Tucker Women Embrace Local Refugees

Imagine moving halfway around the world. You’re in a new country.  You don’t speak the language or understand many of the customs. Your friends, family and support system are thousands of miles away.

Now imagine doing all of this while pregnant, just weeks away from having a new baby.

This scary scenario is not unusual in the lives of refugees. Tucker residents Liz Johnson and Jenny Cochran work hard to make pregnant refugees in our area feel a little more at home.

Their situation deeply affected Johnson. “I can’t imagine the difficulty of being in a new country, far away from family and friends who would typically guide me,” she said. The most difficult part would be being “unable to communicate my desires and questions, unfamiliar with many of the medical procedures and options, some of which may be vastly different than my own cultural values and experiences.”

Johnson and Cochran work together at Lumina Birth as childbirth educators and doulas. In 2010, they founded Embrace Refugee Birth Support, a non-profit organization working with Friends of Refugees. “We were motivated to begin Embrace through our own personal journeys into motherhood,” Johnson said. “Pregnancy, birth and the transition into parenthood is a time filled with many emotions, thoughts and questions. It is difficult enough to go through this transition within our familiar cultural context. Our vision is to see refugee women experience healthy, empowered and culturally-sensitive pregnancy and birth in the US.”

Embrace primarily serves the Clarkston, Ga community which is home to over 150 ethnic groups. They offer a variety of services to refugee clients, all free of charge. Programs include:

• Childbirth Education Courses - Currently taught the fourth Saturday of each month at the Clarkston International Bible Church, classes are led by certified childbirth educators. They provide an overview of what can be expected during pregnancy, birth and the post-partum period in the US.

• Labor Assistants and Doulas – Embrace staff offer physical and emotional support during the pregnancy, birth and early weeks of motherhood. Appointments and locations are set on an individual basis.

• The Mom-to-Mom Program – Embrace pairs up refugee clients with a local mom who can help them with practical preparations for the baby’s arrival, including providing transportation to medical appointments, shopping for baby items and offering emotional support.

“We are still growing in our capacity to serve,” Johnson said. As they grow, Embrace hopes to raise awareness, funds and cultivate participation from the local community. Volunteers, with or without birth professional training, are needed to broaden the organization’s abilities. Plans already made include:

• Lunch and Learn meetings for birth professionals who offer (or are considering offering) maternity services to refugees. 
  
  
• Breastfeeding education will be taught monthly by a certified lactation specialist. Classes will be offered beginning in the fall of 2011.
  
  
• An American Partners Childbirth Education course providing information and training for volunteers who wish to serve the refugee population.

• Basic training classes for those who want to serve as part of the birth support team, who attend prenatal appointments and support the mothers during the birth. Volunteers are also needed to serve as childbirth educators, administrative assistants and translators.

Volunteers are needed in several areas, including birth support, education and office administration. Details on each position can be found on the Embrace website under the Get Involved tab, or email Johnson and Cochran for additional information.

"We'd love for people from the community to become involved with Embrace,” Cochran said. “Volunteering is a great way to connect with people that you'd otherwise never meet, and it's amazing how only a few hours of your time can really impact the lives of these women."