Seattle Home Maternity Service

05/26/2025

Dear Seattle Home Maternity families and community,

We are writing to share with you a constellation of changes we are anticipating over the coming year.

After almost 27 years of clinical practice, Heather will be moving on from her role as midwife and owner of SHM in December of 2025. Heather has carried forward the legacy of SHM for many years, infusing the practice with her steadiness, her evidence-based exceptional clinical care, her generosity, her sense of humor and sparkle, and her beautiful heart. She has touched innumerable lives - both the babies she has gently welcomed, but also the many birthing families, midwives, student midwives, and professional colleagues. She has been a constant in the Seattle midwifery community through seasons of challenge and change, and has embodied for so many the heart of being a community midwife through her service.

Seattle Home Maternity was founded in 1980. It is the oldest continually running midwifery practice in Washington state. Our founders, Suzy Myers and Marge Mansfield, were responsible for the resurgence of midwifery in WA state in the early 1980s by establishing an educational pathway for midwives that enabled generations of midwives to enter the profession and serve their communities as Licensed Midwives. Our practice home in Columbia City has been a fixture and resource in the midwifery community, serving families for over 45 years.

Just as they were responding to the realities and needs of the time, we too are called to respond to the changing landscape and realities of practicing midwifery at this time. The values so central to midwifery: respect for the space and time that birthing and its transformative transition needs, attending to the body, mind and spirit of our clients, respecting choice and the space it requires - these have become increasingly hard to translate into the language of insurance reimbursement. In short, insurance does not reimburse for the qualitative and time-intensive aspects of midwifery care that are so central to the deeply humane experience of midwifery care and are also integral to the excellent clinical outcomes of our model of care. The number of midwives in the Seattle area has been decreasing steadily - related to the financial implications of this work that ultimately take a toll on whether this model of care is personally sustainable at this time and in this place. It has come time for our current model of care to evolve, with an eye to a future where community midwives and the community they serve and live among share more transparently in the realities of a model of care that holds both birthing families and the midwives who walk alongside them with respect and integrity.

We will be finishing out 2025 at our sweet home in Columbia City. Beginning in January of 2026, Brooks will be carrying forward the practice as a solo midwife, seeing clients in a space on Capitol Hill. She will care for a limited number of clients, attending births at home and at the Center for Birth. Suzanne has been a much beloved and integral part of our team since 2011 and will continue to support the practice.

Thank you for this community and the privilege to be of service to it. We look forward to continuing in this work and caring for all of you as this chapter comes to a close and new future possibilities have the space to emerge, including duly celebrating Heather and her exciting transition to come!

04/11/2024

What a remarkable, smart and compassionate person. Sending much love to Penny Simkin's family and to the great many people who loved her. Thank you for everything, Penny, you will be so missed!

In Memoriam: Penny Simkin, PT

With profound sadness and a heavy heart, DONA International announces the passing of our esteemed co-founder, Penny Simkin, PT, after a brief battle with cancer. Her departure on April 11, 2024 marks a tremendous loss not only to our organization but to the global doula community, childbirth educators, perinatal researchers, families she supported, and the countless lives she touched through her pioneering work in childbirth and maternity care.

Penny's unwavering dedication to supporting families during one of the most significant moments of their lives has left an indelible mark on the field of labor support and childbirth education. Since 1968, Penny, a skilled physical therapist, embarked on a mission to transform the childbirth experience, making it more empowering, informed, and supported. Her tireless commitment to this cause led her to prepare over 15,000 individuals, couples, and siblings for childbirth, directly assist hundreds of families through labor as a doula, and author several influential books that have become staples in the field that have been translated into several languages.

Penny was a visionary and a luminary in every sense. Her work has paved the way for a new generation of doulas and childbirth educators, instilling in them the values of compassion, evidence-based practice, and relentless advocacy for birthing people and their families. Through her profound contributions and co-founding of DONA International, Penny has revolutionized doula care and childbirth education across the globe, leaving a legacy that will undoubtedly endure for generations to come.
Her book, The Birth Partner, remains a beloved resource for anyone involved in the childbirth process, illustrating her commitment to not only the physical but also the emotional well-being of doulas and families during childbirth.

Though she recently stepped back from her professional endeavors to focus on her family, Penny's legacy continues to thrive through the work of the many doulas she trained, the families she supported, and the impactful works she left behind. Her life was a testament to her passion for making childbirth a positive and supported experience for all.

Penny's life was rich not only in professional achievements but also in love and joy. She and her husband, Peter, were blessed with four grown children, eight grandchildren, four many grandchildren-in-law, four great-grandchildren, and a beloved dog, Casey. Her family was her pride and joy, and she cherished the time spent with her loved ones.

As we mourn the loss of Penny Simkin, we also celebrate her extraordinary life and the countless ways she has enriched ours. Her legacy will continue to inspire and guide us as we carry forward her mission to improve childbirth and support families around the world. Penny's spirit lives on in the work of DONA International, in the lives of the families she has touched, and in the hearts of the many who loved her.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to DONA International in Penny Simkin's memory, to continue her life's work of supporting and educating doulas and families. For more information on how to make a contribution, please visit https://www.dona.org/impactprogram/

We invite all who knew Penny, were touched by her work, or wish to share their thoughts and memories to do so by sending them to Penny@DONA.org. Your stories and memories will be a great comfort and a cherished collection for her family during this difficult time.

