Removing Barriers and Increasing Access: Introducing LWC’s Black Birthship Fund

As we wrote in our Black Lives Matter statement, Lifecycle WomanCare believes that racism is a public health emergency. We expressed our sincere desire and commitment to ensure that LWC is a space where all of our clients feel valued, respected, and above all, safe.

In an effort to make our care more accessible to those who can benefit from it the most, we are excited to introduce the Black Birthship Fund.

Black reproductive health in our country is in crisis. According to the CDC, Black people are more than three times more likely to die due to childbirth related complications than white people.

Research indicates that access to midwives and comprehensive prenatal education as well as a “reclamation of normal physiological birth” are important factors to help address and reverse these unacceptable trends. As such, we believe that LWC is uniquely poised to help address these inequities on a local scale.

The Black Birthship Fund, inspired and initiated by LWC supporter Martha McHenry, will be used to help cover the out-of-pocket costs of LWC’s core prenatal classes for our Black birthing clients.

We invite you to join us in this important endeavor by making a gift to the Black Birthship Fund today.

Our comprehensive prenatal education curriculum, which includes Preparation for Childbirth, Lactation Essentials, and First Days at Home, runs at a cost of $360 per client and is not always covered by insurance.

While the value of these classes and expertise of our educators cannot be overstated, we recognize that the cost presents a burden for some families, particularly during this time of economic turmoil.

Our original goal was to raise $3,600 which fully covered the cost of classes for 10 clients. We have far surpassed that goal, and have covered the cost of classes for nearly 40 clients at this point. We still have nearly $10,000 for clients in need of tuition assistance, and we expect that dollar amount to continue to grow. 

Covering the cost of prenatal education removes a potential barrier to our highly personalized care and increases accessibility to midwifery support in our community. As a non-profit organization, we cannot do this crucial work without you. Please consider making a donation.

Support LWC’s Black Birthship Fund today.

Photo by Taproot Photography