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NEWS RELEASE
By: Peter Wells
Dated: Saturday, 10/20/2007
Providence, RI-
Planned Parenthood of Rhode Island (PPRI) held its Annual Celebration on Thursday October 11, 2007 at the Crown Plaza in Warwick, Rhode Island. Hundreds were in attendance to hear remarks from Cecile Richards, President of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund; and to the surprise of many in the audience, a Brown University graduate and daughter of the Late Governor Ann Richards of Texas. President Richards referenced the over 4 million supporters of the work of the federation and the over 5 million clients serviced by Planned Parenthood. Richards also commented on a change in the federation's positions politically. "We identified 23 new supporters in the congress including Senator Harry Reid who stood with Planned Parenthood on recent legislation, Planned Parenthood is finally off the defense", a position that drew a spontaneous round of applause by the audience; and provided the perfect mood for President Richards introduction of the evenings guest speaker, Ann Fessler.
Guest speaker Ann Fessler, author of The Girls Who Went Away: The Hidden Stories of Women Who Surrendered Children for Adoption in the Decades Before Roe vs. Wade, visual artist and professor at Rhode Island School of Design delivered a powerful presentation by sharing some of the stories she collected during her research under the prestigious Radcliff Fellowship in 2002. Ann Fessler traveled the U.S. and interviewed numerous women who were coerced and shamed into relinquishing their babies for adoption in the 50's, 60's and early 70's. Her book reveals the decades of time before sex education, accessible contraception, and legal abortion.
The Annual Celebration is also the perfect time to recognize key individuals and their contribution to the mission and goals of the PPRI. Barbara Dickinson, Chair, Board of Directors welcomed the guests and presented the Board's, Gilman Angier Award to Janet Hirsch for her many years of service on the PPRI Board. PPRI President & CEO Miriam Inocencio presented this years' John Rock Staff Award to Bill King, and later Miriam was the recipient of an award for her thirty years of service to PPRI. The event included a light buffet that provided opportunity to mingle and network with PPRI Leadership, staff and the many supporters of the PPRI mission.
The Providence American had the pleasure to sit and chat with President Richards at the local offices of PPRI and learned a bit about this national leader and a bit of her vision for Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
PA: First of all welcome to Rhode Island President Richards and thank you for taking time out of your schedule to share with our readership. Many of our readers may not know that you are the daughter of the late Governor Ann Richards of Texas. What was that like growing up?
CR: Well if you know my mother you can imagine that she always let us know what she thought about a given situation, I guess we all have some of our mothers personality traits in us.
PA: President Richards, how did you become involved with Planned Parenthood?
CR: Funny that you should ask as we were talking about that very thing. Actually, I as well as 1 out of 4 other woman in America came in contact with Planned Parenthood as a client. I was a Brown University student when I first made contact with Planned Parenthood. In fact its safe to say that Planned Parenthood became my primary care facility during my time here at Brown.
PA: What inspired you to take on the role of President of such a prestigious and indeed world known organization?
CR: The key reason of course is that I believe in providing access to quality health care to all women everywhere. Women everywhere in the world should have access to appropriate health and safety information. Especially information about prevention of unplanned pregnancies, STD prevention and other health related issues. The mission is something that I feel strongly about so when I was faced with the opportunity to reject or accept the position I went for it.
PA: What are some of the key issues facing the Federation in 2008?
CR: Our mission of course is to a provide quality health care for our clients. We provided services to over 5 million people last year that otherwise may not have had access to medical care at all. However we also are committed to providing health and wellness information so that clients may make informed reproductive decisions. So our Educational initiatives are very important to support our health and medical components; and of course advocacy for health programs such as an over the counter contraceptive policy, that is beginning to show some signs of encouragement.
PA: Is there any specific program that has been more effective than some others?
CR: All of our programs have been effective given the climate that we have had to operate in over the years; yet one program that we are very proud of is our Peer Educator Program. They have really been our front line of advocacy and have made a tremendous difference with young people in the schools and in the community. Another program that has shown to be very successful in reaching people who otherwise may not have access to information is the Internet. Our Planned Parenthood on-line has received a phenomenal number of hits and thus provides another important avenue for our clients to reach us. However, I believe that all of our programs are meeting the objectives we have set to assist women deal with the lifelong task of avoiding an unwanted pregnancy or a young man with the information to help him avoid contracting a sexually transmitted disease or passing on a disease.
PA: President Richards on behalf of The Providence American readers thank you for your time and for sharing your very candid responses. We wish you and your organization well.
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