Christian Publishing Veteran Brings Over Two Decades of Publishing, Product Development, and Church Engagement Experience to Lead Organization's New Effort

Care Net has hired Mary Chapman to lead its new Church Outreach and Engagement Initiative, which will inspire and equip churches to more proactively serve women and men facing pregnancy decisions.

The initiative is Care Net's leading effort to provide urban communities with an alternative to the disproportionate influence of abortion clinics in too many American cities. Abortion providers target inner city communities, where a disproportionate number of abortions take place, but it is often difficult for life-affirming pregnancy centers -- which are typically small, volunteer-driven nonprofit organizations -- to gain a foothold in these same communities, where the cost of initiating and maintaining an operation are high. However, there are many churches in these communities that are in an ideal position to step in and make a difference. 

Therefore, Chapman’s primary goal will be to build a network of “life affirming” churches offering compassion, hope, and help to those facing pregnancy decisions in their congregations and communities. Churches are especially well-positioned to not only assist women and men during an unplanned pregnancy, but also in the months and years after the child is born through its various ministries and resources. Given these resources, Care Net will work to get more churches proactively engaged with their congregations and communities on this issue.

Accordingly, Chapman will direct the creation of a portfolio of products and services to inspire and equip churches to start pregnancy care ministries within their own congregations. She will build relationships with Christian leaders and pastors to build bridges between churches and Care Net's network of 1,160 affiliated pregnancy centers.

"Care Net launched its Church Outreach and Engagement Initiative to reach more people with the critical support they need to choose life for their unborn children and abundant life for their families," said Cynthia Hopkins, Care Net's Vice President of Center Services and Client Care. "We are delighted to have Mary Chapman on board to lead this important new effort to save lives and build stronger families."

"This initiative represents an exciting opportunity to create a new paradigm in how communities respond to the unplanned pregnancies that their women and men face," said Chapman. "Especially in urban areas, there are too many abortion clinics, too few pregnancy centers, but a lot of churches. It is time these churches are inspired and equipped to provide the 'life support' that life decisions require."

For the last seven years, Chapman was part of the team at Tyndale House, the world's largest privately held Christian publisher, to publish and distribute the New Living Translation of the Bible. She also led Tyndale's cause-driven campaigns, including a partnership with Care Net by which over 750,000 Bibles were distributed at no cost to pregnancy centers around the country.

Chapman also directed several strategic alliances for Tyndale, including its Urban Campaign, in which she created partnerships with key contacts in the African American Christian community, resulting in partnerships with GRIP Outreach for Youth and Kanakuk Kamps' urban sports camp, Kids Across America. This campaign resulted in the creation of the Unlocking the Mystery of the Scriptures multi-media presentation and its distribution to 1,000+ key influencers in the African American church. This wealth of experiences will equip her well for the diverse aspects of the new position at Care Net.

Care Net’s Church Outreach and Engagement Initiative will be rolled out in three phases over the next two years. Phase 1, commencing with the hiring of Chapman, involves research, product development, and coalition building. Phase 2 will involve launching a pilot project with a group of churches. Phase 3 will be a national roll out of the initiative.

Founded in 1975, Care Net supports one of the largest network of pregnancy centers in North America and runs the nation’s only real-time call center providing pregnancy decision coaching. Care Net envisions a culture where women and men facing pregnancy decisions are empowered by the gospel of Jesus Christ to choose life for their unborn children and abundant life for their families. Acknowledging that every human life begins at conception and is worthy of protection, Care Net offers compassion, hope, and help to anyone considering abortion by presenting them with realistic alternatives and Christ-centered support through its life-affirming network of pregnancy centers, organizations, and individuals. Learn more at care-net.org.