Teen’s book shares story of an unborn life saved

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A book titled “Miracle on Happy Joe Drive, the Story of Joshua’s Save,” made its debut last month. Baby Joshua Taylor, who is now 10, was the first life “saved” because of the efforts of the Women’s Choice Center in Bettendorf to encourage his mother to choose life. Pictured, from left: James Taylor, Joshua’s dad; Joshua; Kathryn Bohn of the Life & Family Educational Trust that oversees the pro-life facility; Helena Hansen, the book’s author; and Violet Taylor, Joshua’s mom.

To mark the 10th anniversary of the Women’s Choice Center, a pro-life facility in Bettendorf, two youths worked together to publish “Miracle on Happy Joe Drive – the Story of Joshua’s Save.”
Helena Hansen, 15, wrote about Joshua Taylor, whose story has come to be called the first of hundreds of “Miracles on Happy Joe Drive.” His life is considered to be the first one saved by the pro-life facility.
Gabrielle Schadt, 12, illustrated Helena’s book, which was unveiled at a benefit concert last month in Davenport.
Both girls have grown up around the Women’s Choice Center, where Joshua’s story is a foundational piece of the organization’s history. His story spoke powerfully to them about the value of life at its earliest stages.
“It was so inspiring to hear Joshua and his parents tell of how close Joshua came to not being born. Seeing how much they love him today shows how making big decisions out of fear can lead to big mistakes,” said Helena, who interviewed the family.
Joshua’s mother, Violet Taylor, was violently ill with morning sickness and feeling desperate when she came to the Women’s Choice Center. She was 10 minutes from leaving for an appointment in Iowa City for a second-trimester abortion when Joshua’s father brought her to the Women’s Choice Center, then housed in temporary offices in a trailer.
After viewing her unborn child via a limited obstetric ultrasound, Violet’s heart and Joshua’s future changed forever. “I now can’t imagine life without Joshua.  Having an unplanned pregnancy is so frightening. But I’m so glad I didn’t follow my first instinct,” Violet Taylor said. Joshua’s father, James, who brought Violet to the Women’s Choice Center in hopes of getting information that would prompt her to re-consider a decision to abort, calls his son “a truly remarkable child, who has a sense of purpose far beyond his years.”
“Miracle on Happy Joe Drive” is the latest in A Book by Me series, a vehicle encouraging children to document history in their own words. A Book by Me is the brainchild of Deb Bowen of Aledo, Ill.
Bowen said, “It is such a privilege to be able to help these young people bring their stories to life in print. Joshua’s story is powerful in its own right, but reading it from the perspective of a child makes it even more impactful. That’s what the Book by Me concept is all about.”
To learn more about Miracle on Happy Joe Drive and the Book by Me collection, visit www.abookbyme.com.

Women’s Choice Center
The Women’s Choice Center is a nonprofit ministry that offers free services to women including pregnancy testing, limited obstetric ultrasound and options for counseling. Post-abortion counseling is also available to men and women. In 2011, the center served 687 clients.


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