Belvie
Ballard-Hilyard: Her gift is good for others
By NADIA MARIA SMITH
CS&T Staff Writer
Belvie Ballard-Hilyard rolls up her sleeves and does what it takes to
help save lives, and for that she was named Counselor of the Year by Real
Alternatives.
Real Alternatives is a non-profit organization in Pennsylvania whose mission
is to provide life-affirming alternatives to abortion for women in crisis
pregnancies.
“At 10 years old, I realized that my gift from God was to help people
and really make a difference in their lives,” said Ballard-Hilyard.
“I wanted to be a social worker because I knew that was what they
did.”
She began working as a social worker for Catholic Social Services 22 years
ago, and she has never looked back. Today she is program coordinator for
the senior drop-in center at the Delaware County Family Service Center
of Catholic Social Services and a case manager for CSS’ crisis pregnancy
program.
Real Alternatives funds several pregnancy and parenting services provided
by CSS — services that have helped Ballard-Hilyard provide
assistance that has meant the difference between life and death.
Take Jane [not her real name] a 20-year-old woman who was referred to
Ballard-Hilyard by Real Alternative’s national crisis pregnancy
hotline.
When Ballard-Hilyard met Jane, she was about eight weeks pregnant and
unemployed, and she didn’t have medical insurance. She was also
alone: Her boyfriend had left her when he found out she was pregnant.
Jane did not think she could afford to have the baby or care for it properly,
but Ballard-Hilyard told her about the services and support she could
get.
With further counseling, and after receiving the material assistance she
needed, Jane decided that she didn’t want to have an abortion or
give up her child for adoption. She wanted to keep her baby.
“When they come to CSS, they come with low self-esteems …,”
Ballard-Hilyard said. “We build their self-esteem and let them know
that they can do it, with our help. Together, we develop a plan and work
with them to achieve the goal, which is raising that child.”
That makes all the difference in the lives of the women she counsels.
For instance, Jane received prenatal care, postnatal care, financial support
and even an education. She is now the self-sufficient mother of a beautiful
little girl, and she credits Ballard-Hilyard for her achievement.
“I have always thrived on helping others,” Ballardy-Hilyard
said. “At age 10, I started working with an elderly person at her
home. I would go and watch her while her daughter and son-in-law went
out. I made sure she ate, cleaned the dishes for her, sat and talked with
her. … I realized that was my gift from God.”
She continues to share that gift with those in her care.
“Her personal sense of mission matches well with our agency’s
mission, which is to continue the work of Jesus by affirming, assisting
and advocating for individuals, families, and communities,” said
Gail McCoach, CSS’ program manager and Ballard-Hilyard’s supervisor.
“She will do what ever it takes to help a client.”
CS&T staff writer Nadia Maria Smith may be reached at npozo@adphila.org
or (215) 965-4614.