Fall 2023 DGM Returning Awardees

We are pleased to announce the two DGM Scholarship Returning Awardees! Please learn about them here.

Asha Compton

My name is Asha and I’m a student midwife in D.C. I have been on my journey since 2020 and I am grateful to say I’m on track to graduate in December 2024. I have met so many amazing clients, preceptors, and classmates on this journey! Midwifery has required many sacrifices, and I willingly make them all knowing that birthing people deserve out-of-hospital alternatives that value bodily autonomy and health providers that look like them. Thank you to Supporting Sunrise for helping students in the DMV reach the finish line!

Shannon Serrano

Shannon has been a professional birth worker for nearly a decade. She currently lives in and serves the Washington, DC metropolitan area as a birth doula, childbirth educator, and student midwife. It was the experiences of her own labors that crystalized the importance of a safe, supportive birth team and sparked her passion for perinatal care. Shannon is currently studying at the Mercy In Action College of Midwifery to receive her Bachelor of Science in Midwifery. She plans to continue serving her local community as a Certified Professional Midwife upon completion of her studies.

 www.shannonserrano.com

IG: @midwife.shan @shannonyourdoula

Cashapp: $ShannonYourDoula

GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/94749f9f

Congratulations, Asha and Shannon!

2023 Birth Doula Awardees

Congratulations to our first ever Supporting Sunrise Birth Doula Awardees! This scholarship provides these scholarship recipients Birth Doula training through Childbirth International (CBI). Please take a moment and read about our area’s newest Birth-Doulas-to-be!

Anna Prempeh is a science educator and wellness enthusiast. She majored in Nutrition Science at University of Maryland College Park. Upon graduating she studied public health at George Washington University before pursuing teaching Chemistry  for six years. She recently left education to be at home with her son.  Following her own journey and walking with friends through infertility, she became interested in pursuing birth work. She hopes to become a full spectrum doula, specializing in fertility and postpartum care. She is excited to bring her love of nutrition and public health to bear through this work and hopes to also become a certified lactation consultant in the future as well.

Instagram: @graceshineglitter

Ashly Brooks lives in Baltimore with her husband and two daughters. She has her degree in biology and is certified as an EMT in Maryland and on the National Registry. She is currently pursuing a Master’s in Nutrition and Integrative Health from Maryland University of Integrative Health and is now a clinical nutrition intern (supervised). Her goal is to provide girls and women with the resources and support from first period to and through pregnancy and postpartum. She is excited to join the journey as a birth worker and offer her clients a new level of support thanks to Supporting Sunrise.

Audrey Gentry-Brown is a Full Spectrum Birth Sista, Certified Blactation Educator (CBE), Student Midwife, and Medicine Woman residing in Loudoun County, VA. When I am not talking about babies or herbs you can find me reading a book, tending to my plants, in the kitchen whippin' up some serious eats, or coppin' the latest kicks!

My love for birthwork and traditional medicine started early on, but a number of hurdles prevented me from fully walking in my calling. In 2021 I decided that it was time to start doing what brought me joy! 

Birthwork and Herbalism are literally in my DNA. I do this work to pay homage to my Great Aunt who served as the Community Midwife and Nurse in the hills of Jamaica. I do this work to recall and reclaim the traditions that we have abandoned. I do this work to advocate, educate, and guide our women through a system that has shown us time and time again that we do not matter. I do this work for the future generations. It is my dream for us to birth as our foremothers did, in our homes, surrounded by love.

IG: @birthnherbs

Hello my name is Monique Ford.

I’m a mother of 3 amazing teenagers. I’m a former Marine. Current business owner of Legendary Label, and Legendary Beard Club.

I’m a Certified Medical Assistant. I’m CPR/First Aid and AED certified Adult/Child/Infant. I love helping others in anyway I can. Being a birth doula and postpartum doula, has been something I wanted to do for awhile. To have this opportunity to start school and my journey as a birth doula is beautiful. I look forward to supporting my community, while they achieve their dreams of starting a loving family.

Spring 2023 DGM Rising Awardee: Hadassah Burt-Miller

Wait, there’s a new scholarship? Yes! The DGM Rising Fund enables Black midwifery students who are very near completing their education to cover the final costs of becoming certified. Tests such as the NARM are expensive and the DGM Rising Fund is designed to help remove these final barriers from students midwives transitioning to their Midwifery career.

