Saving Babies in Colorado
Photos by Tom Price
Cañon City Pregnancy Center’s new 3D ultrasound will allow moms and dads to see their babies in the womb.
Colorado is one of the most abortion-friendly states in the country,” stated Stori Thompson, executive director at Cañon City Pregnancy Center (CCPC) in Cañon City, CO. With no gestational age limit on abortions, Colorado is grossly touted as an abortion tourism state. “Many families are encouraged to come get an abortion and take a vacation while they are here.” Stori flatly noted, “There is no vacation in that.”
A Barbaric Act
When Colorado passed the Reproductive Health Equity Act, colloquially called RHEA 2.0, it was the first U.S. state to ban the abortion reversal medication—arguing the medication is not supported by science or clinical standards. Among other things, the bill also restricts advertising by pregnancy resource centers, quashing their First Amendment rights. “Every year, it gets harder and harder for families to be able to choose life,” Stori attested. “When they passed this bill last year making the abortion reversal pill illegal, it showed how anti-choice that movement is.”
In 2023, the first full year after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the Guttmacher Institute reported more than 1 million abortions in the United States, a number not reached in over a decade. Of the reasons cited for the increase, the availability of medication abortions was listed first, making up 63% of those performed.
“They have also built the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings to Baal, which I did not command or speak, nor did it come into My mind.” Jeremiah 19:5
Responding to the Challenge
Jerry Greene has attended Living Stone Calvary Chapel (LSCC) in Cañon City, CO, since the late 1990s. The 79-year-old retired pharmacist has worked closely with the center for the last six years, serving as its board president for the last four. The center actively engages with congressional and state lawmakers, “but it falls on deaf ears,” Jerry explained. “Some legislators are very pro-life, but they are the minority.” Since RHEA has passed, it is illegal for the center to administer abortion pill reversal medication. Now forced to comply, Jerry remarked, “We don’t want our center closed down.”
Pregnancy Center Director Stori Thompson enjoys quality time with the VanGelder children who have benefited from the program. From left to right are Lily, 2; Abigael, 4; and Zaia, 9 months.
With their “hands tied” in this aspect, the center has focused on education and obtaining fetal ultrasound technology. “Living Stone Calvary Chapel is committed to the success of the pregnancy center,” affirmed Senior Pastor Sean Meagher. “Longtime members of our church are on the board, people with great experience and the love of Christ—passionate for human life and pregnant women. With them, the center has made the full transition to being a medical center where we can [soon] offer ultrasounds.”
Convincing Through Ultrasound Technology
Serving Fremont County since 1984, it has been CCPC’s goal to open a medical clinic that provides free ultrasounds. Stori announced, “On our 40th anniversary, that dream is coming true!” Stori said a CCPC nurse is training to provide 3D ultrasounds at the clinic this fall. A contracted mobile company used to do ultrasounds for the pregnancy center but had to stop due to then-in-place COVID restrictions.
“Living Stone Calvary Chapel is committed to the success of the pregnancy center.”
Outgrowing their smaller location just a few years ago, the center’s current location now allows the freedom and space to offer ultrasounds again. “It is imperative we get that service up and running,” Stori acknowledged. For a mother who is abortion-minded, statistics show that if she sees her baby on the ultrasound screen, 80% of the time she will choose life. If the father is in the room, that chance increases to 98%. She emphasized, “And these are parents who were, prior, dead set on abortion.”
Empowering Parents
Chelcie VanGelder enjoys her baby daughter.
The faith-based nonprofit pregnancy center has expanded physically, but they have also increased support in response to the growing deficit of sexual and relationship healthcare services in the region. Working in collaboration with other local agencies to provide holistic care to families, they can extend OB/GYN and sexually transmitted infection care, testing, and treatment, post-abortion support, adoption referrals, and an expansive, 300-course education program—all at no cost to their clients. Through education and support, the organization seeks to empower parents to choose life for their unborn children and become more independent from government aid.
With a male-led mentor, “Dadvocates” is one of Stori’s favorite center programs. “We have about 16 single dads that get the same resources moms do—everything except ‘jelly on the belly’ [ultrasound]—because they are just as important as the mother.” Stori reasoned, “By strengthening that family unit with dads and moms working together—with the help of the community, offering material support every month in diapers, wipes, baby food, formula, clothes, equipment, toys, and furniture—that alleviates the financial strain on families that may make them think they aren’t able to provide for their child. They will know they can do it, and abortion won’t even be on the plate.”
Chelcie found all the resources she needed at CCPC to provide for each of her four children, ages 9 months to 12 years. “There have been so many times when we have needed a baby mattress or bassinet or something, and God is so good to have had it dropped off that morning or the day before.” Chelcie effused, “There is just a constant abundance here; everybody in the community knows this is the place to go.”
