There was nothing unusual about the start of one particular day in the Summer of 2013 that would make it stand out in the life of a humble man named Kim Cole. Kim Cole is the sheriff of Mason County in Ludington, Michigan, and has been on the force for thirty-two years. He got out of bed, took a shower, had breakfast, and kissed his wife, wishing her a good day. He hopped in his car and went to work as any good public servant would do. However, on that fateful day, it would not be business as usual.

At the time, he had approximately ninety inmates, twenty-four female. That in itself is not the part that was shocking since that was an average day in the system. What is impressive is that out of the twenty-four female inmates, four were pregnant, but he did not know about the fourth until this day. In his long career working for the Sheriff’s department, he does not remember having this many pregnant female prisoners at the same time. Kim indicated that having female inmates adds more challenges, but having pregnant inmates adds “additional anxiety to an already stressful situation.” The care and attention needed for this class of inmates are sometimes overwhelming because they must protect the unborn.

The county has an agreement with an outside medical provider hired under the previous sheriff’s administration. The nurses provide primary health care needs to the inmates lodged in the county jail. When there is an issue outside of the “normal” range, the Sheriff has to be notified to pay the appropriate attention to the particular issue. After one of the nurses learned of an “outside of the normal basic healthcare” issue, she asked to see the Sheriff. She informed him they now have four pregnant females, but the latest will not be a problem because she wants an abortion. When the Sheriff received the news, he did not like what he heard. From the standpoint of being Sheriff and responsible for managing taxpayer dollars and from a Christian stance, abortion is not all right under any circumstance.

He sat back in his chair, perplexed why anyone would willingly destroy human life, and began questioning the nurse why this inmate, known as Sara, wanted to terminate the pregnancy. Was there any indication of anything medically wrong with the unborn child? The nurse indicated from their brief conversation that Sara was facing a felony charge; she did not know who the father was, and she was dealing with drug issues. The nurse said, “it was a problem she could just eliminate.” This bothered the Sheriff, so he informed the nurse that Sara would have to secure a court order for this procedure because he would not ask the people of Mason County to pay the tab for this procedure. 

As sheriff, he was well within his rights to make such a decision. While incarcerated, the taxpayers are expected to pay for primary healthcare for inmates. Nothing says the public has to pay for non-emergency care procedures, including elective abortions.

The Sheriff sent the nurse away, and she did not seem to be in good spirits as she exited. Kim was not all that concerned about that aspect. What he was concerned about was the very fact that someone could come to such a decision without contemplating all the ramifications that accompany this type of decision. Something else shocked him as well, how easily the nurse could say the words “this is something she can eliminate.” He immediately prayed for the unborn child and allowed the process to play out in the courts.

While dealing with the prospect of possibly arranging for an innocent life to be destroyed, he also would have to deal with something that no peacekeeper wants to deal with: a fellow officer and friend being killed in the line of duty. Deputy Paul Butterfield was just that, a friend and a fellow Mason County Sheriff’s Department officer. 

On September 9, 2013, Deputy Butterfield conducted what he thought was a routine traffic stop. As he approached the vehicle, the suspect opened fire, killing a friend who “had broken bread at his table.” The suspect was eventually wounded by other deputies and taken into custody. As the man who shot his friend sat in his jail, Kim began to think about the man who took his friend’s life as sitting in jail alongside a mother who wanted to take the life of an unborn child.

All of the circumstances became too much for Kim to handle, so after Deputy Butterfield’s funeral, he and his wife decided they would “decompress,” taking time to assess everything facing him. So they headed out west for a vacation.

For the next nineteen days, they traveled and pondered life. Assessing that, all things put into perspective, he and his wife were reminded of how good of a life they had been blessed with. He had a loving and understanding wife, both parents, good health, and two children whom he adored. As he remembered these essential things in his life, his perspective changed for the better. On their way back, his undersheriff called him to tell him that Sara had been granted the court order to have the abortion. For the rest of the trip, he thought about the actions he was about to take to fulfill a court order that he disagreed with, but as Sheriff, he had to follow the letter of the law.

He instructed his undersheriff to follow the court order and release her from custody to have the procedure to terminate the pregnancy. However, she was not off the hook for the felony. The undersheriff was to inform her that after the abortion, she was to return to Mason County jail to finish the remainder of her sentence. As a man of faith, the undersheriff, along with the Sheriff and about ten other people, committed her to pray for the entire weekend. On Monday morning, after he was officially back to work, he thought it would be an ordinary day just as the day he first learned about the possible abortion. When dealing with abortion, nothing is normal; God’s creation is about to be slaughtered for no other reason than being conceived and considered a burden.

