In her new book,
Redeemed
by Grace: A Catholic Women's Journey to Planned Parenthood and Back,
written with the help of Roxane B Salonen, Ramona explained how a good Catholic
girl who once wanted to be a nun, ended up managing a Sherman, Texas Planned
Parenthood clinic. Ultimately, she paused long enough to look past the
rhetoric of a contraceptive/abortive mentality and faced the truth. “Then you
will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:38).
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| Roxane Salonen |
The story begins
with a rooftop promise to always follow God that Ramona made when she was 8
years old. But as a teen, a good-looking young man schmoozed his way into her
life. Looks do not make up for abuse but
it took Ramona time and prayer to escape from the sham of a marriage. She left with her 4-year old daughter and
eventually found her way back into the Catholic faith. Afterwards, true love
with a wonderful young man and a Catholic marriage ensued.
But Ramona was
only halfway to a happy ending at that point.
On the outside, prolife Catholics understandably ask, how did a nice
girl like her end up in the Planned Parenthood clinic? Her journey to the fullness of faith was not
made in a single step. Paychecks, confusion, and excuses slowed the
journey.
Since the clinic
only referred for abortions and handed out contraception, an uniformed Catholic
such as Ramona could convince herself that she did not have blood on her
hands. But there were too many times
when her desire to really help girls conflicted with her job description. Going
into a juvenile detention center was one of those times.
A social worker
had requested a Planned Parenthood representative come talk with the girls in
custody who were tending to get impregnated by older men. “Since we were all about prevention, I
reasoned, if we could just get these young girls on birth control, we would be
decreasing unwanted pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, and abortions,”
Ramona explained. The idea of brownie
points for garnering future clients at the clinic and hmmm, maybe even a raise,
was also on her mind.
Ramona walked
into the juvenile jail encircled in barbed wire. Two female probation officers stood sentinel
in the corners of the room. “I was
struck by the innocent-looking faces of the girls, about a dozen of them ages
thirteen to seventeen,” she recalled, thinking that under slightly different
circumstances, she could have ended up in such a place. Ramona realized that contraception was not
the answer. Those girls were in vicious
cycles of abuse and refused to release the names of the statutory-rapist
fathers. They needed far more than
contraception.
Some were
pregnant or already had babies and all participated in risky behaviors. Ramona taught
them about the reproduction system and STDs. “ I shared statistics such as one
in three women will have an STD by the time she turns twenty-five, to give them
a lasting impression of what they might expect if they continued along their
current path.”
Then, as her
time drew short, Ramona was gripped with the desire to give them more. “While this is all important,” she told them.
“There’s something else I want to share with you today.” Under the gaze of the
stern probation officers Ramona continued. “ I want you to know that God loves
you very much, and more than anything else, he wants you go love yourselves.”
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| Ramona Trevino |
Ramona shared
her own story. In the midst of her discussion, she felt God guide her words
and also realized that birth control was not the solution for these girls. She could tell they had been touched by the
message. One girl even had tears
slipping from her eyes.
Driving home
that day, Ramona’s conscience was awakened. She asked herself how handing out
contraception was helping such girls. It
was a thread that ultimately led to Ramona’s unraveling at Planned Parenthood.
The story of
Ramona’s struggle to reconcile her faith with all aspects of her life is
compelling. Since her escape from Planned Parenthood, Ramona became a public
speaker and prolife advocate. Such a
story as this shows that our prayers against the culture of death are
working. And it is an important reminder that our fight is not against people in the abortion industry, but against the
evil that confuses them.
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For more inspiration, check out Big Hearted: Inspiring Stories From Everyday Families. Your children will laugh while learning big spiritual lessons with Dear God, I Don't Get It! and Dear God, You Can't Be Serious.
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