Capital Campaign
Join us as we meet increasing demand for abortion-vulnerable women, secure a sustainable base of operations, & expand critical educational programs.
OUR IMPACT
5,931
Abortion-vulnerable women empowered to choose life
7,441
Families stabilized through financial & material assistance
500,000+
Women and teens educated by our fertility and life-affirming programs
OUR MISSION
We promote a culture of life through supportive pregnancy and parenting resources, transformative education, and life-affirming OB/GYN healthcare.
OUR VISION
A society that recognizes the God-given dignity of each human being from conception to natural death and empowers individuals to make informed decisions about their lives.
The Situation Couldn't Be More Urgent
The circumstances our clients face are often incredibly difficult – homelessness, unemployment, an abusive relationship - the list goes on. Many face paralyzing fear and outside coercion. Social influences tell these women that their pregnancies are too difficult to bear given these circumstances – convincing them that abortion is their only answer.
Carrie's story is all too familiar...
Critical Numbers Tell the Story
100%
Poverty
100% of the women we serve are at or below the poverty line. They have little hope for a better future.
73%
Pressure
73% of women who chose abortion did so because they thought they couldn’t afford a baby.
74%
Fear of the Future
74% of women who have had an abortion did so because they believed having a child would interfere with education, work, or the ability to care for dependents.
80%
Single
80% of women seeking our help consider abortion because they are single and feel alone.
58%
Chemical Abortions
Over 50% of all abortions are self-administered chemical abortions done within 10 weeks of gestation.
48%
Fear of Abandonment
48% of women are afraid of being abandoned by their partner.
Demand Has Increased Exponentially
+173%
Increase in Clients Served over last 3 years
+174%
Increase in Ultrasounds performed
+90%
Clients receiving continuing support after baby is born
100%
Clients in need of life-affirming education
466
Babies delivered in 2022
4X
Increase in abortion pill reversals in the past year
We Expanded to Meet Growing Demand
Since the Texas abortion ban, the demand for our services has skyrocketed and we are beyond capacity. We purchased the Marathon Building to ensure that we are always there for every woman in need of support.
Building For Life Campaign
A Comprehensive Plan for Growth
At this critical point in time, we have embarked on a capital campaign to greatly expand our services and impact.
Located in the heart of Austin’s medical district, our new facility—truly a Building for Life—allows us to address three areas of focus in a space that will let us expand our total operational vision and give our doctors next door access to Ascension Seton Medical Center, ensuring convenient and efficient care for the women we serve.
Our goal is to expand our reach to be able to care for twice as many women and we have moved into our new base of operations and plan to add professional staff, expand our proven educational outreach, and advance our unique operating model in partnership with others.
Three Distinct Areas of Focus
1. Life-Saving Service
The acquisition of the Marathon Building enables us to offer the critical services that are so desperately needed, in addition to providing a self-sustaining base of operations for many years to come.
We Now Have:
- A 5x larger, boutique-style material resource center for clients
- A centralized distribution resource center for local churches and community partners
- An In-office laboratory to introduce new medical services and enable more efficient test results
- A State-of-the-art multi-purpose educational space
- 4x as many Client Advocate rooms to empower women to choose life
- Five additional medical exam rooms to better accommodate our patients
- Two 3-D/4-D state-of-the-art sonogram rooms with machines that can detect fetal heartbeats as early as five weeks old
- A Chapel for prayer and fellowship
B. Build for the Future
Our new expanded space will enable us to add the following essential positions to our staff:
- Additional OB/GYN Physician
- Additional Nurse Practioner
- Lactation Specialist
- Mental Health Professional
- Director of Education
- Additional Client Advocates
- Grant Manager
These staffing additions are necessary to handle the number of new clients we’re seeing each week, enhance our clients’ experiences, and reduce the wait time for medical appointments.
2. Life-Saving Education
Misinformation about the reality of life in the womb is pervasive. Women have been misinformed for decades. Our young people have questions and are asking for answers. Through our educational leadership, we are speaking to them honestly and restoring a culture of life.
Major Initiatives for 2023-2024:
A. A Glimpse Inside™
An all-encompassing program is currently available for middle and high school students, with college and beyond in development. A Glimpse Inside is a captivating educational experience that gives young viewers the opportunity to witness life at its earliest stages. This physician-led video series provides a fascinating look at human development within their mother’s womb. A Glimpse Inside is crafted to open minds and transform hearts as they witness the scientific reality of the unborn and learn pro-life answers to tough ethical questions.
B. Interactive Community Engagement
We will expand our community outreach for pregnant and new mothers, continuing our partnership with Ascension Seton Medical Center for birthing and childcare classes, as well as offering new opportunities in our expanded educational space.
C. Strategic and Innovative Marketing Initiatives
We are dedicated to providing the science and truth about life in innovative new ways. We are planning to build a fully equipped multimedia studio for video, podcast, and related content marketing.
