Hello MANA members and friends,

I am your Director of Events, Nicole Marie White, CPM. I am from Michigan and currently working as a member of the Coalition to License Certified Professional Midwives in Michigan. We just passed the house in December!

My great great grandma was a midwife.

Her name was Fannie Bush. I didn't know about her until after I began attending births in 2001. I took the long road apprenticing with several midwives in different practices and finally I attended Maternidad La Luz for the year program. I am so glad I did. I was surprised at how much I loved the clinic setting, collaborating with other midwives and getting to provide access of care to many more people then I was accustomed to in the home birth setting. I started my studies in San Francisco, CA and was able to participate in an awesome program at St. Elizabeth's where we did labor support and child birth education for the teenage mothers who resided there. After 10 months, I gained an apprenticeship in Santa Cruz. I know both of those experiences colored my understanding of midwifery care and the impact that quality maternity care has on every mother and baby. I just finished a 2 year stint working in a bustling, adorable home birth practice in Traverse City, MI. Prior to that I had a fellowship in the city of Detroit to work towards lowering the infant mortality in the city. I also have spent time working as a midwife in Uganda and Haiti.

I’m thrilled to be on the MANA board.

"Midwives are the warriors on the front line of health care battling to ensure that women survive childbirth and babies are born safely even in the most marginalized areas." (World Health Organization) My interest in spreading the midwifery model of care is what fuels me. I truly believe midwives are the answer to much of the maternal health crisis we see here in the US and abroad. I look forward to when the CPM is recognized and licensed all over the USA.

What do I do at MANA?

I am Director of Events, so that means I am at the helm of our fabulous Annual Conference!

Conference is such a corner stone to MANA and I am honored to be part of the amazing team that makes it happen. SHINE was such a bright way to begin my MANA journey and this year in Atlanta will prove to be another fantastic time. Conference is so important and many people look forward to it every year. Time to connect, celebrate, learn, see old friends and make new ones. Midwives are such a unique group! We are all different but share a common, deep thread. I loved when Deborah Kaley accepted her MANA educator award in Albuquerque and she said all her friends are midwives, former midwives, current midwives or future midwives. It made me smile and be grateful to be in a room full of friends.

Please reach out to me if you want to be more involved, have questions or suggestions, this is your conference! As MANA is your organization this is your conference! Thank you for doing this work. I am in deep appreciation for all of you that have worked so hard to create this solid foundation.

I am currently in the airport in Paris on my way to Greece. I am headed to Greece to work with Circle of Health International ( COHI ) in the refugee camps. Please check them out for more info! And check my website if you want to get to know me better. Thank you for welcoming me into the folds of such a rich, important organization.

See you in October at MANA16 in Atlanta, Georgia!

~ Nicole