A new method of assisting grieving mothers and fathers of aborted babies has given birth to participatory photography. It is both rich in meaning and powerful in its ability to make a difference in the lives it touches.
Angela Forker was a missionary of 15 years when she felt the Lord calling her to become a photographer of newborn babies.
Photographing babies was a positive and whimsical vocation. Still, another diversion in her professional
life lay ahead.
When Angela felt led to photograph a series of women who lost children to abortion, she was at first reluctant. That is until realizing her images brought peace and closure to the gaping emotional wounds inflicted by abortion.
Her first photography series “After the Abortion” was published in March 2019 and since then Angela hasn’t looked back.
Each series is deeply personal, some telling a story of what until that moment had been secret thoughts known only to the grieving parent.
Angela will go to great lengths for parents in order to facilitate their stories in poignant photography. One image required nearly burying a post-abortive mother in dirt. Angela noticed a neighbor’s unfinished hole in their landscaping and knocked on their door. She politely asked to conduct an unusual photo shoot using their incomplete project. The answer was a tenuous yes however the owners maintained a presence at their window to observe the process, a phone at the ready to summon authorities if necessary.
Tori’s story titled “I have a secret” took Angela to the former abortion facility, now a beauty school where Tori’s baby died 20 years earlier. She was pictured, index finger to her lips, underneath the counter where abortion center staff routinely reassembled the broken bodies of unborn babies. Staff made certain the abortionist had removed everything from mothers’ wombs which was necessary to prevent sepsis, a serious life-threatening complication.
You can see more of Angela’s inspired work at her website. She is now using participatory photography to touch millions of lives around the world while sharing a message promoting the sanctity of life.
Would-be participants have flown from California, Alabama and Florida in search of the hope and healing such an experience might provide. Angela’s door is open to all, including mothers and fathers. If you are interested in reaching her you may contact Angela via her website.
Find more about Angela’s ministry and other resources to aid healing after abortion.
Studies actually show “Participatory photography can be a helpful therapeutic intervention for some adults…” This method isn’t for everyone but based upon Angela’s body of work, the evidence speaks for itself.
This out of the box approach to post-abortive healing is another way that caring pro-lifers are working to help damaged mothers and fathers pick up the pieces of their lives.
It is also a living testimony to the resilience of grieving mothers and fathers who seek peace after the pain of abortion.
Offering healing to the brokenhearted,
Brad Mattes,
President, Life Issues Institute
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