregnant. Convinced they couldn't be parents, the couple frantically searched online for a clinic. The drive was somber. When they arrived, they were met with warmth. What was supposed to be a clinic was actually a Christian outreach center. That night, they decided to keep their baby boy.

"It was a miracle that we thought we were going to an abortion clinic, but we ended up there," Jennifer said. "It brought us to religion."

Philip, who was raised Catholic, and Jennifer, who was raised without religion, made a commitment to the Catholic church. After Philip proposed on July 5, 2010, they chose to abstain until marriage. The couple married at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church.