POPLAR BLUFF – When a woman finds herself unexpectedly pregnant, she can be overwhelmed by many emotions: shock, fear, despair. She may face pressure to abort. In the midst of it all, she desires peace, safety, and above all, hope.
Pregnancy resource centers (PRCs) across the country reach out to women in these situations. They provide hope to hundreds and thousands of women each year. Many people work behind the scenes for months to make opening a PRC possible.
In Poplar Bluff, Mo., a team of people, including leaders from from several Missouri Baptist churches, have come together to start a new PRC. Jim Gentry and Brad Mason are two of the workers most directly involved.
Gentry has had a vision for starting a PRC since 2016. After touring Aspire Women’s Center in Sikeston, Mo., he recognized the need for a similar ministry in Poplar Bluff. He began discussing the possibility of starting one with Adam Fortenberry, associate pastor of Grace and Truth Fellowship.
In the fall of 2025, Gentry met Brad Mason, who had previous experience starting a PRC in Florida. Along with Joe Crites, pastor of Grace and Truth Fellowship, and his wife Linda, they began forming plans to open a new PRC. After months of work and gathering resources, the members of their steering committee are currently in the process of acquiring paperwork to become a 501(c)(3). They are hoping to open the PRC, which will be named Restoring Hope Pregnancy Center, in the fall of 2026.
Mason, with his prior experience with PRCs, helped solidify the mission of Restoring Hope. He made it clear that Restoring Hope exists to reach out to not just women but also their families as well. “We talked about the fact that there are certain pregnancy centers that all they want to do is just dissuade people from having an abortion. And yes, that’s one approach, but at the same time the model that I’ve seen is to help all women and all families. Obviously the first thing we think of is the pregnant woman and the child they’re carrying, but at the same time there’s a whole family dynamic there….The better we do at addressing the entire family, I think the better it is for everyone involved, and the less likely they are to come back to this situation and have this repeated.” He expressed a desire to talk to the women and their families and show them what Christian family values look like, saying that is what makes a strong family possible.
According to Gentry, the plan to advertise Restoring Hope is largely through word of mouth and referrals. “Part of the process we’ve gone through is to do a survey of the community and what is being offered,” he said, referring to local resources already available for expectant mothers in need. “There are organizations in town that are helping pregnant women—doctors, OB-GYNs, even places like food banks and things like that.” He explained how the people serving in those positions can refer women over to Restoring Hope.
Gentry and the others see a significant need for a PRC in the local high schools. “Every year, there are teenage girls at the area high schools that unfortunately end up pregnant and don’t know where to turn,” he explained, “so as we develop relationships with school counselors, we can develop relationships as well with other women’s organizations that are already up and running. Those organizations wouldn’t necessarily serve girls in that situation, but they would be able to refer them to us.”
The Restoring Hope team is developing a website and a social media presence. In the age of the internet, most people are likely to find resources through a web search. “We want to make sure that people know that we’re there, and if they’re searching for something, we want to make it very easy for them to find us,” Gentry said.
By starting this PRC in Poplar Bluff, Gentry and the others who work with him desire to give glory to God and bring hope to families as they fulfill their purpose statement: “To honor the sanctity of every human life by providing support, education, and Christ-centered hope to women, men, and families facing pregnancy-related decisions within our community.”
