When a teenager gets pregnant...

SALT LAKE CITY — On February 15, 1997, Father Kenneth Vialpando, then pastor of Saint Pius X Parish in Moab and now pastor of Saint Joseph Parish in Ogden, was surprised with a Valentine’s Day present as he went outside to his car for something he needed. He noticed a bundle wrapped with a motel towel and a plastic bag on the rectory steps. People usually left clothes and food there, so he thought about taking it in with him the next morning. But his curiosity was stronger than the coldness of that night. He first opened the plastic bag and there were a baby bottle and some formula. He confirmed his suspicions when he unwrapped the motel towel and found a naked day-old baby boy with a cut and knotted umbilical cord.

Fr. Vialpando nicknamed the baby "Valentino," because he was born on Valentine’s Day. And he said he thinks the parents of the baby were teenagers due to a police report of a local doctor saying he had a telephone call from a young man saying his girlfriend had had a baby in a motel room.

Even though "Valentino" is part of an extraordinary story, teenage pregnancy is not uncommon. According to National Vital Statistics Reports, one third of girls in the United States get pregnant before age 20.

The pregnancy rate for girls between ages 15 and 19 had been steadily declining since 1991 but increased in 2006. It is still unknown whether this is a sign of a new tendency or a one time anomaly; the truth is that pregnancy resource centers have noticed a recent change. "The number of positive pregnancy tests has increased in the last month," said Sherry Harris, treasurer for Birthright, an organization that helps and supports women with unplanned pregnancies.

Harris said that around 75 percent of the women Birthright assists are Hispanic and that approximately 40 percent of them are undocumented. She added that the organization tries to persuade women not to have an abortion and offers adoption as an alternative. However, "Most of the girls keep them."

Harris also said she found it strange that a lot of the teenagers were afraid to talk to their parents. "We tell them, ‘bring them in and we’ll referee.’" But they almost never use this help.

For Aidaluz Carreño, who at 20 has a four year-old daughter and a two year-old son, it was terrifying to give her parents the news of her pregnancy, especially to her father because "I had always been his favorite." Carreño was not yet 16 when she was two months pregnant and couldn’t deny it when her suspecting mother asked her if she had had her period. "I said no with my head and started crying," she said. By then, Carreño had taken three pregnancy tests, all of them with positive results. "I couldn’t believe it."

She said talking about her pregnancy was hard for her, and talking about sex with her parents was nearly impossible. She also said she does not blame her parents for her decision, but that things might have been different if they would have been more open about the subject. "I know… I could have investigated, asked someone older," she said.

Christopher Long, assistant principal and deacon of students at Juan Diego Catholic High School, said that "a better educated person can make better decisions" and that contrary to the perception of many, sex education in Catholic schools is "probably more open and thorough than in public schools because they are not bound by state statutes or laws."

Students at Juan Diego get an education on sexually transmitted infections, procreation, and on the psychological and emotional damage teenagers can suffer when they have premarital sex. Still, he added that "knowledge is power, but it does not change behavior" and the best tool a teenager can have is "a healthy relationship with an adult who is a good role model."

Religion is also a powerful tool in delaying teenagers from having sex. A 2003 study revealed that teenagers (especially girls) who pray, believe religion is important, go to church frequently, and participate in youth groups have less probability of having sex before marriage than less religious teenagers.

"When a teenager, or anyone at any age, has a spiritual structure, it helps him or her have a clearer life project, and he or she is more conscious and responsible or his or her actions," said Father Omar Ontiveros, parochial vicar for the Cathedral of the Madeleine.

To wait until marriage is possible, but there are "a lot of pressures and influences, and there is a lot of temptation at school, on television," said Carreño.

This is why Fr. Ontiveros recommends "to value the gift of sexuality that comes from God and… to place their energy on something transcendental."

The Church promotes abstinence but does not condemn a pregnancy outside of marriage. "There is life from the moment of conception," said Fr. Ontiveros. He added that those who go through an unplanned pregnancy have more options than abortion, that they can, for example, choose adoption, "a step you must take with moral responsibility."

The doctors who took care of "Valentino" after Fr. Vialpando left him at the hospital, were afraid the baby would need blood transfusions due to a significant amount of bleeding from the umbilical cord. Fortunately, "Valentino" recuperated and was placed with a couple that had been on the adoption waiting list for 10 years.

In May 2001, a statewide law called Safe-haven went into effect to avoid having parents risk their children’s lives when abandoning them. Under this law, the father or mother can take their child to any Utah hospital and hand it to a hospital worker without being asked any questions. The child has to be unharmed and less than three days old.

However, Carreño said the best decision she could have made was to keep her children although she is aware that her situation would be much harder without the support of her parents, parents-in-law, and her now husband. "I love being with my kids. I am proud to see I could take the responsibility and that I can support them without them missing anything. Not everyone tries to make things work."

She also said that even though she wishes she had waited until she was older, "Now I regret I ever regretted it."