We recently had the chance to connect with Jennifer Shelton and have shared our conversation below.
Good morning Jennifer, we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What are you most proud of building — that nobody sees?
I have a heart to empower, encourage, and undergird other pregnancy center leaders. This work is hard and we need one another. I’m so grateful my Board allows me the bandwidth to use my 22 years of experience in this ministry to pour into others, even if those KPIs don’t show up on my year-end evaluation.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Jennifer Shelton, and I serve as the CEO of Real Options, a Christ-centered pregnancy medical clinic that has been serving North Texas for thirty-seven years. We glorify God by valuing life, sharing truth, and restoring hope — saving lives on earth and for eternity. At Real Options, we walk with women, men, and families facing unplanned pregnancies and provide no-cost medical care, counseling, fatherhood programs, education, and post-abortion healing. Every life that walks through our doors matters deeply to us.
My own story began with the courageous decision of my fourteen-year-old birth mother who chose life for me. Her bravery is the reason I am here today, and it is a driving force behind my passion for protecting life and loving families well. Because Jesus has so generously cared for me, my heart has always been drawn to serve others. That desire eventually led me to Real Options, where I first began as an abstinence educator, helping students make healthy, hope-filled decisions. Over the years, I served in nearly every part of the ministry before stepping into leadership. Each role deepened my conviction that compassionate, truth-filled support can change generations.
Today, Real Options serves families across Allen, Melissa, Dallas, Carrollton, and through our mobile unit, Zoe. Lives are being saved, families strengthened, and many are finding hope in Christ.
Beyond our local clinics, God has opened doors for statewide impact. I helped launch and now serve on the board of Life Ambassadors of Texas, a coalition uniting pregnancy centers across the state to strengthen pro-life legislation, share resources, and support one another in this mission. Together, we have met with state leaders, testified before committees, and advocated for the women and families we serve. In one memorable meeting, a legislator listened to the heartbeat of a baby saved at Real Options and said with tears in his eyes, “This is why every county in Texas needs a pregnancy center.”
We also partner nationally, including developing evangelism training with PreBorn to help centers across the country share hope with greater confidence and compassion.
What makes Real Options unique is our unwavering commitment to love every person who walks through our doors with excellence, integrity, and the truth that their life has immeasurable value. It is the honor of my life to lead this ministry and watch God restore hope, strengthen families, and write stories only He could write.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
As a child, I was incredibly timid. I had very low self-esteem and absolutely hated being in front of people. If you had told younger me that one day I would speak to thousands, testify before legislators, or do live media interviews about something as culturally charged as the issue of life, I would have laughed and then probably hidden behind someone taller.
Everything began to shift in high school when I joined the debate team. It was the first time I realized I actually had a voice — and that my voice carried weight. That experience planted a seed of confidence, but it wasn’t until I learned who I am in Christ that it truly took root. Understanding my worth and identity in Him gave me the courage I never had on my own.
I no longer believe I am the timid girl who needs to stay quiet. God has been incredibly gracious to give me platforms I never would have pursued myself. Today, I regularly speak at events, share the stories of our clients, advocate in legislative settings, and communicate hard truths with compassion — even in conversations that can be tense or hostile. My confidence doesn’t come from my personality or skill set. It comes from knowing the One who called me, equipped me, and asks me simply to be faithful with the voice He gave me.
And I am grateful every day that He did.
When did you stop hiding your pain and start using it as power?
One of the deepest valleys in my life was the season when my husband and I walked through infertility and pregnancy loss. I loved working in the prolife space, but after miscarrying two babies, I honestly wondered if God could still use me here. I came back to work after my second loss feeling empty and unsure if I had anything left to give. How could I help a woman navigate an unplanned pregnancy when my own arms felt so painfully empty?
But God knew better.
On my first day back, a young woman came to our clinic and there was no one else available to see her. I remember whispering a simple prayer, asking the Lord to put me on auto pilot and just speak through me. During our conversation, I asked one of our standard questions about previous abortions. She said yes but insisted it did not bother her. As she spoke, I felt a gentle but persistent nudge from the Lord to share my own story.
I hesitated, but finally I said that I respected her answer, yet I was grieving two miscarriages and wanted her to know that if she ever did need to grieve, Real Options was a safe place to do that.
In that moment, everything changed. She broke down sobbing and showed me a picture of her child the day she aborted him. She said she had never been allowed or given permission to grieve. That day, two mothers who had lost children in different ways but carried the same ache sat together, cried together, prayed together, and began to heal together.
Because she felt seen and understood, she found the strength to choose life for the baby she was carrying. And I found something too. I realized that God was not setting me aside because of my pain. He was asking me to bring that pain with me, to let Him use it as a bridge to reach others who felt alone in theirs.
That moment marked a shift in my life and ministry. I stopped seeing my grief as something to hide and began to see it as something God could redeem. My pain became a place of connection, compassion, and unexpected power. And it became one of the clearest reminders that God can use every part of our story, even the broken pieces, to bring life and hope to someone else.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Where are smart people getting it totally wrong today?
I think a lot of incredibly capable people are getting tripped up by the belief that busyness equals success. Our culture celebrates the packed calendar, the endless to-do list, the feeling of being indispensable. It rewards people who are needed everywhere but present nowhere. I know this because I have fallen into that trap more times than I can count.
For years, I believed that being busy meant I was achieving something meaningful. But in reality, it was slowly eroding my peace and distracting me from the people who mattered most. Success is not measured by how many meetings you attend or how full your calendar looks. In fact, constant busyness is often harmful. It pulls us away from our families, our health, and even our ability to hear from God.
I am learning, slowly but surely, to set my to-do list aside, put my phone down, and actually be present with the people in my home. Leadership is not about running at a frantic pace. It is about stewarding your life well and recognizing that joy is found in the quiet moments, not just in the accolades or KPIs.
Smart people often chase the next accomplishment, but real wisdom is learning to enjoy your life moment by moment. When we choose presence over productivity, we gain something far more valuable than success. We gain a life we can actually savor.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. Are you tap dancing to work? Have you been that level of excited at any point in your career? If so, please tell us about those days.
Absolutely. The last couple of years at Real Options have felt like one long season of tap dancing to work. We are experiencing growth and momentum unlike anything in our thirty-seven year history, and it is an incredible feeling to wake up excited about what each new day might bring.
We are expanding our services, opening new programs, and dreaming up innovative ways to better serve our community. From building out the Real Opportunities Center to strengthening our fatherhood and counseling programs to increasing our presence in new areas, we are watching needs in our community finally meet real solutions. Every time we open a new door for clients, partner with a new church, or launch a new outreach effort, it feels like we are stepping into territory we once only hoped for.
There have also been moments of unbelievable provision that I never want to take for granted. Opportunities like the large state grant we recently pursued felt impossible at first. But the way it came together so quickly and so clearly reminded me that Real Options is stepping into a new level of impact. Even mentioning it now still makes me smile because it represents more clients served, more families strengthened, and more lives saved.
When I think back on my career, I have had many meaningful seasons. But this one is different. I feel energized by the mission, inspired by our team, and deeply motivated by what is happening across our region and state. Seeing Real Options grow, innovate, and meet the needs of our community in fresh ways has made this the most exciting chapter of my career.
I often say that I cannot wait to see what happens next, and I mean it. Coming to work right now feels like stepping onto the front row of something extraordinary.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://friendsofro.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/friendsofro/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-shelton-1012
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/friendsofrotx/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHxxKg2nNpqw8qpSZB5oOXA