In 2019, she began working part-time at the center, finding great nurturance. “It was really the beginning of my walk with Christ,” she said. “The women here prayed for me and were just a great support system for everything I had going on.” Now Chelcie drops in with her children to get the next-sized clothes or just visit. “My daughter Abigael loves to get books,” she proclaimed.
Pregnant with her first child, Vanesa discovered the center nine years ago. “They’ve been a great resource ever since my oldest [was born], providing anything we needed.” Holding her 26-day-old infant, she added, “Now the same for her.”
Equally Yoked in Service
Stori had previously worked five years in public relations for the pregnancy center. Recently taking over as director, she approached Pastor Sean for counsel and prayer. Sean stated: “I reminded her she has the support of our church and board, that whatever she needed, whatever the center needed, we are here.”
With four of Living Stone’s congregants serving on the CCPC board, Stori’s confidence has solidified as she leads the center in its mission. “As the cornerstone of the community, Living Stone is incredibly important to this center, and we are fortunate to partner with them,” declared Stori. “We have Pastor Sean’s full support. If we need prayer, help, or volunteers, he comes through. We can’t be more thankful for his congregation and their prayers.”
For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them. Psalm 139:13 & 16
Counting the Cost
Because current Colorado law does not support pro-life measures, government funding is nonexistent for faith-based clinics that offer life-affirming options. Stori disclosed, “While we do receive some funding from smaller foundational grants, we really exist through the support of our community churches, individuals, and businesses.” Affirming her statement, Sean commented, “Praise God this has been well-supported. This is the Lord’s doing, and He is being glorified through it.”
Whether through her community-involved fundraisers or public relation connections, Stori has rallied numerous local entities to come alongside. However, the additional free medical clinic costs raise CCPC’s annual budget by $40,000, so Stori is pursuing creative fundraising activities. One of their well-attended fundraisers is the annual Community Festival. “It is a kickball tournament with family-friendly and competitive divisions, food, and other games and activities for the kids,” Stori relayed. Teams pay a registration fee to compete, and food is offered for a nominal donation. All funds go to support the center.
Lucy (8) gives newly born sister Eden a kiss while Max (9) and Mom Vanesa look on.
“Stori is a natural-born speaker,” advocated Jerry. “Every three months, she organizes a group to come in on a Saturday to have lunch with the board. She speaks to them [about the center] and shows them around it. It is outstanding what she does.”
Stori hosts these immersive experiences—called “Thankful Gatherings”—to raise awareness of the clinic’s vital role in the community. Although existing donors are invited, Stori encourages them to bring a guest who may not know what goes on inside the center. She maintains that the tour is crucial, so that “people see for themselves exactly what we do. There are always staff and members of the board of directors in attendance to help facilitate conversations and relationships.”
Stori interacts with the children in the center’s large facility where kids can play.
Though Cañon City, the county seat, is relatively small, Fremont County’s population is about 50,000. “Due to our location, however, we serve clients in five different counties, and the surrounding rural mountain residents also come to us,” clarified Stori. “A lot of people say they are pro-life and that this mission is important to them—it is even more impactful if they do [something about] it.”
The Living Hope
Whether abortion is legal or illegal, Stori’s utmost desire is that it would become unthinkable. While her ultimate goal is to “work ourselves out of a job,” the center remains a beacon of hope in the community for families who may not yet be able to see hope themselves. “Jesus shines so brightly in this center, on the faces of our clients and our staff,” Stori shared. “What we do here is so important in order for these babies to have a chance at life.”
This story was first published in Issue 102, Winter 2025. For more information about receiving our print issues, which contain new stories each quarter, email us at contact@calvarymagazine.org.
Thank you for reading! If this story inspired you, we invite you to partner with us in continuing the ministry God started 25 years ago. We provide these stories for free, but rely on donations to cover the costs. Your support will help transform lives through the Gospel, both locally and worldwide, including providing digital access to those without a physical copy, such as missionaries. We appreciate your prayerful consideration in joining us to reach more souls for Jesus.
SPONSOR MESSAGE: Answers in Genesis is a ministry defending Christianity, focusing on defending the book of Genesis and promoting a biblical worldview. They aim to expose the bankruptcy of evolutionary ideas and their connection to a "4.5 billion-year-old" earth.
Learn more at:AnswersBibleCurriculum.com
© 2025 Calvary Chapel Magazine (CCM). All rights reserved. Articles or photographs may not be reproduced without the written permission of CCM. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.® Used by permission.