Published: March 18, 2009 08:59 pm      

Rep. Murphey makes donation to pro-life organization

State Rep. Jason Murphey continued his mid-March tradition of presenting a yearly donation of $8,241.92 from his legislative salary to officials from Crossroads, An Open Door For Life Choices Inc., in Guthrie. Crossroads provides faith-based, pro-life counseling and support services to expectant mothers.

Murphey said Oklahoma legislators are some of the highest paid part-time legislators in the nation, making more than double the regional average. He is using the donation to demonstrate that legislators in Oklahoma should not be paid so much more than other legislators in the region, and to illustrate the importance of pro-life services such as Crossroads.

“In order to reform government, we must cut out wasteful state government spending. I hope most would agree that it is not a good practice to pay legislators more than double the regional average,” Murphey said.

Crossroads is a Christian-based nonprofit organization focused on supporting the values of the sanctity of human life, pre-marital abstinence and marital fidelity.

Their services provide limited pregnancy-related medical services, options education, client advocacy, support for prenatal care, parenting education, post-abortion peer counseling and abstinence education.

Working with Focus on the Family, Crossroads recently has been approved for an 80 percent grant for a new ultrasound machine. With the complimentary scans, Crossroads will offer abortion-vulnerable women scans to confirm viable pregnancies. Statistics show that 89 percent of abortion-minded women choose life for their unborn babies after seeing an ultrasound and receiving truthful information about their options.

Focus on the Family’s Option Ultrasound Program is helping to place ultrasounds in 650 Pregnancy Help medical clinics like Crossroads. Crossroads is pleased to offer this life-saving technology in Guthrie.

The donated amount reflects the difference in legislative pay and the per capita pay in Oklahoma at the time Murphey was elected. During his 2006 campaign for office, Murphey promised to continue making the pledge until legislative salaries are adjusted.