The journey of SA Cares for Life began in 1983 when Riekie, as a registered social worker counseled a pregnant, divorced mother of two small children about abortion.  This woman was adamant to go through with an abortion and Riekie decided to be there for her and went with "to hold her hand".  To see the reality of a suction abortion on a 16 week old baby traumatized Riekie to such an extent that she experienced post-traumatic stress syndrome symptoms.  After much intense wrestling with her feelings of guilt, shame and confusion, she realized that Hosea was right in saying: "without knowledge, people perish".

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One morning, she locked herself in her room and prayed: "The blood of this baby in on my hands, I take responsibility, Lord, please forgive me".

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What happened then was life changing.  Riekie experienced God's presence as a thick cloud covering her for a while and when it lifted, so did the heaviness on her heart, and she sensed God's forgiveness and peace in a supernatural way.  Riekie knew she was touched by God and promised that she would be willing, in His time, and His calling to make a difference in this world about abortion.

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Ten years later, in January 1993, Riekie registered her own Private Practice as a social worker with adoptions as a specialized field.  Abba Adoptions was started to offer an adoption service which would be different than the norm.

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She was adamant to trust God for supernatural direction in each placement and envisioned to give birth mothers a choice and a new way of thinking about adoption.  From the start special stories were created, and miracle adoptions took place.

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Over the years God showed Riekie and SA Cares for Life, that children are still vulnerable, not just due to abortions, but also due to disintegrating family life, poverty, teenage pregnancies, and HIV.  Children are left without protection that a family should provide, and the families that are still available are struggling under the weight of the ever increasing amount of orphans needing care.

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For 25 years, SA Cares for Life has been standing in that gap.  We want to support and strengthen the "walls" of protection and build new ones around the children entrusted to us.