History
The American Pregnancy Association was created through the influence of the media which understood the significance of a couple’s dream and turned it into a national story. Through this story, The Dallas Morning News and the Associated Press exposed a tremendous need for an organization that provided education and information along with access to resources related to reproductive and pregnancy health.
The story began in 1995 when Mike and Annie Sheaffer decided to replace their infertility struggles with a dream of growing their family through adoption. The challenges of adoption led the Sheaffers to the innovative concept of broadcasting their adoption dream on two billboards in Dallas, Texas.
Within days, the media had taken the story into homes nationwide. The Sheaffers received over 1,000 calls from women and families from around the country. The majority of calls were not from women who wanted to place their babies for adoption, but rather from women and families who needed pregnancy health information and access to local resources that would assist them with their reproductive and pregnancy needs.
This surprising response revealed the need within the national community for an organization that provided access to information and resources related to reproductive and pregnancy health. The Sheaffers envisioned a national educational phone line that would equip the caller with pregnancy health information as well as provide referrals to resources located within each person’s geographical area. America’s Pregnancy Helpline was founded in 1995, and in its first year 212 people were given such referrals and information.
By 1997, Mr. Sheaffer and the Helpline staff could see that the need was greater than anyone in the organization had envisioned. They needed an executive director, so Phillip B. Imler, Ph.D. was recruited from the healthcare community. During that same year, the organization teamed with the marketing agency of Texas Senator Florence Shapiro creating three public service announcements that would carry the pregnancy health message into homes across the country. By the close of 1997, the number of clients served by the Helpline had grown to over 3,500.
Over the next few years, public service announcements, billboards, word of mouth, phone book directories and the powerful Internet helped the Helpline reach more and more women and families. In 2002, Dr. Imler was appointed President and elected to the Board of Directors. For that year, the Helpline served over 32,000 individuals throughout the United States and around the world with specific reproductive health needs. During its first nine years of service, the Helpline organization served over 147,000 women and families throughout the United States and in 75 countries around the world.
Through examination of pregnancy health statistics and through assessment of the needs of those who were contacting the Helpline, the organization recognized that consumers needed a broader range of services. The Helpline would become a health organization committed to resolving reproductive, pregnancy and sexual health issues for women and families.
In 2003, the Helpline became the American Pregnancy Association, a foundation of health services for the public, including education, research, advocacy, public policy and community awareness. Utilizing a Medical Advisory Committee, and collaborating with other reproductive and pregnancy health organizations, APA is a recognized leader of reproductive and pregnancy health information.