Help Asasiya Train in Trinidad & Tobago

Hi, My name is Asasiya—I’ve spent the last 8 years on-call as a licensed homebirth midwife in Philadelphia. I’ve assisted over 300 families with successful births outside the hospital; I’ve trained 25 midwifery students, and developed an in-house network of some of the best doulas in Philly. I’ve done this all while raising my own 5 children! 

My passion for midwifery is driven by my love for God and my desire to see that those who are most vulnerable feel seen and heard. Since becoming a midwife, I’ve been working tirelessly to build a practice that provides the best and most relevant care to my community. In order to continue to grow, it’s time to take my skills even further!

Veteran midwife, Lynn Arnold, told me once that the best midwives have 3 kinds of experience: 

1.) Homebirth 2.) Birth Center 3.) International

 

As a practitioner—I totally agree. Homebirth helps us to build and nurture community while creating the most personalized approach to care. Birth center work promotes collaborative communication, while international midwifery ties us to the global effort to honor mothers, babies, and families throughout the world and puts the scope of this work in perspective.  

Fortunately, I have 2 out of the 3 under my belt. I am now poised to embark on my third—my first international midwifery experience. 

In a few short months, I will be venturing out of Philadelphia for a 10 week Midwifery externship in Trinidad & Tobago. 

My goal is to raise funds to support my training and volunteer service as a visiting midwife at Mamatoto Birth & Resource Center in Trinidad. Located in the capital city of Port of Spain, Mamatoto is currently the only freestanding birth center in the Caribbean. This center primarily serves lower income families seeking access to out-of-hospital birth services with the support of licensed midwives and doulas. In addition to being a tremendous resource to local birthing families, Mamatoto is also a cutting edge model for maternity care for the rest of the Caribbean—and world.

In exchange for my volunteer services as a visiting midwife, I will be honing my skills in a new setting and receiving direct instruction from the founders about the development of this exceptional facility. Your support will allow me to pause my local practice, volunteer 10 weeks of service, and gain new skills and expertise that I look forward to sharing with Philadelphia. 

As a daughter of the Caribbean, specifically Jamaica, it is a humbling honor to return to my cultural cradle to serve and to learn with my sister midwives. I’m especially grateful to the Directors of Mamatoto for allowing me this unique opportunity to learn with them and supporting my ultimate goal of establishing a similar model. 

All donations towards this effort will be greatly appreciated. Please share via email and on all social media platforms. Thank you for continuing to support your local Birthworkers!