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PHC crab feed follows year of expansion
crab feed

Quinn Higginbotham loved the Pregnancy Help Center’s inaugural crab feed so much she felt compelled to call in her food review.

“I love to cook and I had to call (to) tell you how surprised I was at the quality of the food,” said Higginbotham, a regular face during the crab feed season. “The marinated crab was consistent, very good, not overpowering so you could taste the crab.

“And the pastas, especially the pesto, were phenomenal. I’m not a big pasta lover, but this was better quality than Italian restaurants I’ve been to.”

With that kind of endorsement, the Pregnancy Help Center had no choice but to make the crab feed an annual event.

And so here they are.

The Pregnancy Help Center’s annual crab feed is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 14, at the Manteca Senior Center.

The evening will begin with wine and cheese tasting from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., and feature silent, live and dessert auctions. Dinner will begin at 6:30. The menu includes salad, pesto and marinara pasta, bread and of course, marinated crab.

Tickets are $50 and can be purchased online at www.omgpregnant.org. For more information, contact 209.640.2171.

Auction items will include: A wine rack that holds 24 bottles of wine with a case of mixed wine; free-standing jewelry box; jewelry, including a Jackie Kennedy limited production bracelet; bistro table; Terra oils; Elvis Presley tribute basket; cash and gift card raffle prizes; and approximately 20 desserts.

Last year, proceeds were used to complete the center’s 33-foot mobile ultrasound unit, which was unveiled in November 2013 and needs only a license to begin servicing south San Joaquin County.

The unit is under the direction of Dr. Linda Bouchard and will service Manteca, Lathrop, Ripon and Escalon.

The Pregnancy Help Center has enjoyed a year of growth and expansion since its last crab feed.

The center changed addresses, moving into a much larger facility at 40-1 North Main St. The center now features private counseling rooms, an office space for the charge nurse, a larger Mommy store, conference room and lending library.

The volunteer-driven center is open Monday and Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Tuesday and Thursday, 1 to 4 p.m. In time, director Janice Laplume hopes to extend the hours to reflect the center’s larger facility and commitment to men and women with unwanted or hardship pregnancies.

Services include 1-on-1 prenatal classes, individual and couple sessions, young men counseling with male advocates, life skill classes, free pregnancy tests, peer counseling, maternity clothes and baby supplies.

In need of donations

and volunteers

The Pregnancy Help Center is in need of large, gently used dark wood bookshelves and children’s books for its lending library. Books can be for children of all ages.

The center is also looking for size 3 to 6 diapers, as well as volunteers, advocates and nurses to fill various positions and responsibilities.

If you’d like to learn more about the Pregnancy Help Center, an open house is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 27, from 4 to 8 p.m. Appetizers and tours of the facility will be available.