The Pregnancy Resource Center of Salt Lake City celebrates 30 years of serving the community at its annual Banquet for Life.

Salt Lake City, UT— Tens of thousands of women and men have benefitted from the “caring, confidential, and free services” offered by the Pregnancy Resource Center of Salt Lake City (PRC) which was incorporated in 1985 and opened its doors in 1986. This non-profit’s annual fundraising event, the Banquet for Life, will reflect on those 30 years as it “celebrates what God has done and anticipates what He will do” in their future. The event will be held at the Little America Hotel in Salt Lake City on Saturday, October 22. Check-in begins at 5:30, and the banquet itself is from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.

“As we have dug into our own history and archives it has been impressive to see how many clients have been served over three decades, how many individuals have volunteered to help our clients, and how many individuals and organizations have donated to our center so that we can continue to offer services and resources for free,” said Jim Kerr, Executive Director of The Pregnancy Resource Center. “But what is even more impressive than that is the continuity of the love for and care of each one of our clients whether it was in 1986 or in 2016.”

The Pregnancy Resource Center of Salt Lake City has been housed in three different facilities within Salt Lake City over the years as it provided services and resources to women and men confronted with unplanned pregnancy. The center’s current services include pregnancy verification, limited ultrasound exams, options counseling, parenting classes, mentoring, material resources, referrals, post-abortion support, and abstinence education.

The center’s employees and volunteers served 841 new clients in 2015, a number they expect to surpass in 2016, and the Banquet for Life is the primary fundraiser through which the operational costs of the center are provided. Additionally, the center hopes that the funds raised at this event will enable them to reach two important initiatives, both of which have been on the drawing board for years. The first is to provide STD testing for gonorrhea and chlamydia for their clients, and the second is to expand its operational hours.

Kerr explained, “We are able to refer many of our clients to other agencies for STD testing and/or treatment, but came to realize a significant number of our clients do not qualify for those services. By stepping into this gap with testing and treatment solutions we are not only helping these clients but once again providing a service to the broader community.” Kerr continued, “Also, we are aware that many individuals are unable to access our caring, confidential, and free services simply because the hours they workpreventthemfromschedulingappointments. Beingopenbeyond5:00p.m.oronSaturdayswould remedy that problem.”

Along with being updated about the various programs of the center, banquet attendees will learn of the center’s history, be inspired by a video testimonial of a recent client as well as by a live interview of a client from the center’s earliest days, and be informed of the center’s vision for 2017 and beyond.

Interested parties are invited to obtain more information about tickets and table sponsorships for this event by calling the center at 801-994-4982 or by accessing http://pregnancyresource.net/banquet.html.

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Additional Information about the Pregnancy Resource Center of Salt Lake City:

The Pregnancy Resource Center of Salt Lake City, a 501(c)(3) organization is located at 644 South 900 East in Salt Lake City.

Potential clients interested in scheduling an appointment can do so via their website (http://pregnancyresource.net), or by phone (801-363-5433 during office hours or 800-712-4357 after hours).

Current operational hours are as follows; Mondays: 11:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. Tue – Fri: 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

In addition to the 841 new clients served at the center in 2015, Reality Check, the center’s abstinence education program, reached over 2,000 students in public middle and high schools and at other community organizations.