Hi my sweets, this is a really important email. All-Options is in a crisis situation right now - if they don’t raise enough money, they’ll be forced to close in June. That’s in only 3 months. Please believe me when I say that of all the places to put our money right now, All-Options is the best of the best. They are an essential resource for pregnant people and people who have abortions - no one else does what they do at the scale they do it. We need them, especially now.
Who they are:
All-Options uses direct service and social change strategies to promote unconditional, judgment-free support for people in all of their decisions, feelings, and experiences with pregnancy, parenting, abortion, and adoption. They imagine a future where all people are supported in making the reproductive decisions that are best for their lives, without coercion or limitation, and where the dignity of lived experiences is affirmed and honored. They center those most impacted by reproductive injustices in their programs, movement-building work, and investment in social change issues. This means centering people who are trans and gender expansive, women of color, youth, people living in poverty, immigrants and people who are undocumented, non-English speakers, people with disabilities, queer and LGBTQIA people, and people living at the intersections of all of these.
What they do:
The All-Options Talkline offers free peer counseling to callers from anywhere in the US or Canada. Simply call 1-888-493-0092 for open-hearted support regarding abortion, adoption, infertility, parenting, and pregnancy loss. The All-Options Talkline is a place where all options, decisions, experiences, and feelings are welcomed and respected, at any point in your journey
The Faith Aloud clergy counseling line offers spiritual and religious support through abortion or pregnancy experiences. Trained clergy from diverse faith background are available at 1-888-717-5010.
Their Pregnancy Options Workshops support providers, advocates, and students in exploring their values, unpacking biases, and building skills for judgment-free counseling and all-options referrals.
The All-Options Pregnancy Resource Center provides free pregnancy tests, peer counseling, condoms, diapers, baby clothes, abortion funding, and referrals to all kinds of local resources in Bloomington, Indiana.
For some perspective: there are over 3,000 fake clinics (crisis pregnancy centers) in the US. There is only one All-Options. Let’s show up for them! Read on for how.
Option 1 to help
Make a donation directly to All-Options and get a present in the mail!
Fellow authors Renee Bracey Sherman, Regina Mahone, Sabia Wade, and Gretchen Sisson are offering signed copies of their incredible books. And I’m offering my homemade brown butter sea salt caramels!
If you donate $75, you’ll receive a batch of caramels, made by me
If you donate $100, you’ll receive a signed copy of your choice of:
BIRTHING LIBERATION: How Reproductive Justice Can Set Us Free by Sabia Wade
LIBERATING ABORTION: Claiming Our History, Sharing Our Stories, and Building the Reproductive Future We Deserve by Renee Bracey Sherman & Regina Mahone
RELINQUISHED: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood by Gretchen Sisson
If you donate $150 or more, you’ll receive a signed copy of all three books
And if you donate $200 or more, you’ll receive all three books and my caramels
I’ve read all of these books, y’all, and this is a really sweet deal. Speaking of sweet:
Once you make your donation, please submit your receipt and mailing info via this form!
If you’re not able to contribute money right now, that’s absolutely ok! Please consider supporting the effort in other ways - maybe forward this email to five friends, talk to two people IRL about what All-Options does, or share the fundraiser to your IG stories.
Option 2 to help
Help me pull off a giant decentralized bake sale.
I want there to be a way for you to be involved no matter where you are - I’m envisioning lots and lots of participants in lots and lots of places. I’m still figuring out how this is going to work, and I’d love your input!
Some ideas I have:
The traditional bake sale - making treats for people who donate. And this doesn’t have to be setting up a table somewhere - baking for friends/family/neighbors can work just as well.
A digital download compilation of my/your submitted recipes (this is my favorite idea so far!)
A live or recorded virtual bake-along
Cake decorating/other workshops
Cute merch
Some ideas for how to help me get this off the ground:
Help me come up with a name (Becca’s Big Birthday Bake Sale for ‘Bortion, anyone?)
Recruit participants
Take charge of coordinating on the ground efforts in your city/town
Share your best family recipes
Make graphics/other materials
Help with promo/press
Share your wisdom/best practices with me
Whatever else you can think of!
If you’re interested in being involved in any capacity, please reply to this email with your name and email address (and anything else you want to tell me!), or drop it in my contact form. I’ll send out an email with more info ASAP. And thank you to each of y’all who have already sent me your email address, I’ll be in touch soon!
A note on timing: This needs to happen pretty fast - I’m tentatively aiming for the first week of April. Thank you in advance for everything <3.
Love,
Becca
I made a small donation of $10. I’m sorry for not being able to give more. But I will bookmark them for future donations.
Love this! Donated! Thank you for informing people about this and thank you for the little treats!