Then, out of the blue, he learns that she is back in their jail just two days after her release because of the “kite” he received. A kite is a request to see the Sheriff personally. He was very curious, so he granted the kite, and she was escorted into his office. Sara and Kim sat across the desk from one another, meeting for the first time. He thought, “This woman, who was going to take an innocent life, is here.” What am I going to say to her? What advice did she want? Was she still going through with the abortion? These questions all ran through his mind all at once. Two months after he was informed about Sara’s situation, he heard the best news possible.

Before Kim started to interview Sara, he offered a peacemaking gesture. He always has a bowl filled with an assortment of candy on his desk. This day the bowl just happened to be filled with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. The goal of the candy is to put the inmate at ease to discuss their issue comfortably and honestly. She wanted to tell Kim that she had changed her mind about going through with the abortion. Since she was first informed of the procedural process and requested the court order, something made her change her mind. (What she did not know was that ten people who did not even know her had committed to pray for her and her unborn child). 

As they began to speak, she tried to explain the thought process behind her decision. She explained she had a drug problem, did not know the father, faced a felony charge, and was pregnant. In her mind, the easiest problem to get rid of was the pregnancy. But something had happened over the weekend to change her situation and allow her to seek help. She bravely told Kim that she no longer wanted an abortion but acknowledged that she could not keep the baby either. Kim then heard words he had been praying for: “Will you help me find someone to adopt this baby?” Kim accepted the challenge with joy and enthusiasm.

An adoption agency was contacted immediately and began to counsel Sara on her options and choices of birth parents. She was still serving her six-month sentence, so Mason County had her through most of her pregnancy. This aided the adoption agency in dealing with a mother that was clean and sober to help her make clear and good choices for what kind of parents matched her goals for the baby. She would send a periodic kite to see Sheriff Cole during this process. During these meetings, the two became close over Peanut Butter Cup conversations.

The adoption agency had found a match for Sara’s baby. Sara was now clean from drugs and being released from jail. Then around late January or early February 2014, Kim was still praying for the safe delivery of Sara’s baby and that the adoption would go through, but it was now totally in God’s hands. At the beginning of March, Sara, having served her sentence and now free, stopped in to see Sheriff Cole to again thank him for caring and being there for her and the baby. She also wanted to replace the Peanut Butter Cups she had devoured during their conversations. Kim acknowledged that Sara was going to deliver soon, very soon! She told Kim a C-Section was scheduled for March 20, but he knew she would not make it. He wrote his cell phone number on the back of his business card and asked her to call him to see the baby before the adoptive parents took the baby to begin his/her life; Sara agreed. They hugged, he wished her GodSpeed, and off she went to prepare for the birth.

On March 8, 2014, the baby was successfully delivered to this world kicking and screaming just as Kim had hoped would happen six months prior. Remember that Kim’s birthday is March 10, 1964. Fifty years later, almost to the day, baby Chase arrived. Kim was sitting at his desk when the call came. He dropped what he was doing and dashed to the hospital to see this miracle.

As he was sitting in the waiting room, filled with anticipation, he noticed another couple sitting in the vicinity as well. After a few minutes, the woman got up, gently walked over to where Kim was sitting, and began to engage him. She asked if he was the Sheriff, and he said that he was. At that moment, she grabbed him, hugged him tightly, and announced that she was the adoptive mother. She also stated that Sara had told them the whole story and why Chase was there that day. They both began to cry because they both knew this was an extraordinary moment that almost did not happen. To demonstrate absolute humbleness, he gave all the credit to God for the gift of Chase He gave to Sara and this couple. He asked to hold Chase before leaving the hospital; they agreed enthusiastically. The moment he held Chase was a moment that will forever live in his heart as a reminder to always fight for life. He took a picture with Chase and still has the framed picture in his office on his window sill to remind him of how precious life is.

While the adoption was being finalized, Sara called Kim and asked to meet because she needed to talk to someone just out of the blue. She was struggling with the whole situation and needed advice. They drank coffee and discussed options of participating in the open adoption, allowing her to be involved in Chase’s life until she felt comfortable about his well-being. Sara eventually got her life together and moved across the state to begin a new life, knowing her baby is being cared for by a loving and caring family. 

All because a humble man was willing to stand up for what God wanted and had faith in his one Redeemer, a life that exists today. Kim did not do this not for glory, riches, or pats on the back. Instead, Kim did this because he believed that every life should be allowed to write its own story, and it should not end before it even begins. 

Kim does a massive amount of charity work within the community. His goal is to spread the message of love and mercy throughout the community expecting nothing in return for service. One example of how he does just that has to do with families with disabled children. Whenever there is a parade in this county, he picks a disabled child and invites him or her to ride in his patrol car. This event did not transform Kim’s life but instead reinforced his fight for God’s precious gift of life. Kim is willing to fight for all lives because they matter.