WINONA LAKE — On Thursday, April 25, Heartline Pregnancy Center will host its annual Gathering of Hope Banquet at the Winona Heritage Room in Winona Lake. Tickets for the event can be purchased online at www.heartlinepregnancycenter.org/gathering-of-hope or by calling Heartline at (574) 267-5110. 

The keynote speaker will be Melissa Coles. She is the birth mother in the short documentary “I Lived on Parker Avenue.” She will share her story of almost aborting her son, his adoption and the experience of meeting her son 19 years later. Melissa has told her story to audiences around the country.

The emcee for the banquet will be Alan Alderfer of Alderfer Bergen and Company.  He is the co-founder of the KC Riley Kids Fund, which raises money for families whose children are being treated at Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis. He is also on the board of trustees for Kosciusko Community Hospital, is president of the Salvation Army Advisory Board, was a past president of the Warsaw Rotary Club and is a former board member and treasurer of the Kosciusko County Community Foundation.

“The Gathering of Hope Banquet, as always, will be a great evening of celebration,” said Alyx Bates, Heartline’s director of operations. “We’re excited to share the night with the people in our community and report on what our supporters are accomplishing through Heartline.”

Heartline is dedicated to combating generational and situational poverty through a variety of programs, working to empower and equip men and women in the community who are involved with an unplanned pregnancy.

For questions or more information, contact Alyx Bates, director of operations at Heartline Pregnancy Center, by phone at (217) 251-6192 or email [email protected].