JEFFERSON CITY – In the early 90s,14-year-old Brandy Meeks sat on a church pew on a Sunday evening and listened to a medical missionary share their experiences of serving Christ overseas.
Meeks says she instantly connected to the stories about meeting physical and spiritual needs that showed Christ’s love and mercy.
After the presentation she felt called to serve in medical missions. However, years later in a high school biology class the sight of blood while dissecting frogs caused her to nearly faint.
Brandy Meeks
“Surely, this cannot be what God intended for me,” she thought. Still, her dream of helping others in a medical capacity never left. Today, she saves lives in quite a different way than she’d imagined as a young girl. With her college major in psychology and a minor in communications, Meeks began serving non-profits, including pro-life organizations.
In September, Meeks was promoted to president of Vitae Foundation, a leading nonprofit in providing research to pro-life organizations and in helping reduce the number of abortions worldwide.
The Vitae Foundation’s mission is to “facilitate lifesaving research and apply the findings to create messaging strategies to share with others,” Meeks says. “What a blessing it truly is to care for human souls enough to rescue them from perishing in the dark and leading them to the light of Christ!”
Vitae Foundation has worked in pro-life research and message development for over 30 years to inform women experiencing unexpected pregnancies.
It provides research and information on topical issues, such as the abortion pill procedure; helps pro-life groups with messaging and practices; supports coalitions in influencing policy issues; collaborates with the Organization of American States in providing research to the United Nations for pro-life strategies; and aids pro-life groups in bringing the hope of Christ to women with unwanted pregnancies.
Its work supports global organizations on the front lines of the life issue, Meeks says. “While that makes it hard to quantify impact regarding the exact number of lives saved, we know that our messaging strategies save lives every day because the pro-life organizations we work with are happy to share their victories with us regularly.”
After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the nation’s abortion law, Roe v. Wade, last year and gave states the ability to enact their own abortion restrictions, Meeks says Vitae’s work continues to focus on research, education and application, so “we can build a future where abortion is unthinkable.”
Aside from leading Vitae, Meeks also serves as a commissioner on the Missouri Baptist Convention’s (MBC) Christian Life Commission (CLC), which does research and provides information on a variety of ethical topics affecting Christians.
“As commissioners, we strive to stay knowledgeable about current ethical issues and pass that information on to our churches,” Meeks says. “We want the pastors and church members to feel supported and know they have a place get information about tough issues, along with solid and vetted biblically sound resources.”
Her CLC work complements Vitae’s work, she says, because the CLC can help connect those impacted by abortion with local resources.
At both Vitae and the CLC, Meeks says, “we have the opportunity to stand for the Lord and our values, even when it’s uncomfortable, even when it’s hard.” Both roles, plus her over 15 years of leading nonprofits, originated in that missionary’s presentation that still inspires her.
“Something that I remember vividly from the missions presentation was the physical and emotional sacrifices the missionaries had to make in order to serve the Lord in the way they were called,” Meeks says.
“It was that bold submission and sacrifice that they lived out that still inspires me today to live a life of purpose and sometimes uncomfortable truth.”
She says that working in the pro-life movement and caring for others is full of purpose but often leads to difficult conversations. “My faith and missionary mindset carry me through the good days and also the hard days, because spiritual warfare is fierce when working to end abortion in our culture.”
She says a missions emphasis in churches is key to ensuring Christ’s work continues.
“I would encourage churches to remember that when you have missionaries share about their service to the Lord, you are not only gaining potential financial supporters for their ministry but inspiring the next generation of servants for God.”
Missions, she says, includes local as well as international ministry. “Please consider adding a line to your mission budgets for your closest pregnancy center. They need you now, more than ever in this Post-Roe world.”
Meeks also serves as a board member for Abortion Survivors Network, and for Abby Johnson’s organization, called And Then There Were None. She also helps organize the state’s annual Pro-Life Women’s Conference.
Meeks and her husband Matt have five children and are members of Jefferson City’s Freshwater Church, where they teach middle school youth.