Dr. Christina Garcia-Ramirez, PT, DPT, OCS, MDNC, with Elevated PT Wellness. She will tell us about physical therapy and how it can benefit everyone and especially pregnant women. She will tell us how muscle tension/pain is associated with body parts and how we can change those aches and pains with education, breath and physical therapy education. Amazing information that could change your life. She will also tell us about a workshop she is leading on December 6 at 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm at New Traditions Midwifery in League City where she will talk about Maintaining Mobility and Strength wile being pregnant plus and another workshop later in the month.

Dr. Christina Garcia-Ramirez, is a Doctor of Physical Therapy with specialty in Orthopedics. She has been practicing for 11 years and worked mostly in the outpatient clinic setting. She recently opened her own practice with a partner after working for corporate, hospital, and privately owned clinics. Her new practice is mobile and provides concierge level care to the Southeast Houston area. She loves to work with active adults who want to stay active, especially moms who like to run and are pregnant or have been pregnant in the past. Dr. Christina is a runner herself and has completed 3 marathons and many half marathons. She is also a mom to 2 sons, ages 5 and 2.

Dr. Christina Garcia-Ramirez, PT, DPT, OCS, MDNC

Jackie Griggs, CNM, Diana Jolles, PhD, CNM, and Patricia Olenick, CNM, tell us about the life of Sister Angela Murdaugh, FSM, CNM, FACNM, her career, goals, intentions, and contributions.

Patricia Olenick,CNM, has been a nurse-midwife for over 25 years and worked in various settings from community-based birth centers to high-tech teaching hospitals. Some of her favorite former activities include caring for women who were incarcerated, global health projects, and teaching nursing & midwifery students, and Family Practice residents. She is currently semi-retired and just doing ambulatory care. She knew Sister Angela for over 45 years and misses her greatly!

Diana R. Jolles, PhD, CNM, CMMI, is a Maternal Fellow serving within the Learning and Diffusion Group at the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation. Jolles is a public health nurse-midwife and health sciences researcher with over 26 years of experience. Jolles began serving as a National Health Service Corps Scholar in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas, where she was mentored in appropriate use, accreditation, grant writing and management and healthcare financing. Jolles is an experienced service director recognized for leading the family-centered expansion of midwifery into the intrapartum program at Denver Health Medical Center as well as the programmatic development and expansion of the Family Health and Birth Center in Washington, DC. Jolles has published over 25 peer reviewed publications, mostly around the topic of quality metrics and unwarranted variations in care to childbearing Medicaid beneficiaries. Jolles has maintained continuous appointments to the National Quality Forum, Medicaid and CHIP Scorecard Workgroup, Child and Adult Stakeholder Workgroup, and a multitude of ACOG and ACNM committees since 2001.

Jackie Griggs, CNM, is a Certified Nurse Midwife who has been practicing in the Houston/Beaumont area for the past 35 years. She is a mom of 5 grown sons, 3 born at home with the help of midwives. – Two grandchildren and a new grand baby just recently. She has helped mainly with home and birth center births, but has worked in the hospital some as well. She is the owner of a birth center in Beaumont, – Birth Center of Beaumont – and also helps with home births in the Houston area. She has been on the Board of Directors of the American Association of Birth Centers, until just recently, and still is a very big advocate for midwifery care at a birth center or home, for the women of this country. She is also focused on training new midwifery students and helping to increase the number of birth centers in Texas and the United States

Life of Sister Angela Murdaugh, FSM, CNM, FACNM

Marya Axner was has spent the past 30 years as an activist working against oppression of all kinds and also working as parent educator. She speaks and leads workshops on the topic of anti-Semitism and racism on college campuses, at social justices organizations, and at worker organizations. Fifteen years ago she was the Director of a parents program in the Somerville Public Schools, supporting parents to be involved in their children’s education. She has worked as a Multicultural Consultant for collaborative of schools near Boston. She has also worked for the non-profit, Everyday Democracy, which encourages people to have small group discussions that lead to lasting change. Marya also worked in the Education Department of the Jewish Women’s Archive where she wrote curricula about Jewish women’s history More recently, she was the Director of the New England Jewish Labor Committee, where she organized the Jewish Community to stand up with workers for their rights.

Marya Axner has taught listening skills through Re-evaluation Counseling for many years. Axner has also been active in United to End Racism (UER) is a project of Re-valuation Counseling. United to End Racism is group of people of all backgrounds in many countries who are dedicated to eliminating racism in the world. UER does this by teaching people to listen to each other, thereby undoing the damage done to people through racism and thus enabling people to speak out about racism, interrupt it when it happens, make deep friendships with people of different races, and take leadership in removing racism from society’s institutions

She was the Regional Director of the New England Jewish Labor Committee (NE JLC) for 12 years. She is currently working with the Jewish Climate Action Network, working on legislation that will support the transition away from fossil fuels. She is also active in Fix the Grid, which wants the Independent Systems Operator of New England (ISO NE) to become more democratic in its governance of our electric grid, which is mostly energized by fossil fuels at this time.

