| About Us | PSC, INC - Pregnancy Support Connection | Waukesha, WI |
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PSC, Inc. (Pregnancy Support Connection) was established in 1985 as the UP Connection by local community leaders and healthcare professionals who saw the need for a pregnancy resource center for at-risk young women/teenage girls who were facing an unplanned, crisis pregnancy in Waukesha County. It was originally named the “UP Connection” to “uplift” and empower young women to make healthier choices and sound decisions for themselves and their newborns. From its humble beginnings as the UP Connection, operating out of a spare office at a local hospital, the Pregnancy Support Connection has grown to serve more than 900 young women/teenage girls annually in Waukesha and Milwaukee Counties. Providing vital referrals and connections to outside community resources has remained a core component of the Pregnancy Support Connection’s services. As a way to meet the growing needs of its client base, the agency began offering individualized prenatal and parenting education, adoption information/referral assistance, childbirth education classes, and comprehensive case management services; including follow-up home visits for continued support and education to new parents up to 3 months post-partum. Bi-lingual services were added in 2002. The Pregnancy Resource Hotline was an early addition to the agency as a way to offer anonymous, non-judgmental, and confidential pregnancy information, critical to callers experiencing an unplanned pregnancy. Many times this is the very first call made by a young, scared, expectant mother looking for assistance. The caller is often frantic and panic-stricken. “I’m 15 years old, I think I’m pregnant, I can’t talk to anyone, what do I do?” Many Pregnancy Support Connection clients seeking assistance have come from home situations of abuse, neglect, poverty or other extenuating circumstances. Over 80% of these young women have experienced childhood sexual abuse. In 2003, after recognizing an on-going need for safe housing for many of its clients, the Pregnancy Support Connection opened The Linden Cherish Place, a transitional living, maternity home for first-time young adult mothers, ages 18-21 and their infants. Intensive life-skills coaching, mentoring, parenting education, and counseling are provided for up to 24 months to help break the cycle of poverty and abuse, and to provide practical help with education and employment goals. While at Linden Cherish, clients are required to be attending school and/or be employed part-time. They contribute 30% of their income toward living expenses/rent. Once residents have “graduated” from Linden Cherish, they are able to transition to independent living at one of the single family apartments available through the Pregnancy Support Connection’s Transitional Living program. This program, in collaboration with the Waukesha Housing Authority, extends for an additional 24 months with monthly case management services, mentoring, on-going parenting education, and referrals to community resources. It was decided in 2007 that the agency should change its name to the Pregnancy Support Connection to more clearly identify the services offered. Today, the Pregnancy Support Connection is a dynamic, comprehensive human service organization providing vital programs that encourage all young women to overcome their physical, intellectual and emotional challenges in order to provide a positive environment for themselves and their babies. To view our 2009 Form 990-EZ, please click here  |