Support Birthing Beautiful Communities with Macy's Round Up!
Support Birthing Beautiful Communities with Macy's Round Up!
We are excited to announce that Birthing Beautiful Communities is partnering with Macy's Round Up program! From October 16, 2024 through October 31, 2024, when you shop at Macy's, you can make a difference by rounding up your purchase to the nearest dollar. Every cent from your Round Up supports our mission of providing critical care and resources to birthing persons and families in our community.
When you’re shopping in-store, this simple action helps us continue creating healthy, thriving futures for moms and babies. Head to your Macy’s in University Square today and be part of the change!
Shop Macy's University Square: 2201 Warrensville Center Rd, University Heights, OH 44118
Thank you for your support!
Local Wave of Light Ceremony Set to Return to Live and In Person Event as Well as Virtual
Cleveland, OH - The annual Wave of Light (WOL) global ceremony will once again be held October 15 to encourage individuals to light a candle to reflect upon pregnancy and infant loss and those affected by it.
The event has grown since its start seven years ago from 66 babies being honored to 129 registered babies over 200 names called and 220 YouTube views in 2023. This year’s theme is A Family’s Support and will be a hybrid event; Streamed for families at home and across the globe, but also live and in person for the second year since COVID19 at the Cleveland Botanical Gardens.
“Twins run in our family, but nobody had born any since my father’s generation. I always thought it would be one of my children that would have twins so when Samantha became pregnant with Christyan and Jayden, I was absolutely thrilled! In my excitement, I never thought it was possible that the boys would not survive. It was devastating to all of us and as we continue to move through the healing process, we are blessed to have PAIL and the Wave of Light to help us every day and every year.” Joyce Williams - Mother of Samantha Williams-Pierce
To participate in the 2024 WOL event, individuals are encouraged to register online at Wave of Light Cleveland 2024 (#waveoflightCle) Registration, Tue, Oct 15, 2024 at 6:30 PM | Eventbrite by 5:00 pm, Wednesday, October 9 to assure their baby’s name is included in the ceremony. When individuals’ complete registration, they will receive a meeting link to participate in the October 15 ceremony or other instructions if they are attending the live event. Candles with the baby(s) names will be created for those attending in person only.
The doors will open at 5:30 pm, the program begins promptly at 6:30 pm, with the candle lighting ceremony starting promptly at 7:00 pm. A live broadcast of the ceremony will be on YouTube and can be found at https://youtube.com/live/4JCiZK68Hfc?feature=share. Participants are encouraged to share and show support on social media using #waveoflightcle.
First Year Cleveland has proudly served as the founding and primary sponsor of the annual Wave of Light ceremony. Birthing Beautiful Communities and Charles Martin Corvi Foundation also provided generous support to the ceremony.
MetroHealth launches midwife program to reduce infant mortality rates
The MetroHealth System launched a midwifery program this month in an effort to drive down infant mortality rates in Northeast Ohio.
Amy Lowell, who joined MetroHealth in late June as director of the new midwifery program, said the first priority for the new program is a focus on the communities that have been hardest hit by infant mortality.
"Right now, we are going to be located primarily at Cleveland Heights and Brooklyn," she said. "And the decision for that was based on zip codes with the worst outcomes."
According to Case Western Reserve University, the infant mortality rate for Black babies in Cleveland is more than double the rate for white babies, with 15.4 deaths per 1,000 live births for Black infants versus 6.9 deaths per 1,000 for white infants. In Cuyahoga County, the rate is 13 deaths for every 1,000 births for Black infants versus four deaths for every 1,000 births for white infants.
Jazmin Long, CEO of Birthing Beautiful Communities, a nonprofit dedicated to reducing the infant and maternal mortality rate in Cleveland, agreed that providing this service to disadvantaged communities is necessary and equitable.
"I just think that this speaks to the understanding that it doesn't matter what our current population is, they deserve respect, they deserve to have dignity in their birth and they deserve to have quality care for them," Long said.
MetroHealth is providing labor support by using doulas from Birthing Beautiful Communities. Doulas are birthing professionals who provide information and counseling during pregnancy, comfort during labor and assistance with breastfeeding and newborn care.
Both midwives and doulas play critical roles in the delivery process, Long noted.
"Us doulas, we are labor and delivery support coaches," she said. "We offer the social support and they [midwives] offer the clinical support. Both are needed to really ensure that our families here in Northeast Ohio have what they need to have great birth outcomes and great experiences in their labor and delivery at the hospital."
