Subject: We Need Your Support
Dear Friends,
You need to know the facts.
We are in urgent need of funds. We have recently gained access to a massive database of records from a national cohort of millions of women spanning 20 years. This data may verify our earlier studies linking abortion to higher rates of suicide, depression, substance abuse, and other mental and physical health problems. It may also help us shed light on other ways that abortion puts women at risk.
We have never had access to data of such a high level of quality. And the scope of what we will be able to do with this information is unprecedented.
However, the fees we've had to pay to extract and prepare the data have already cost us around $40,000. This data is much more expensive than any we have previously used. But it is worth it. So we bit the bullet and dipped into our scant cash reserves to move forward on this project.
Unfortunately, these rising costs have coincided with a lower income. This is partly due to slower book sales: Making Abortion Rare, Forbidden Grief, and The Jericho Plan are relatively old titles now. There are enough copies out there that pro-lifers are more often sharing than buying them.
The reason we could afford to go over budget is because we have some cash reserves which we have saved from your past generosity. But without your renewed support, those reserves may soon be gone.
But I remain confident in God's Providence. People like you have always been there when we have needed you.
For example, in 1988, I founded the Elliot Institute to undertake our first random survey of 5,000 women. I had no assets, no donor base. I managed to raise a couple thousand dollars from the donations of a few friends and family. It was just enough to cover postage, printing, and the purchase of the national random mailing list used in the survey. Everything else I did on a volunteer basis, in the evenings and weekends ... juggled between my "regular" job and my family.
The result was a peer-reviewed study demonstrating a four-times higher rate of substance abuse after abortion among women who had no prior history of substance abuse.
Since then we have produced over a dozen peer-reviewed studies, countless books, fact sheets, web pages and other materials on the epidemic of dangerous, unwanted, coerced and forced abortions; the risks of abortion; and the need for post-abortion healing. And we are still here ... but only due to the generosity of people like you.
God blessed that humble beginning with a humble number of donors--just a few hundred. But with you as one of them, that's enough.
We are content being a small organization. We have only three staff members, including myself. But that has proven to be enough to make our own unique and vital contributions to both the post-abortion movement and to pro-life efforts--both nationally and internationally. And with your help, we will continue to do the type of research and education that no one else is doing.
We had a shortfall for last year because I chose to push forward on an expensive but very important research project, trusting the funding of it to Providence. That is still my position.
God has already provided the money to meet our shortfall and to fund our expenses next year. The tricky part is that He's just deposited the funds into your bank account for safekeeping!
So, if God has blessed you with some of His charitable dollars, please prayerfully consider making an extra contribution. We could really use it. And I promise we will use it well.
Can you give $50, $100, $500, $1,000 or even $5,000? Whatever the amount, because we have a small budget and a small donor base, it will go far in making a difference.
Thank you for your prayers and support. May God bless you and your families this Thanksgiving.
Yours for Life in Christ,
David C. Reardon, Ph.D.
Director
To make a donation:
1. Click here or
2. Call 1-888-412-2676 or
3. Send your gift to the Elliot Institute, PO Box 7348, Springfield, IL 62791.
Thank you!
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