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No more Welcome boy bands home
Eduardo Verastergui spent years as a heart-throb singer in a boy band. Now he’s growing a serious reputation as an actor - Pages 12-13
Putting lives back together
Bishop Don Sproxton reflects on the journey towards entering the Church - Page 7
Silent gathering maintains the vigil
For post-abortion grief helpers, this job is one day at a time ... By Matthew Biddle ELEVEN o’clock at night. Everyone in the house is fast asleep. The telephone rings. Jenny Shier is slightly startled, but answers the phone with, ‘Hello, this is Jenny speaking’. Nervously, the caller says ‘Hello’, then hangs up. Jenny Shier goes back to sleep with mixed feelings. On the one hand she is disappointed that she was unable to help the caller any further. But on the other hand she is pleased. The woman whose nervous, scared voice she heard has just taken the first courageous step towards healing. This is a common occurrence for Jenny Shier in her work as the state director of Rachel’s Vineyard, a non-profit, volunteer-run organisation that offers grief counselling to women suffering from the trauma of abortion.
Everyone in the house is asleep. Jenny answers the phone. ‘Hello,’ a nervous caller says then hangs up. Mrs Shier often receives telephone calls from women who are desperate for healing, some of whom have suffered from the pain of their untold secret for many years. “It takes a lot of courage because they’ve kept their secret for so long and they are afraid of being judged, but they are not judged at Rachel’s
Rachel’s Vineyard offers help towards healing from the grief of the child that didn’t make it. PHOTO: STOCK IMAGE
Vineyard,” Mrs Shier said. “When people have an abortion they try to put it behind them and try to suppress it. It takes five to 20 years for some people to actually seek help … I’ve even had people who have waited and suffered for 40 years before coming.” Rachel’s Vineyard began in Western Australia in 2009, and currently holds two weekend retreats each year. The retreats are purposely limited to a maximum of five participants. “I find that a small group very quickly bonds and they become very supportive of each other,” Mrs Shier said. “Everybody gets enough time to tell their story, to do their Please turn to Page 8
As participants gather outside an abortion clinic in Rivervale, a placard promotes the 40 Days for Life Campaign currently under way in Perth. Photos - Page 4 PHOTO: MICHAEL CONNELLY
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