Third Box San Francisco Bay Area

Each year, 2.7 million American women experience an unintended pregnancy. Studies show that 75% of them know what they will do. The current landscape offers either organizations that assist women to terminate their pregnancies or organizations that assist in continuing their pregnancies. But one in four women in America who is experiencing an unintended pregnancy is truly unsure of what to do. That’s over 650,000 women each year. Who is serving the unsure woman? Her needs are very specific and very different from the woman who knows what she will do.

Third Box exists to serve that woman who is unsure. We are the only organization in the United States that commissioned national research to find out her distinct needs. Our role is to help each woman unearth her personal values and beliefs so they can be part of her decision making process. After her decision, and no matter what choice she makes, we offer ongoing emotional support for the coming year through our team of professional counselors, made up of licensed clinicians and master's degreed interns. All of our services are free.

Americans disagree about many things. But the Golden Rule, or the Ethic of Reciprocity, is found in nearly every ethical and faith tradition. It’s something we can all agree on. What would happen if we applied the Golden Rule to one of today’s most polarized social issues?

Our service model asks Americans to think beyond the two-box political paradigm. We are an organization that believes in and operates by a consistent ethic of nonviolence. The extreme of one side wants to totally ignore morality and focus strictly on abortion as part of “women’s reproductive health.” Meanwhile, the extreme of the other side wants to focus strictly on the morality of taking a life. Our experience, and the research tells us, that most women are considering both; and at Third Box, they have the opportunity and openness to process both. We are a faith-based organization that is deeply committed to loving our neighbor as ourselves. Our society can and should be delighted to meet the most pressing needs of the woman who is unsure.