Lowell noted that MetroHealth is adding five midwives to its program, which will improve access to care.
"That's going to mean that patients can get in earlier," she said, adding that earlier care can head off potential complications and relay important information to help expectant mothers make good decisions for their sake and their child. "Our job is to give you the information, to make the best choices for you."
Part of this work is countering misinformation, such as the assumption that there's no need to be screened for diabetes just because a patient's mother did not have diabetes, or the assumption that an epidural will not work or could cause paralysis, Lowell added.
"A lot of women come in with really false information that they've either gotten from family members who have good intentions or the internet," she said. "It's our job to dispel the myths so they can get their facts right, so that they can make the decision to keep themselves healthy and the baby healthy."
The program is also meant to engage more with expectant mothers to ensure they have more of a say in decisions regarding their child's birth, Lowell added.
"I would like our patients to know, besides getting solid care, that the relationship that we're looking to build with them is that they're an active participant in their health care and that they'll be listened to," she said. "Obviously, the end result we all want is a healthy, full-term baby, healthy mom. Getting there looks differently for each family, so I want them to know that they will be active participants in the care."
Lowell said her plans are to expand the program to add additional midwives over the next two years.
Kindland: Protection, care for Black infants, mothers drive two of Cleveland’s most passionate advocates
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Kindness comes in many forms. It doesn’t come as early (or as often) as it should for many. Yet, protection and care for the community’s most vulnerable is perhaps the greatest kindness of all.
Two Black women are doing all in their power to create change in the community for Black infants and their mothers, with the aim of giving them the best possible shot at surviving and thriving.
If you’ve spent any time reading this column over the last year, you know that helping the most vulnerable of us survive and thrive is perhaps the biggest kindness of all.
A Cleveland State University interdisciplinary research initiative called Survive and Thrive has been partnering with Birthing Beautiful Communities, a local nonprofit founded in 2014 for the express purpose of reducing Black infant and maternal deaths. Their initiatives are changing and saving lives.
In Ohio, Black women are more than five times as likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than the state average, according to a recent JAMA study.
In 2020, nearly 75% of the babies in Cleveland who died before they turned one were Black. Tasked to reduce infant and maternal mortality, the partnership was awarded grant funding from the Ohio Third Frontier (via the Ohio Department of Higher Education, ODHE) a few years ago to help the partnership in the development of a mobile app called “Thrive.” Heather Rice, Ph.D., assistant professor at Cleveland State University’s School of Nursing (housed in CSU’s College of Health), served as principal investigator for the Survive and Thrive team. Her work has been integral in keeping the funding and stabilization of the team’s collective efforts level.
App information includes “everything from a breastfeeding tool, kick counter, developmental milestones tracker, vital signs tracker and support ticket that allows mothers to request assistance with transportation and support services.”
New additions will focus on stress reduction, mindfulness and breathing strategies.
The app was developed in concert with Ohio tech company Big Kitty Labs, with a range of resources from workforce development training and job placement services, to “emotional support opportunities” for both mothers and fathers.
The Thrive app scores and synthesizes risks by category, creating an intuitively based, individual “perinatal pathway” for parents to follow.
“With my background as a pediatric nurse practitioner, I am passionate about how research can impact the work being done around infant and maternal mortality,” Rice said in an interview in 2021.
Being able to coalesce social and clinical data with the team and Birthing Beautiful Communities to uplift and support mothers and families has been a personal mission for her.
Mothering Together | Episode 1 – Birth Stories🎙️
Welcome to “Mothering Together,” an original podcast series part of the Maternal Outreach Movement, powered by Birthing Beautiful Communities. In this episode, Ro and Bijou dive deep into unique and powerful birth stories, featuring natural births, C-sections, and home births. Joining them is Jazmin Long, CEO of Birthing Beautiful Communities.
Jeff Bezos’ Ex-wife MacKenzie Scott Is Going Viral for Using Part of Her Fortune to Help Black Maternal Health
After divorcing Jeff Bezos in 2019, MacKenzie Scott has been showing everyone that you can and should donate to important causes, especially when you have money out of the wazoo. This time, her latest donation is going viral on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.
Recently, Scott donated a $2 million grant to the Birthing Beautiful Communities, which is a doula program in Ohio dedicated to Black mothers, babies, and families.