We extend our deepest sympathies to Penny's family, friends, and the many individuals whose lives she has touched. May her soul rest in peace, and may her legacy of love, support, and education continue to flourish in the years to come.

01/06/2024

Available no matter where you live, this 12-month, 60-hour program provides comprehensive instruction, guidance, and facilitated peer support for navigating pregnancy, preparing for birth and infant care, and weathering the early months of parenthood. Over and over again, we hear participants say, "We are SO GRATEFUL for this group!" Each cohort is organized by due date and is limited to 10 families. Meetings happen on Zoom twice each month, plus a weekend childbirth class intensive. Each 2-hour evening meeting includes a check in on physical and mental health, Q&A session, and a topic which may be instruction, facilitated discussion, or a guest speaker. Cost per family is 12 monthly payments of $125. Sign up in your FIRST TRIMESTER to access the complete program!

LGBTQ+ Pregnancy & Parenting Program Content:

Conception Stories
Understanding Models of Care
Living in a Pregnant Body
Non-Gestational Pregnancy
Gender and Body Image
Relationship Changes
Pregnancy Health
Pelvic Floor Health
Perinatal Mental Health
Childbirth Preparation
Lactation / Infant Feeding
Postpartum Recovery
Infant Sleep
Baby Arrival Stories
Postpartum Mental Health
Coparenting and Relationship
Queering Biology
Balancing Work and Family
Legal Issues
Starting Solid Foods
Affirmations of Family
Celebrating Community

https://maiamidwifery.com/pregnancy-parenting/

12/16/2023

Exciting News!

12/02/2023

Our Childbirth Education class for Black, Indigenous, and All Families of Color has NEW December dates. Instead of December 16-17, we will move to December 9-10.

If you are interested in attending, please register using our regular referral form and select interested in Childbirth Education! Head to bit.ly/OAPSIntake or to our website for the form. Please note that the bit.ly link is case-sensitive!

11/29/2023

Join us in the spirit of generosity as we work towards feeding more than hunger this ! Will you help us reach our $90,000 fundraising goal?

So far this year, we’ve distributed 33% more food than last year. Nearly all our programs have grown throughout the past year. In addition to creating access to an on-site social worker who assists with navigating our social service network through our Community Connector program, we’ve added overdose prevention resources to our food bank, including low-barrier access to fentanyl test strips and Naloxone. We’ve expanded our partnerships, bringing over a dozen service providers on-site.

Join us in feeding more than hunger this when you help spread generosity with a gift.
https://www.wagives.org/organization/rainier-valley-food-bank

11/28/2023

Have you been meaning to make a gift to Southeast Youth and Family Services? Today is a perfect day to check that off your list!

Remember that your donation will be matched - dollar for dollar up to $10,000 this fall! I was talking with one of our monthly donors yesterday and affirmed that we are so thankful for whatever amount comes in - big and small, as we know that each dollar helps us get a step closer to helping more kids.

You and your generosity are so valuable to us, and our ability to continue this work. Thank you so much for seeing the needs of the children and youth in our community and responding to it.

https://seyfs.org/donate-gift/

11/18/2023

What a wonderful gift to the birthing community in Federal Way! Congratulations, Faisa Farole!

The state's first Black-owned birth center is officially open for business. Leaders hope it can be a hub for maternal health in South King County.

08/01/2023

Need back-to-school supplies? Stop by our Resource Giveaway is next weekend! We will be giving out school supplies, backpacks, books, and baby supplies until we run out. We welcome Open Arms families and non-enrolled community members.

RSVP on our Event Calendar 👇 https://openarmsps.org/events/august-resource-giveaway/

08/01/2023

07/10/2023

Help us Reclaim Wellness this BIPOC with Therapy Fund Foundation’s inaugural behavioral health conference & resource fair! The Therapy Fund is committed to creating health equity for all and eliminating barriers for those who have been historically excluded.

Join us on Friday, July 21 at 8 am! This is an all-day conference, available in person or virtually, and is dedicated to improving mental health outcomes for communities of color.

This event is for anyone in the behavioral health field, as well as community members who are interested in achieving health equity among those who have been historically excluded!

Each in person attendee will receive a copy of Ruth King’s latest book “Mindful of Race” while having an opportunity to sign and meet & greet! Breakfast & lunch will also be provided.

There is limited space for attendees and the conference will fill up fast. So don’t wait, click the link below!

https://therapyfundfoundation.org/events

04/06/2023

This year, Washington midwives lobbied for improved reimbursement, and a continued cap on their licensing fee. The House included the requests in their budget proposal, but the Senate's budget ignores the midwives entirely-- not even including the cap they've had for 15 years. This puts midwives in an even more precarious position, even though their services actually saves the state millions of dollars a year.

Midwives and supporters, we need you to contact your Senators TODAY and tell them to include midwives in their budget!

Visit leg.wa.gov to find your rep's contact info, and see our linktree for a draft email. Please share this info far and wide!

We need all hands on deck to make sure midwives can afford to serve their communities.