Care Net Pregnancy Resource Center of Chilton County hopes to raise $25,000 at this year’s Annual Dessert Banquet.

The event will take place Thursday, Oct. 8 at Clanton First United Methodist’s Helen Parrish Activity Center from 7-8 p.m.

The Rev. Daniel Wilson of West End Baptist Church will speak, and Signs of Mercy II will perform musical selections.

“This banquet is our single biggest fundraiser of the year,” said Susan Scott of Care Net. “We use it for operating expenses.”

The non-profit organization uses the donations for rent, which totals about $12,000 per year; ultrasound services, which total approximately $10,000 per year; and for an abstinence and adoption program presented through the Chilton County school system.

The program, called “Decisions, Choices and Options,” is presented to local students by Chanel Bingham, who also will speak at Thursday’s banquet. Care Net provides materials and support for the program.

According to Care Net’s web site, the organization’s mission is “to provide compassion, hope and help to women and men facing pregnancy decisions.” The local office has ultrasound equipment available to anyone who has a positive pregnancy test in the center.

“Basically, we want them to know if they are inclined to abort, there’s no rush to do so. They have time to make that decision,” Scott said. “That is a child growing inside them and not just a blob of tissue. Our operating purpose is, ‘Save the mother, save the child,’ and we share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with every woman that comes into the center. We believe if her heart is right that she will make the decision for life for her baby.”

For more information, visit CareNetChilton.org or call (205) 755-6767.