BBC’s President & CEO, Jazmin Long said, via Black Enterprise, “We’re overjoyed and deeply grateful for this transformative gift from MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving Open Call. This generous support propels Birthing Beautiful Communities into an exciting new chapter, empowering us to amplify our impact and further our mission of ensuring every mother, baby, and family receives the care and support they deserve.”
Long added, “With this funding, we’re poised to continue transforming maternal health outcomes in Northeast Ohio and beyond, ushering in a future where every birth is a beautiful and healthy experience.”
BBC provides families by helping mothers through the pregnanct, labor, and helping with the first year of the baby’s life.
The CDC revealed over 80 percent of maternal mortality deaths are preventable, and after Roe v Wade was overturned, it’s only worsened. The organization found that the group most affected by maternal mortality is Black people, saying “Black women are three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than White women.”
The reason behind this varies, with the biggest issues with lack of quality healthcare, structural racism, and implicit bias, to name a few.
Per Kiplinger, after Scott landed a $38 billion settlement from Bezos, it made her the richest woman in the world. As of 2024, she has given away at least $650 million, gifting $1M to $2M to over 360 nonprofit groups. Along with helping maternal mortality rates decrease, she has donated money to arts, education, affordable housing, public health, and more.
SheKnows.com | Delilah Gray
Mission Possible: Future birthing center run by Black women for Black women
African American babies in Greater Cleveland are dying at significantly higher rates than the national average. A local organization wants to change those numbers.
CLEVELAND — The numbers are alarming.
“Infant mortality is a major issue here in Northeast Ohio, with Black babies dying in some communities up to seven times the rate of white babies,” stated Jazmin Long, President and CEO of Birthing Beautiful Communities.
A condition known as toxic stress is to blame, according to the non-profit BBC. The organization provides support to pregnant women at greatest risk of infant mortality. Toxic stress, they say, is the result of systemic racism and Black women’s voices not being heard in doctors’ offices. That's why the BBC is there to help.
“Empowering clients and their families to feel as though they have, the option, they have choices that they can really, take their own medical care in their own hands,” Long said.
BBC trains doulas, a person to give emotional support advocate for the mother throughout the birthing journey. Transportation and other assistance are also available.
“Anything that can cause a mom stress. We want to be here to provide that support and help to alleviate that,” said Chantel Tolbert, Chief Advancement Officer for Birthing Beautiful Communities.
800 families are helped each year. But the BBC wants to do more. This fall, they hope to break ground on Cleveland's only freestanding birth center.
“This is going to be a facility where we're able to have all of our classes, all of our doula trainings, and we will actually have clients giving birth because it's going to be a birth center on the first floor,” explained Long.
“We'll also have space for nutrition classes, postpartum rooms, and exercise room. So that will serve as a space for our moms to come in, our doulas to come in and be able to just enjoy,” added Tolbert.
The location at East 65th Street and Chester Avenue serves a purpose. The Hough neighborhood is where the BBC got its start, as a pilot program. And the $15 million project will add to MidTown's revival.
“Hough has been, has dealt with a lot of infant mortality in that community, and that's the reason why we were founded in that very community,” said Tolbert. “And so we want to come back and be of service and support to those women.”
“This space is going to be a beacon of hope for the community just because of how beautiful it is,” remarked Long.
Ohio law allows hospital births or home births with a midwife present. The new center will give families another choice.
“We're very intentional about what this space looks like and how we want people to feel when they enter this space,” said Tolbert. “And so we think people will be excited for this. This is something that is for Black women by Black women.”
The City of Cleveland is supporting the project with $1 million.
“So those are the dollars, the catalytic dollars to help us get started so that we can go out and show like, this is successful,” said Long “This is something that the community believes in.”
Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott also awarded the organization a $2 million grant.
“And that is just such a blessing,” Long said. “And so we are hoping to use the additional million to further our organization’s endowment.”
Combined, the support is building a legacy, for the health of future generations. And for families whose voices are part of their own birthing experience.
“These are Black women who could be my mother, sisters, cousins who I want to insure, able to safely have a child, to be protected, to be valued, to feel empowered,” said Long.
The birthing center will also house Birthing Beautiful Communities offices and community space. And while it is run by Black women for Black women, any women in need of their services are welcome.
