by Miranda G. McLeod
Staff Writer
Gideon’s Fire, a pro-Christian organization, is willing to use all legal means necessary to change this country back to what they believe the Founding Fathers — with strong Christian roots — had in mind. And, they have started that fight by protesting the Jacksonville Jaguars Foundation and its support of Planned Parenthood.
In the last two years, Gideon’s Fire has placed three billboards around town reading “Jax Jaguars Foundation Please Stop Funding Planned Parenthood Largest Abortion Chain In USA.”
The organization, along with other pro-life, pro-Christian groups, took the campaign against the foundation took another level in the fall. Gideon’s Fire members posted web logs and put billboards up during home Jaguars games and most recently during the Gator Bowl earlier this month. They want the Jaguars Foundation, which receives $1 million a year from the team to distribute to various Jacksonville programs, to stop its funding of Northeast Florida Planned Parenthood.
Since 1995, the Jaguars Foundation has given more than $9 million worth of grants to various Jacksonville programs. In 2004-2005, the foundation granted Planned Parenthood of Northeast Florida $60,000 to be delegated to FACES Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program and FACES Teen Theater. The programs are peer advocacy groups in which teens discuss sexuality and prevention of AIDS, among other topics.
“We do not support abortion programs,” said Peter Racine, executive director of the Jaguars Foundation. “We support prevention programs.”
Racine said the money given to Planned Parenthood is not for the practice of abortion.
“Our programs are helping teens to make the right choices and ultimately we respect that they are going to make their own choices,” said Racine. “We want them to have the right information no matter what they do.”
But Gideon’s Fire representative Mark Kersey, bishop of the Charismatic Orthodox Church in St. Augustine, says for Planned Parenthood to make a distinction between abortion and prevention programs is laughable, “almost to the point of absurdity.”
Northeast Florida Planned Parenthood CEO Carole Anne Steiger disagrees with Kersey.
“Everyone has the right to their own opinion,” she said .
Steiger says the partnership between the Jaguars Foundation and Planned Parenthood is a wonderful affiliation and the money they designate to the FACES programs goes to those programs.
“These programs are very important,” she said. “They bring legitimacy to the importance of the work we are doing in this community and show how valuable we are in teenage pregnancy prevention.
“We believe life is so precious. We want every life to be celebrated. Through education and prevention services, every child is afford the luxury of being planned, wanted and loved.”
Kersey says Gideon’s Fire’s main issue is Delores Barr Weaver, the founder and CEO of the Jaguars Foundation as well as the co-owner of the Jaguars. Kersey believes her influence on the Jaguars Foundation has an effect on the team’s fan base.
“What (Weaver) wants to do with her money is her own business. But it’s difficult for Jaguars fans who feel like they are being put in an awkward position,” said Kersey.
Members of Gideon’s Fire have put up three billboards through the Daily Billboard company. Martha Weaver, president of Daily Billboard, allowed the message to go up because it is a freedom of speech issue.
Weaver, who is not related to the Jaguars ownership, says she allows some “crazy stuff,” but if it slanders a company, she won’t do it.
“(This is) a controversial matter, but it’s not the first I’ve done,” she said.
In the past, Weaver has permitted a message that supported parents of gays and lesbians, which generated many nasty phone calls to her office. She also permitted the local Democratic Party to put up an anti Pres. Bush message the last time he came to town. Weaver won’t permit personal messages that contain threats, vulgarities or are borderline slander or defamation.
The billboards cost $300 a day.
Kersey said that different individuals within Gideon’s Fire pay for the billboards, but that his church as an entity does not sponsor them.
“We are willing to use all legal means necessary to change this country back to the design of the founding fathers and her (the country’s) Christian roots,” said Kersey.
Kersey stressed that if the Jaguars Foundation discontinued their support of Planned Parenthood, “the whole thing would just go away.”
“We thank them for their support of other organizations — they are great people,” he said. “Just stop using the Jaguars Foundation for this cause.”
The Jaguars Foundation awards grants in two cycles throughout the year. Each organization is sent through the foundation’s review board every cycle.
“We always look at what programs are working. We evaluate grants. The process will continue the same,” said Racine. “Children and teens need quality after-school, summer and other prevention programs to give them a chance to capitalize on opportunities for success in the future that we all want our children to have.”