Marya Axner

Jessica Gonzales, LM, CPM, co-founder and midwife at Heart of Houston Birth and Wellness Center in central Houston and Paige Hopkins, Doula and Program Director for the Whole Heart Collective at the Heart of Houston. Hear all about the collective options and see how Houston benefits from this work which greatly contributes to changing our birth and parenting community.

Jessica Gonzales, LM, CPM and Paige Hopkins, Doula

Dr. Esther N. Amagoh, PT, DPT, is a highly specialized expert in Women’s Health and Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation. With a passion for empowering individuals through education and tailored care, Dr. Amagoh’s journey in physical therapy began with a Bachelor’s degree in Health Education and Physical Exercise Science from Virginia Commonwealth University. She then earned her Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Howard University, followed by a residency in Women’s Health and Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation.

Dr. Amagoh played a key role in establishing a pelvic rehabilitation practice in Virginia before relocating to Houston, Texas in 2016. There, she served as a Physical Therapy Specialist at The Women’s Hospital of Texas, managing one of their satellite office locations. Driven by a desire to provide personalized care, she founded The Pelvic Place Physical Therapy.

As a specialist, Dr. Amagoh focuses on a broad range of pelvic health concerns, including sexual dysfunction, pregnancy and postpartum pain, bladder and bowel issues, and musculoskeletal conditions. She is an active member of leading professional societies in pelvic pain and sexual medicine and has shared her expertise as a keynote speaker at universities and pelvic health conferences around the world. Dr. Amagoh is deeply committed to education, community service, and helping individuals navigate and overcome pelvic health challenges, ensuring they can live their lives with confidence and comfort.

Dr. Esther N. Amagoh, PT, DPT

Mike Loomis is a nurse, a father, and the founder of OB1Health, a startup focused on developing applications to achieve better outcomes for patients and families. With over 18 years of experience as a registered nurse in maternal-child health, Mike has supported and empowered families during some of life’s most transformative moments. After witnessing firsthand the unique challenges and gaps in resources faced by new fathers, he decided to create Call of Dad Duty to provide guidance and support alongside humor and experience.

Mike Loomis, Nurse, OB1Health

BIRTH Fair is coming up on October 5, at United Way, 50 Waugh Drive, from 10:30 am to 4:00 pm.

Please be sure to listen to this show and learn what the 20th annual BIRTH Fair can do for our community!!!!

We hope you’ll attend our free event. See you there!

Christine Diaz, Co-Executive Manager
Shay Wallace, Marketing/Publicity/Community Outreach Coordinator
JacQue Colson-Smith, Family Area Coordinator
Kiwis Apeh, Volunteer Coordinator
Debbie Hull, Doula, Speaker Coordinator
Jackie Griggs, CNM, RN, Midwifery Liaison
Natalie Guzman, Fashion Show Coordinator
Randy Holmes, DC, logistics coordinator

BIRTH Fair 2024

Kathleen Wilson is a founding member of TLC Doula Group, owner of Labor Enabler Doula Services and Co-Owner of Rebel Birth Education and Resource Haven. She has been a doula since 2003. She has not only taken several doula trainings, but is the founder of the Labor Enabler Doula Apprenticeship Program. She spends her time teaching and volunteering within the reproductive community. Kathleen loves working in all environments and with all care providers to ensure her clients have their best possible birth. Kathleen was married in 1997 to her very supportive spouse. She has four amazing children. She loves to cook and travel. She is one of the luckiest people in the world.

Kathleen Wilson, Doula

Melissa Nealy, CPM, IBCLC, has been a part of the out of hospital birth community for the last decade and found her love for midwifery 14 years ago prior to the birth of her oldest daughter. She has presented at local and national conferences on the topic of lactation complications for midwives. Spending 5 years as an IBCLC she is thrilled to be able to exclusively be a midwife for the last two years. She is a homeschooling mother of 3 stunning and bright children, husband to the most supportive man (you have to be supportive if you’re married to a midwife) and the family hosts 11 mammal and reptile friends in their home. (cats, dogs, mice and snakes). She is always thrilled to speak more about her passions

Melissa Nealy, CPM, IBCLC

Whole Mother continues the conversation about the layoff of the midwives of Women’s Specialists of Houston at Texas Children’s Hospital Pavilion for Women. Dr. Ginger Breedlove discusses the economic realities that do not point to financial reasons for the layoffs, despite Texas Children’s Hospital’s official position.

Dr. Ginger Breedlove, PhD, CNM, FACNM, FAAN of Grow Midwives