We are so excited to give this new award to Hadassah Burt-Miller! We cannot wait to hear more about her journey. They are closer than ever to becoming a midwife. Congratulations, Hadassah!

Learn more about Hadassah in her own words:

Hadassah Burt-Miller (She/They)

Hadassah is known by many people as Das the Doula. She is a mother of a college student and wife to a supportive partner. She is originally from the Bronx, NY.  They  have spent over 15 years working for non-profit agencies  supporting mentally ill adults in NYC. She is incredibly passionate about reproductive justice and educating her community on their options in and out of the hospital. Over the last few years, they have made a diligent effort to help birthing people access doula support, childbirth education, and other free and low-cost resources while centering Black and IPOC. Hadassah has been intentional about moving to PG County and has even donated several packages to ensure that families received doula support virtually and in my area. Hadassah has been doing this as a Full Spectrum Doula, Lamaze Educator, Placenta Encapsulator, and Maternal Health Consultant. 

 

Her aim is to become a Certified Professional Midwife (CPM). This distinction is given by the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM). Living in PG County, Maryland she intends to join the small number of Black out-of-hospital licensed midwives serving Maryland, D.C., and Northern Virginia and currently in Phase 3 of the PEP (apprenticeship) process. This process is costly and requires a lot of emotional, physical, and financial sacrifices.  It will be challenging to work and travel to different states to study under preceptors as their apprentice. The plan is to return to the Kentucky/Ohio region for four months later this year. This scholarship has given Hadassah the ability to turn in paperwork and move closer to becoming a licensed midwife. Upon completion of her NARM requirements, Hadassah will continue to be a safe space for Black birthing people. 

Please support her journey by donating at: 

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-hadassah-become-a-midwife?utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer .

Her doula support is still available for limited booking on dasthebalm.com .

Please follow her for updates on @dasthedoula or @myrtletree.midwifery on Instagram. 



Spring 2023 DGM Awardees: Asha Compton & Shannon Serrano

Last month, we awarded two midwifery students our second-ever round of DGM Scholarships! We are so excited to introduce you to them here. Read on to learn about the newest awardees in their own words. Congratulations again, Shannon and Asha!

Asha Compton


My name is Asha and I am a student midwife in the Washington DC area. My journey to birth work started in 2018 with a birth and postpartum doula certification. I continue to do doula work to help support my journey to becoming a CPM. I am passionate about sisterhood, holistic health, and laughter. Thank you to Supporting Sunrise for making the path for student midwives of color a little easier! I look forward to supporting this community in the years to come.



Shannon Serrano

Shannon has been a professional birth worker for nearly a decade. It was the experiences of her own labors that crystalized the importance of a safe, supportive birth team and sparked her passion for perinatal care. She currently lives in and serves the Washington, DC metropolitan area as a birth doula, childbirth educator, and doula mentor. Shannon is currently studying at the Mercy In Action College of Midwifery to receive her Bachelor of Science in Midwifery. She plans to continue serving her local community once she becomes a Certified Professional Midwife.

IG: @midwife.shan @shannonyourdoula

Cashapp: $ShannonYourDoula

GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/94749f9f

Spring 2023 DGM Returning Awardee: Mel Kennedy

Mel Kennedy (They/Them)

We are so pleased to announce Mel Kennedy as our first DGM Returning Awardee! They were among the first DGM Awardees in our first ever DGM Scholarship funding cycle. We are excited for their future. Learn more about Mel in their own words:

Mel is Queer, Black, and Neurodivergent and serves the Virginia, Maryland, and DC area as a full spectrum Doula, Community Herbalist, Childbirth Educator, and Certified Lactation Consultant under their business The Garden Reproductive Health: “For All The Seasons Of Your Life”. Mel has been working in the Reproductive Justice community since 2009. They are incredibly passionate about inclusive and holistic reproductive health care for ALL people. To help achieve that goal, Mel is currently studying to become a Certified Professional Midwife in the Commonwealth of Virginia with the National Midwifery Institute and is in Phase 3 of their studies.

Ways to follow and support Mel on their journey to becoming a midwife:

Insta: @Mel_Kennedy_Garden

FB: facebook.com/TheGardenReproductiveHealth

Website: www.thegardenreproductivehealth.com