About Us
The Doula Foundation wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for two women in our community that saw a need and decided to do something about it. Loa Freeman and Ginny Ross started The Doula Foundation in 2000 while they were teaching childbirth classes and prenatal yoga at a local hospital. They noticed many women coming to class with no supportive family or friends and decided they wanted to do something to help. Their vision was to support women and families in need of emotional, physical, and spiritual support before, during, and after labor/delivery.
The Doula Foundation couldn’t continue to operate without our great staff, doulas, and board members! Check out their smiling faces and get to know them by scrolling down the page.
Our Vision
To nurture a community of families whose lives and loving bonds have been enriched by the emotional care, education, and encouragement the Doula Foundation provides.
Our Mission
To be a source of emotional care, advocacy, and comfort for all mothers and their families during pregnancy, childbirth and early parenthood by providing services that ease the physical and emotional challenges of childbirth, encouraging the bond between parent and child, and providing a sense of empowerment to new and soon-to-be parents.
Board
Missy has been in professional sales for the past 20 years with emphasis in marketing & media. She is currently a marketing specialist with Vietti Marketing Group.
Ashley Berry
Ashley Berry is the owner and founder of Social Smash Up, a digital media marketing company focused on growing small businesses through social media. She is the wife of Trenton and mom of Champ. Ashley has a professional background in marketing, non-profit and event planning. She attended Baker University for Business Administration & Marketing.
Her passions include mentoring others on the path of entrepreneurship, especially young women. She loves helping women find what talents bring them joy to create a business and life to support that passion. Ashley thinks it is crucial that women lift each other up through mentorship, leadership and friendship.
Sarah Donelan
Scott Gold
Scott brings 23 years of experience to his work with health care clients, and he serves as a member of the Center of Excellence for the firm’s approximately 300 community health center clients. In addition to managing financial statement audits, he helps community health centers improve their financial positions by analyzing the Medicare, Medicaid and 340B pharmacy reimbursement implications of programs and developing a reimbursement strategy. Scott routinely provides support during Medicare, Medicaid and 340B audits, reviews interim payment rates and develops strategy. He also consults with clients concerning accounting and reporting problems.
Scott provides education and often presents for the National Association of Community Health Centers and many state and local primary care associations on a variety of topics related to compliance, financial analysis and strategy on important community health center issues. He has worked with several state primary care associations assisting with Medicaid prospective payments and providing education to individual health center management teams and boards of directors. Scott is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants. He is a 1994 magna cum laude graduate of Missouri State University, Springfield, with a B.S. degree, and a 1997 graduate with an M.Acc. degree.
Elizabeth Hurst serves as Business Development Manager for Human Resource Advantage, specializing in client engagement and satisfaction. She holds a Master of Business Administration from Drury University, and a Bachelor of Arts degree. Elizabeth is a Springfield native and is an active alumna of Drury University. In addition, she is an alumna and member of the Greater Missouri Leadership Foundation, Women’s Initiative committee, St Jude/ALSAC Regional Advisory Board, deacon and musician at her church. Elizabeth’s most important job above all others is motherhood. She and her husband Justin have two young boys and enjoy spending precious time together, travelling and entertaining friends and family.
Sarah Jones
While working at Jordan Valley Community Health Sarah was a part of the team who developed a multifaceted prenatal care program, including implementing Centering Pregnancy. Sarah is a Nurse practitioner and Certified Nurse Midwife at Mercy. She has been a part of developing the Midwifery program at Mercy since its inception.
Sarah has grown up in SW MO. She has been married for 15 years and has 3 girls, is passionate about the betterment of our community. Sarah has been a member of Junior League for over 10 years.
Winter Kinne
Candy Letterman
Candy is married to Terry Letterman and they reside in Springfield, Missouri. They have 2 children and 2 grand-children. Her hobbies include anything water related; traveling; gardening; remodeling homes; but she most loves spending time with her family.
Doulas
Jana McClure
It is my job to support moms in what can be the most exciting and challenging time in their lives. I want to encourage them as they learn to care for their baby and themselves on this journey of motherhood!
Cherie Mahadevan
I love being a doula because it gives me an up close view of the strength of motherhood. The hope and determination a woman has as she welcomes her baby into the world is unlike any I’ve seen before and it inspires me every time.
Shandy Miller
I love supporting pregnant and new mamas in their journey of motherhood. Nothing brings me more joy than to see a family begin!
Janene Moser
Janene is a Certified Postpartum (DONA) Doula. She worked as an art teacher for twelve years in the Springfield Public Schools during which time she earned her Master’s Degree in Education. Prior to that she was a counselor for an outdoor program for juvenile offenders for ten years.
