CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. -- After months of renovations and lots of support from the community, a new birthing center is now open in Chesterfield.
Gather Grounded Midwifery is a birthing cottage and a dream come true for founder and CEO Racha Tahani Lawler-Queen.
"I got on a Zoom call with Black birth workers in RVA and they were just telling me about what they were facing in regards to the lack of representation in birth, especially out of hospital birth," said Lawler-Queen.
CBS 6 first introduced you to the fourth-generation midwife in February, as she was aiming to transform a Richmond home into a birthing center for moms and was seeking the community's help to do so.
Months later, she was able to do just that - but in a new location.
"It’s meant to feel like a place where people see themselves, they feel seen, they feel safe," said Lawler-Queen.
Officially opening in August, Lawler-Queen said she had to find a new location for this safe space because of permit issues but is glad to finally be nestled in.
The center will is the first Black-owned birthing center in central Virginia.
"This is going to be like labor, it’s going to take me down all different roads and I know where I’m trying to get to know but I don't know how I’m going to get there and I couldn't have opened this space without all the generous donations, all of the love," said Lawler Queen describing her journey.
She said from the healing room to the family room, to the birthing room, each space is meant to be a warm and safe space for families of all types. "Families have care that reflects them, that supports who they are and how they live their lives, and they are provided with the opportunity to experience pregnancy without fear, without interventions," she said.
With the birthing cottage's GoFundMe page raising over $30,000, Lawler said their launch was only made possible by those who supported her dream.
She said strangers donated money, art, toys, and diapers and were excited to see their doors open. It's because of the community's support that Lawler-Queen said she’s able to support other families through one of the most significant moments of their lives.
"It really gives them even more power and a greater voice and provides them an opportunity without fear to birth in freedom to give birth in a way that affirms them and their family and how they want to move forward after they have this baby," she said.
If you or someone is hoping to learn more information about Gather Grounded Midwifery you can visit their website.
Depend on CBS 6 News and WTVR.com for in-depth coverage of this important local story. Anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.
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