3. Life-Saving Unity
The national pro-life movement often operates with a restrictive "silo" mentality, where collaboration takes a backseat. We are steadfastly committed to challenging this norm.
In pursuit of our mission, we have actively forged transformative partnerships with a range of dynamic organizations over the past two years. In 2022, we established national Leadership and Healthcare Advisory Boards with key national leaders.
Major Initiatives for 2023-2024:
- Launching A Glimpse Inside™ across the nation in partnership with Sophia Institute for Teachers, Live Action, and Cardinal Studios.
- Further meeting the practical needs of moms by bringing accessible transportation in cooperation with WorkWheels, a ministry that repairs and provides new and used vehicles to low-income individuals.
- Working with the Knights of Columbus (local and national) to develop community initiatives and resource drives, Aid and Support After Pregnancy (ASAP).
- Partnership with freeultrasound.com for expansion of our chemical abortion educational initiative while laying the groundwork for a responsive telehealth network.
A Unifying Vision
“The only way we’re going to make a real difference is by learning to work together.
Unifying forward-thinking pro-life organizations is a major initiative of the JPII Life Center.”
—Linda Ruf, CEO
Our Leadership Team
Linda Ruf
Chief Executive Officer
Diane Cook
Chief Operating Officer
Valentin Garcia
Practice Manager
VITAE CLINIC MEDICAL STAFF
Dr. Jeremy Kalamarides, DO
Board Certified Obstetrics and Gynecology
Dr. Blake Weidaw, MD
Board Certified Obstetrics and Gynecology
Samantha Padilla, APRN
Family Nurse Practitioner, Certified FertilityCare™ Practitioner
Mary Hansen, RN
Registered Nurse, Lactation Specialist
JPII LIFE CENTER
Sandra Rodriguez
Director of Client Services
Tricia Churchill
Vice President of Marketing and Advancement
Kayla Vanduser
Grant Writer & Outreach Coordinator
Claire Bordelon
Outreach Director
Alex Till
Marketing Director
Atlanta Ruf
Advancement Associate & Database Manager
Natalie Mohr
Director of Education
Roxanna Romero
Spanish Translation Specialist
Giselle Montoya
Client Services Administrator
Gloria Lizcano-Bedford
Client Advocate
Our Boards
JPII LIFE CENTER
Tim Von Dohlen
President
Patricia Von Dohlen
Vice President
Linda Ruf
Chief Executive Officer
Richard Ames
Treasurer
Judy Ames
Secretary
Robert & Claudia Hutton
Past President-Lennar Homes
JPII Life Center Client Advocate
William & Kim Moore
Co-Founder & CEO- Zello
BS, Bio-medical Science
Jay & Kelly Lamy
Managing Principal-Aquila Commercial
MA, Human Development & Family
Dan & Melissa French
Managing Director-ATX Acquisitions
BS, Early Childhood Education
VITAE CLINIC
Kimberley Warfield, MD
President
Rebekah Sperling, MD
Vice President
Lisa Ellis, MD
Secretary-Treasurer
Jeremy Kalamarides, DO
Board Certified OB/GYN
Blake Weidaw, MD
Board Certified OB/GYN
Roger Harden, MD
Board Certified OB/GYN
Chris Dehan, MD
Physician’s Advisor
Jose Martinez, MD
Physician’s Advisor
David Reue, MD
Physician’s Advisor
Kelsey Williamson, MD
Physician’s Advisor
Stuart Wolf, MD
Physician’s Advisor
ADVISORY BOARD
Brett Attebery
President
David Bereit
40 Days for Life
Tim Busch
Napa Institute
Shawn Carney
40 Days for Life
Chuck Donovan
Charlotte Lozier Institute
Marisa Guarino
Guiding Star
Dede Chism
Bella Natural Women’s Clinic
Andrew Hughes
American Cornerstone Institute
Abby Johnson
And Then There Were None
Michael Kenney
Pro-Life Partners Foundation
Greg Sindelar
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Kevin Stuart, PhD
Stumberg Hall
Gary Ingold
CPCI Foundation
Kevin Roberts
Heritage Foundation
Jonathan Saenz
Texas Values
Joe Pojman, PhD
Texas Alliance for Life
Joseph Meaney, PhD
National Catholic Bioethics Center
Majorie Dannenfeiser
Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America
HEALTH ADVISORY BOARD
Stephen Billy
Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America
John F. Brehany, PhD
National Catholic Bioethics Center
Louis Brown
Christ Medicus Foundation
Ben Carson, MD
American Cornerstone Institute
Derry Connolly, PhD
John Paul II the Great University
Robin Goldsmith, MD
St. Giana Clinic
Michael Guarino
IPA Practice Management
Donna Harrison, MD
AAPLOG
Stephen Henley
Legatus
Sue Liebel
Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America
John Meyer
Napa Institute
John Bruchaiski, MD
Tepeyac Family Center
Steven White, MD
CHCLA
Stephen Hilgers, MD
St. JP the Great Society of Procreative Surgeons