By Erin Malcolm
Commuters who frequent Meridian Road through the heart of Falcon might have noticed that the familiar, bold-block-letter sign that read “GUNS” on the red-roofed building behind McDonald’s had been taken down in mid-October, replaced by a new sign that reads, “Colorado Springs Pregnancy Center.”
On Oct. 23, a crowd of about 150 people gathered in the parking lot of the former Colorado Springs Gun & Ammo store along Meridian Road for a ribbon cutting ceremony and open house to honor the building’s new occupant, Life Network’s newest pregnancy center.
Life Network chief executive officer and president, Rich Bennett, jokingly said during his ceremony speech, “I’m not aware of many former gun shops that have turned into pregnancy centers, but that’s what we have here today.”
Board members; clergy members; government officials including representatives from Rep. Doug Lamborn’s office; Jeff Crank, pro-life candidate running for the U.S. Congressional District 5 seat and former Life Network board member; Jarvis Caldwell, pro-life candidate running for the District 20 State House seat; along with representatives from construction companies that donated and worked on the project, including Hammers Construction, City Glass, Advantage Heating and Cooling, and Quality Electric; and other supporters were on hand for the ribbon cutting ceremony commemorating the opening of the organization’s fourth pregnancy center in El Paso County.
Event attendees were invited inside the center for tours guided by Life Network staff. They visited the motherhood and fatherhood coaching and counseling rooms where parents can receive education and guidance, the ultrasound rooms (one of the two designated ultrasound rooms is ready for service, and the second is on standby for whenever patient numbers increase) and the baby boutique chock-full of new and like-new resources that have been donated for parents to take home.
In the baby boutique, Liz Martin, a Life Network staff member and Falcon resident since 1994, talked about her hopes for how the pregnancy center will impact her community. As the parenting program assistant director (just one of five staff positions that will regularly be on-site at the pregnancy center in Falcon), Martin said, “I’m so excited! I love that we’re bringing something that is definitely a necessity, something that will make a difference in the lives of families out here.” As a Falcon resident, she said she thinks that relieving the burden of having to drive from eastern El Paso County to Colorado Springs for medical care will be a major perk of the pregnancy center location in Falcon.
The Life Network team initially hoped to open the center on the day of the event, but the official opening date was pushed back because of delayed “last minute details” including decor, said Christine Reyes, chief operations officer. Bennett said he anticipated the actual opening date would be sometime at the end of October.
Adjoining the pregnancy center is the main level Life Network family thrift store and upstairs administrative department, both of which do not have scheduled opening dates because of the uncertainty of construction and inspection timelines. Bennett said the administrative department should be operational in early 2025 and the thrift store even sooner.
Referencing the thrift store, Bennett said, “We have to pass a couple milestones first, but the goal is (to open) by the end of November.”
Rich Bennett, Life Network chief executive officer and president, says a prayer before the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new pregnancy center in Falcon.
CEO Rich Bennett (left) invited Ta and Stan Phillips, financial supporters of the New Life Network Falcon location, to be part of the ribbon cutting team.
Liz Martin, the parenting program assistant director, showed off the baby boutique, which gathers various items for new parents.
