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Help Fund Our Midwifery Clinic!

Located in Ferguson, Missouri and founded in October of 2015, Jamaa Birth Village has successfully worked with over 300 women in its Midwifery Clinic, supported over 100 more women in becoming educated, informed and have access to trained Doulas, Midwives and Breastfeeding specialists and trained 50+ African American Doulas in Ferguson and St. Louis . Jamaa Birth Village is currently renting an office suite to passionately increase the health and well-being of mothers and babies in St. Louis. With your help, Jamaa Birth Village can now expand their level of care in a permanent building just 1 block from their current location and have a long-term home. (40 N. Florissant Rd., Ferguson, Mo. 63135)


A Ferguson physician who is an anonymous donor, has put up $125,000 in building donations to help Jamaa Birth Village reach their goal of purchasing a 4,000+ sq. ft. new building which costs $185,000. In August 2018 we exceeded our goal by raising $71k in 65 days! The $71k went towards purchasing the building. We're continuing to campaign and raise funds to cover the costs of renovation; building materials, labor costs, including office equipment & furnishings. There are numerous supporters including Holly with EXP Realty, Cannon Designs, inspectors, carpenters and community members, who are offering their services pro-bono to ensure they're able to purchase, renovate and open their permanent facility. If you know of any tuck pointers, parking lot restoration experts, electricians, plumbers and structural contractors, please send them our way! Also, if you have any connections with furniture stores and they have the ability to give back to the community, please connect them with us. 

This work is important to us as Tru Jamaa's founder is the only Black Certified Professional Midwife in St. Louis or the State of Missouri. We need more Midwives of color now & opening the doors to Jamaa's new home will expand educational opportunities to train more Midwives of Color. There are no full service Midwifery clinics within the zip code areas of urban St. Louis.  St. Louis's prematurity and infant mortality rate for black mothers and babies are increasing, rapidly, in these very areas that are absent of community-based Midwifery care. Historically, Black Midwives and Birth Workers were the leaders, neighbors and friends of the community they served in and had a positive impact on ensuring that every mother and baby received continuous care prenatally, in labor and post-birth.  Birth workers in the sense have been eradicated from communities of color due to laws and legislation in past years and Jamaa Birth Village needs your help in re-integrating these practices that proved to be successful. Because of these legislative past acts, black women and babies are being harmed and are dying at alarming rates, more than any other race, due to systemic racism contributing to health care disparities and biases in care. 


On the 2016 March of Dimes Premature Birth Report Card , Missouri scored a C while St. Louis County scored a D and St. Louis city scored an F on preterm birth rates.  Missouri's disparity index is 22 out of 44 landing us a half mark for racial disparities in maternal-infant health care. March of Dimes quoted, "In Missouri, the preterm birth rate among black women is 49% higher than the rate among all other women." The time is now to discontinue the habit of only talking about racial health care disparities and to fund the programs and grassroots people that are implementing the change, Jamaa Birth Village needs your financial support. 

Their cause is to educate, train and implement health care providers, Midwives and Doulas of color while integrating them into community based health care settings, to ensure expecting women of color have equitable health options and a fair chance at a healthy full-term pregnancy, low intervention births, healthy postpartum period, and an overall thriving life. Their goal is to end generational poverty and health disparities in St. Louis and we can't do it without you!


Jamaa Birth Village has created an integrative approach  and solution by creating St. Louis's first Non-Profit Equal Access Midwifery Clinic in harmony with the JJ Way created by Jennie Joseph which has shown a 0 disparity index. Our Equal Access Midwifery Clinic which will include:

*Equal access Midwifery care for all women who may be uninsured, under-insured, undocumented or displaced. No woman will be turned away due to inability to pay. Access to transportation for perinatal visits will be provided. This option allows women to receive Group Centered Prenatal Care, obtain a Doula and deliver at a nearby hospital with an OB or family physician who is supportive of the Midwifery Model of Care and who has low rates of c-sections and interventions in labor, and high rates of success for live, vaginal births with minimal complications. 

*Home-Birth Options for women who are low-risk, insured or can self-pay. 

*On-site Mental Health Counselor, International Board-Certified Lactation Counselor, Massage Therapist, Chiropractor, Family Doctor and Community Health Worker. 

With this comprehensive team integrating a grass roots community-based approach, Jamaa Birth Village will be able to remove barriers to affordable access to STI testing which contributes to prematurity. There will be improved access to early and continuing perinatal care, consistent and effective mental health care and effective trauma informed care and practices to release toxic stress that is also a factor in prematurity and infant mortality.

Marginalized and low-income families and expectant women of color will greatly benefit from our Equal Access Midwifery Clinic. Since 2015, Jamaa Birth Village has worked with 200 women in its Midwifery clinic and over 100 women within its programs and services. There are many more women in St. Louis who can benefit from our care and services and who are at-risk for losing their babies life or experiencing unnecessary complications in labor.

Women help build stronger families, resulting in thriving communities with less poverty and more productive economies. Helping more women survive pregnancy will result in stronger healthier communities. A mother who experiences pregnancy complications and/or death impacts:

*Financial stability
*Mortality of children
*Families staying together
*Children's education
*Health and nutrition of the family

Give today and make a difference in the lives of expectant mothers and families. Join the cause and be a part of the huge changes that Jamaa Birth Village is leading in Ferguson and St. Louis. We need your support, donate today! This fundraiser has been created by Jamaa Birth Village supporters  and all funds will go towards the purchase of the building.  


For or more information about Jamaa Birth Village’s campaign, visit: www.jamaasnewhome.org
For more information about Jamaa Birth Village’s care & services, visit: www.jamaabirthvillage.org
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Donations 

  • Julia Cory
    • $100 
    • 4 yrs
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Fundraising team: Jamaa Birth Village Supporters (2)

Brittany Campbell
Organiser
Raised $2,968 from 30 donations
Ferguson, MO
Jamaa Birth Village
 
Registered charity
Donations are typically 100% tax-deductible in the US.
Jen Jester
Team member
Raised $920 from 9 donations
This team has raised $18,443 from 245 other donations.

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