WKYC Mission Possible | Jeff Reidel
A number of factors cause moms to die in labor. Ohio reps hope a wide-reaching bill can help
🎧 Listen Here
Ohio’s rate of 23.8 maternal deaths per 100,000 births is slightly higher than the national average, according to KFF. And it’s an issue disproportionately impacting Black women across the state. Black women in Ohio are more than twice as likely to die from pregnancy complications than white women, according to a 2020 report from the Ohio Department of Health.
Five Ohio representatives and one senator have signed onto a federal package of legislation that hopes to curb these pregnancy-related deaths, called the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act. It’s a package of 13 bills that invests in everything from nutrition programs to maternal vaccination promotion to maternal mental health initiatives.
U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes, D-Akron, co-introduced the bill last year. Speaking on the House floor last month, Sykes lamented Ohio’s high maternal mortality rates.
“Motherhood should be one of the greatest, most joyful times of their lives,” Sykes said. “But for far too many Black women in Ohio’s 13th Congressional district and across the country, this experience is often overshadowed by trauma, heartache and loss.”
Social determinants of health
Much of this legislation within the package aims to tackle social determinants of health, or the external factors that contribute to maternal mortality.
The Social Determinants for Moms Act would create a fund to address housing, transportation and nutrition needs. Another measure would expand the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) eligibility for new moms. Yet another would expand data collection and research around the causes of maternal mortality.
“We still see maternal mortality at such a high rate, many of them due to ineffective levels of care, toxic stress caused by racism,” Jazmin Long, president and CEO of Birthing Beautiful Communities, said. “There are so many factors that really lead into these poor birth outcomes and poor maternal fatalities that we see.”
Long’s nonprofit advocates for positive birth outcomes in northeast Ohio. She said many maternal deaths are avoidable . Among the pregnancy-related deaths occurring from 2012 to 2016 in Ohio, more than half were thought to be preventable, according to a report from the Ohio Department of Health.
Maternal care workforce in Ohio
Another part of the legislation will address the perinatal workforce, or maternal health care providers across the country. Across Ohio, Long said there’s a shortage of Black maternal health providers who can provide culturally congruent care.
“COVID really has decimated a lot of the workforce. And so some of the doctors and nurses who had consistently been in our hospitals retired or found other places to work because they got so burned out,” Long said.
In addition to OB-GYN doctors and nurses, Long said there needs to be an effort to train more Black midwives, doulas, lactation specialists.
Thirteen of Ohio’s 88 counties are considered maternity care deserts, according to the latest March of Dimes report and many of the state’s rural maternity wards have shuttered in the last decade.
A long road to passage
The Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act has been reintroduced for years, and has not garnered bipartisan support in the legislature. Although federal progress has been slow-moving, Long said there’s still work to be done on the state level to improve maternal mortality rates.
Ohio has recently invested in maternal and infant health. In March, Gov. Mike Dewine announced $5 million in funding for community organizations that support pregnant women. And the state recently approved Medicaid coverage for doulas.
But, Long said policies need to extend beyond health and address economic status in order to move the needle.
“We can look at things like universal basic income. We can look at things such as guaranteed income they're working on here in Cleveland, policies that would really … help to lift folks out of poverty,” Long said.
The Ohio Newsroom | Kendall Crawford
Fighting fibroids: U.S. Rep. Shontel Brown kicks off crusade with personal tale
WASHINGTON, D. C. - U.S. Rep. Shontel Brown says that developing uterine fibroids “was like having an uninvited guest take over your body, month after month, for years,” creating painful, unpredictable menstrual messes that took such a mental toll that she finally resorted to getting a hysterectomy.
The Warrensville Heights Democrat on Thursday brought her battle against the common medical condition to Congress, introducing legislation she’s dubbed the U-FIGHT Act: The Uterine Fibroid Intervention and Gynecological Health and Treatment Act.
It would authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to increase early detection of and intervention for uterine fibroids, education and awareness programs, and research. The grants would also address another uterine condition called Asherman’s syndrome, uterine scar tissue build-up following surgery, as well as disparities in pain control and management as it relates to uterine fibroids.
Medical experts estimates that 40% to 80% of women develop non-cancerous uterine tumors known as fibroids. Sometimes, they don’t cause difficulties. In other cases, the pain, and heavy, irregular bleeding they cause are disruptive. They’re most common in Black women, who tend to develop them at younger ages and be more likely to need medical treatment. Doctors don’t know their cause or why they’re more prevalent in Black women.