Janene knew the founder of the Doula Foundation and thought it was such a wonderful organization. When she retired, becoming a doula seemed like such a perfect way to combine some of the skills she gained while teaching and counseling. She learned during those years how to listen, instruct, guide, connect, and nurture a wide variety of personalities. She really loved the idea of working with women and their families one-on-one during such an important time in their lives. Janene loves to be there to listen to women’s desires and fears concerning motherhood, and to meet their needs as best as she can–including finding resources and supporting them through the first few months postpartum.
Erica Nemunaitis
While supporting a good friend of hers through pregnancy and birth, Erica realized that birth work is a special passion of hers. She is now a Certified Birth (DONA) Doula. She loves listening to, informing and encouraging women as they embark on their unique journeys towards birth and motherhood. Erica sees each birth as new and beautiful – an opportunity for growth, healing and empowerment for the birthing person and her partner. She feels honored to be welcomed into this sacred time in a woman’s life.
Erica finds joy in connecting deeply with people and seeing others flourish. She enjoys traveling, hiking outdoors, rock climbing and learning new things. She loves children and also currently works as a nanny.
Amy Quinn
Amy is a Certified Birth and Postpartum (DONA) Doula. She is married and a mother to 6 beautiful children. Amy loves the blessing of motherhood and understands the challenges that go along with it. She has the experience of her own 5 births as well as the experience of adopting. She spent many years dedicated to caring for her family as her only full time job.
15 years ago Amy had a friend that dealt with a difficult pregnancy. She supported her throughout and then came across a description for a doula. She knew it was something she would love to do. She got busy with life and family and then finally had the opportunity to attend a DONA certified doula training at the Doula Foundation. Amy believes each woman no matter what their financial, educational, and religious or life choices deserve loving support, education, and resource knowledge throughout the childbirth experience.
Tammy Storer
Tammy is a Certified Birth (DONA) Doula. She is married and has 3 grown children. Her background in teaching and mentoring, along with a lifelong interest in the birth process, led her to become a doula.
Because childbirth is an incredibly personal, emotional experience, a woman’s birth story stays with her forever. It is important to Tammy to listen and assist her clients in making informed decisions so they can have a birth story they helped write.
Tammy has also been trained in Spinning Babies by Gail Tully.
Kirstie Sanders
Kirstie is a Certified Birth (DONA) Doula, wife, mother, animal-lover and bookworm. She became a Doula after her daughter’s birth when she realized what a wonderful asset, for both her and her husband, a doula could have been at her daughter’s delivery. Birth can be an emotional roller coaster. Kirstie believes that mothers need to be encouraged and supported to have the most joyous birth experience possible. She sees that when a mom feels educated, confident, respected and supported a birth can be positive, no matter what twists and turns it might take along the way.
She feels it is such an honor to be present for her mothers and to encourage and praise them during such a big life event. Kirstie’s favorite moments are to see moms meet their babies for the very first time. She knows she is witnessing the greatest, most pure form of love. It is a beautiful gift to see and feel such joy.
Staff
Jana McClure
It is my job to support moms in what can be the most exciting and challenging time in their lives. I want to encourage them as they learn to care for their baby and themselves on this journey of motherhood!
Crystal Perkins
Crystal Perkins is a mother to four humans and two canines. Her background includes marketing, grant, and non-profit work. Crystal spent many years as a volunteer babywearing educator and served on the board of Babywearing International. It was this history of assisting new families, along with the personal experience of having a birth doula for her VBAC, that led Crystal to jump at the opportunity to attend doula training.
Crystal believes that pregnancy and birth are a uniquely special time for a woman. Being present as part of the birth team and helping a family to welcome new life is a exceptional honor for her. As a doula, community health worker, and a Lamaze certified childbirth educator, she considers it a privilege to provide families with informational and emotional support so that they can make informed decisions about their care.
Kimberly Costello joined The Doula Foundation as CEO in May 2017. Kimberly has been advocating for women, children and families for over 20 years in Southwest Missouri. Kimberly enjoys building relationships, and is looking forward to giving people in the community an opportunity to learn more about this growing organization, and getting partners involved and connected in a meaningful way.
Contact Kimberly: kimberly@doulafoundation.org
Founders
Loa co-founded The Doula Foundation and continues to serve as an adviser to the board and staff. Loa is a trained doula through DONA and a certified yoga professional holding the distinction presented by C-IAYT as certified international yoga therapist (completion of 20,000 hours.) Loa has completed requirements as instructor of specialty yoga sciences such as prenatal/postpartum yoga and has worked to develop a yoga curriculum specific to the needs of The Doula Foundation clients and community they serve. Loa holds many more distinctions and honors not listed here.
Ginny co-founded the Doula Foundation and served as a certified Doula for several hundred births. Ginny has been recognized locally and nationally for many contributions to Nursing, Public Health and the quality of life that exists because of her efforts. Ginny’s Doula spirit lives on through the doulas she trained and clients she served.