A Dec. 4 article from the Archdiocese of San Francisco reports a rise in women seeking help through the diocese’s pro-life Gabriel Project, with demand having doubled, according to Maria Martinez-Mont, the initiative’s coordinator.
The Gabriel Project provides emotional, spiritual, and practical support to pregnant mothers. It offers everything from diapers, strollers, and car seats to occasional rental assistance. Martinez-Mont says volunteers are now assisting 15–20 women each month, at any given time of the year.
Parishes across the archdiocese are finding creative ways to support mothers through this project. While each parish team has its own approach, all follow the program’s guidelines and operate under both their pastor and the archdiocese. Some communities maintain baby-supply “closets” or host regular collections and drives. Others promote the ministry through banners, websites, and parish bulletins. At St. Peter in San Francisco, volunteers have even created a WhatsApp community to connect new moms with more experienced ones and often welcome women by taking them out for a meal.
The article notes a rise this year in teenagers turning to the Gabriel Project for financial and emotional support. Still, most women seeking assistance are in their 20s, said longtime volunteer Rafaela Pinto.
She added that the ministry seeks to help the women come to terms with having a baby at a young age and to help them feel less abandoned and alone.
“We help them to feel their value, their dignity as a woman,” Pinto said. “We talk about the blessing of the child, a blessing from God.”
Some women remain connected to the Gabriel Project long after their baby is born, while others only reach out briefly before moving on, Martinez-Mont said.
Martinez-Mont emphasized that there is no requirement that women seeking assistance need to be Catholic or belong to a faith tradition. In some cases, however, a Gabriel volunteer is able to help a mother reconnect with a parish priest to arrange her baby’s baptism or her marriage to the child’s father. Others feel inspired to learn more about their faith, and some families have enrolled older children in faith formation, so they can receive their first Communion.
“What is most rewarding is when you are able to touch them spiritually, that a seed is planted no matter what trouble they get in, they have an anchor,” Martinez-Mont said. “If you can give them the spiritual side that can be with them forever.”
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