Brown said that Black women are three times more likely to be hospitalized for fibroids than white women, and three times more likely to need a hysterectomy. Despite the prevalence of fibroids, Brown says there’s no comprehensive federal program to address them. She said her bill would encourage early detection, treatment, education and research.
“A lot of women, a lot of Black women, when there is so much pain, they think that this is just part of being a woman, a normal part of your period,” Brown said at a Capitol Hill press conference. “Too many women delay medical care or are denied full treatment and care because they don’t know that the symptoms they’re suffering through aren’t normal.”
Brown’s legislation has 50 cosponsors in the House of Representatives, all Democrats. She says she’s working on bringing Republicans on board and getting similar legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate.
It is endorsed by organizations that include The White Dress Project, The Fibroid Foundation, Black Health Matters, Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Birthing Beautiful Communities, The Center for Black Health & Equity, University Hospitals, Cleveland Clinic, and MetroHealth.
“Lack of research in the evaluation and treatment of fibroids and their much higher rates in black women reflects a significant disparity in our current health care system and we’re hopeful that this legislation will improve the health of women in Northeast Ohio and all across the country,” Elyse Mulligan, University Hospitals’ manager of public policy and community health engagement, said at the press conference.
Cleveland Clinic Chief of Staff Beri Ridgeway issued a statement that described providing education, research, and access to screening for uterine fibroids as “important to improving the quality of care for the millions of women affected by them.
“We look forward to working with Congresswoman Brown to advance legislation that would expand access to early screenings and detection methods for uterine fibrosis, a debilitating condition that impacts millions of women, especially women of color,” agreed a statement from MetroHealth President & CEO Airica Steed. “Together, we can create a healthier community for every woman.”
Brown acknowledged passing her bill might be an uphill battle. She noted that her long-ago congressional predecessor Stephanie Tubbs Jones, who represented the same congressional district from 1999 to 2008, first introduced a separate bill called the Uterine Fibroids Research and Education Act in 2001.
More than 20 years later, other members of Congress are still introducing the same bill to support National Institutes of Health research into uterine fibroids, in hopes it will eventually pass. These days, the bill is called the Stephanie Tubbs Jones Uterine Fibroid Research and Education Act.
“Let’s help women learn the facts,” said Brown. “Let’s expand access. Let’s study the problem. And let’s solve the problem.”
Cleveland.com | Sabrina Eaton
The Village of Joy: A new birth for Birthing Beautiful Communities
Birthing Beautiful Communities (BBC) will soon open the only Black-led freestanding birthing center in Ohio under the leadership of its CEO, Jazmin Long in May 2025. BBC offers a doula program uniquely dedicated to supporting Black mothers and infants by addressing social, economic, and structural determinants of health, such as systemic racism, that cause poor birth outcomes. It provides labor support, mental health, transportation and other supportive services to individuals and families throughout pregnancy and up to the first year following childbirth.
Birthing Beautiful Community’s new facility in Hough
The new birth center will be in the Hough community, where BBC’s work first began because it is a neighborhood that is highly impacted with an infant mortality rate that is four times the national rate. Its location will be at the intersection of East 65th Street and Chester Avenue, a site intentionally chosen because of its cultural significance to the community.
This 10,000 square foot facility will offer a more natural birthing experience in a home-like environment. Like other freestanding birth centers, one important feature is holistic care being provided by midwives with the assistance of doulas. Providers at BBC’s freestanding birth center will utilize less medical interventions in the attempt to reduce the chances of using other procedures such as inductions, epidurals, or C-sections that are not always necessary for moms and infants.
Benefits such as improving access to more affordable care and fewer medical interventions can lead to more positive birthing experiences and improved mental health and birthing outcomes for Black women and infants in the community.
Birth centers and hospital partnerships
BBC will partner with hospitals to provide support for women who may eventually need more medical interventions. Other services at the new center will also include pre-and postnatal visits and gynecological care for all women. In addition to the center, BBC has partnered with Village of Healing since the summer of 2023 to offer a 2-year doula-midwife program to explore how combining the benefits of both can reduce infant mortality.
BBC and its collaboration with Village of Healing will allow both organizations to continue the amazing, lifesaving work they do in Cleveland and Northeast Ohio for those who are at the highest risk for maternal and infant mortality. Benefits such as improving access to more affordable care and fewer medical interventions can lead to more positive birthing experiences and improved mental health and birthing outcomes for Black women and infants in the community.
The Center for Community Solutions | Taneisha Fair, Associate, Racial Equity