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.
$2M Mackenzie Scott Grant Awarded to Cleveland’s Birthing Beautiful Communities, Supporting Medical Equity for Black Mothers Regionally
Cleveland, Ohio (March 19, 2024) – Today, MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving announced Birthing Beautiful Communities (BBC) as one of the Yield Giving Open Call’s largest awardees which supports people and places experiencing the greatest need in the United States. BBC received $2 million – the organization’s largest gift to date.
Birthing Beautiful Communities is Northeast Ohio’s only community-based doula program dedicated to improving the quality of life for Black mothers, babies, and families. Since 2014, BBC has worked to address and improve systemic and community structures that contribute to poor birth outcomes through culture, education, advocacy, support, and engagement. BBC provides free services to over 700 new and expectant mothers and families annually, including perinatal support doula services; childbirth and parenting workshops; life goal planning; transportation and healthy eating; lactation consultation; postpartum support; and classes and support groups to address self-care and anxiety.
“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,” says Jazmin Long, President & CEO of BBC. “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.”
You can listen to further remarks from Long here.
In March 2023, Yield Giving launched an Open Call for community-led, community-focused organizations whose explicit purpose is to enable individuals and families to achieve substantive improvement in their well-being through foundational resources.
The Open Call received 6,353 applications and initially planned for 250 awards of $1 million each. In the Fall of 2023, organizations top-rated by their peers advanced to a second round of review by an external Evaluation Panel recruited for experience relevant to this cause. They underwent a final round of due diligence. Considering the incredible work of these organizations, as judged by their peers and external panelists, the donor team decided to expand the awardee pool and the award amount.
“We are excited that our partnership with Yield Giving has resonated with so many organizations,” said Cecilia Conrad, CEO of Lever for Change. “In a world teeming with potential and talent, the Open Call has given us an opportunity to identify, uplift, and empower transformative organizations that often remain unseen.”
More information on the Yield Giving Open Call and other initiatives can be found at www.leverforchange.org.
About Birthing Beautiful Communities
Birthing Beautiful Communities addresses the social determinants of health and real-life circumstances that at-risk mothers face, making them vulnerable to infant mortality. Infant mortality is highest amongst communities of color. The core of the program is social cohesion. BBC functions and serves the purpose of real-time learning opportunities that will increase the understanding of how and why the social determinants of health affect unborn children, and what resources are available or need to be created, to increase the likelihood of infant survival up to one year and beyond.
BBC has evolved into a multi-layered, holistic set of services that, in addition to pregnancy and postpartum support, gives local women from historically economically depressed neighborhoods, opportunities to increase their personal and family wealth through employment with livable wages and address other needs that inhibit their quality of life and that of their children and families. Birthing Beautiful Communities mobilizes community residents and organizational partners to address the social, structural, and economic determinants of health and promote health equity.
Birthing Beautiful Communities Names Next CEO
Jazmin Long to Lead Organization’s Capital Campaign, Expansion & Next Chapter
CLEVELAND, OH (April 27, 2021) – Birthing Beautiful Communities (BBC), Cleveland’s premier organization working towards improved birth outcomes and equitable medical care for mothers and children of color, proudly names Chief Operating and Development Officer Jazmin Long to CEO of the organization.
Of the appointment, BBC’s Board Chair Evelyn Burnett says, “Jazmin’s demonstrated background in both leadership and development roles – along with her service heart – made her the logical choice. She is poised to lead our current capital campaign as well as the organization’s continued expansion in the coming year, and beyond.”
Long joined BBC in 2018 as the Vice President of Fund Development. In her role she has been responsible for deepening relationships between the organization and key funders and donors. She has played an instrumental part in the organization’s fundraising success – securing major gifts from The George Gund Foundation and Governor’s Office of Faith Based Initiatives (the two largest gifts in the organization’s 7-year history).
“The challenges facing our mothers and children fuel my work each day. The pandemic forced our team to approach these challenges in new ways, teaching us lessons in agility as well as illuminating the issues that will require our support in the future. It will take creativity and dedication to meet these needs – something that the BBC team is well known for. I look forward to building on Christin’s successful legacy.”
BBC currently serves the community by providing childbirth/parenting education workshops, breastfeeding support, nutritional guidance, doula training, medical advocacy and more. The organization’s capital campaign launched in September 2020 with a focus on growing services through the establishment of a new birthing center. To learn more, please visit www.birthingbeautiful.org
About Birthing Beautiful Communities
Birthing Beautiful Communities addresses the social determinants of health and real-life circumstances that at-risk mothers face, making them vulnerable to infant mortality. Infant mortality is highest amongst communities of color. The core of the program is social cohesion. BBC functions and serves the purpose for real time learning opportunities that will increase the understanding of how and why the social determinants of health affect unborn children, and what resources are available or need to be created, to increase the likelihood of infant survival up to one year and beyond.
BBC has evolved into a multi-layered, holistic set of services that, in addition to pregnancy and postpartum support, gives local women from historically economically depressed neighborhoods, opportunities to increase their personal and family wealth through employment with livable wages, and address other needs that inhibit their quality of life and that of their children and families. Birthing Beautiful Communities mobilizes community residents and organizational partners to address the social, structural and economic determinants of health and promote health equity.
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