Meet Our Team
Our dedicated birth doulas, childbirth educators, and support staff work with one purpose in mind: to help new and growing families have the best start possible. Come to one of our free monthly Meet the Doulas Informational to learn more!
Sarah Paksima
Owner
Sarah (she/her) has been supporting families for 21 years in the United States, Kuwait, Oman, India, and Jordan as a doula, childbirth educator, and maternal health advocate. Sarah and her husband work hard to keep up with their five kids. She maintains her sanity by raising their children in a town with no stoplights, eating copious amounts of dark chocolate, and stocking their pantry with food kids will eat. When she’s not attending births, she enjoys reading, gardening, watching movies while folding endless piles of laundry, and letting kids bury her in the sand at the beach.
MPH, MBA, CD (DONA), LCCE
DC/VA Team
Amy Battjer
Amy (she/her) made the transition to birth work after her own experiences becoming a mother to her two sons.
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Carrie Tyson
Carrie (she/her) is a proud mother of 3 children (2 earthside angels, 1 heavenly angel). She was born at the famous…
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Emilee Weiss-Rice
Central Doula
Emilee (she/her) has worked with people experiencing the full spectrum of pregnancy outcomes, including birth… Read more →
Jen Finnegan
Jen (she/her) has been lucky enough to be on a life journey that has led her to truly appreciate and understand…
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Kelsey Ogenia
Kelsey (she/her) has always felt called to birth work and reproductive health issues. While studying at the University of…
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Melishe Ivey
Rena Geibel
Rena’s (she/her) birth of two girls in Kenya in 2004 and 2005 influenced her to shift her professional focus …
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What brings us together?
The collective sum of the individual differences of our doulas are what makes DC Birth Doulas great! We know it is the different life experiences, knowledge, self-expression, unique capabilities and talents that our doulas bring to their work that sets us apart.
We embrace our doulas and clients differences in size, age, ability, ethnicity, family, marital or parental status, gender identity or expression, language, national origin, race, religion, and sexual orientation. These differences bring us together as a team and infuse the dynamic support we provide the families we serve.
DC/MD Team
Antwanette Summers
Antwanette (she/her) a mother of three, believes that each pregnancy is different and every pregnant person deserves all the…
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Lindsay Wolff
Lindsay (she/her) has always been interested in the “whys” and the “hows” of different systems. The same inquisitive pieces of herself that led…
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Maggie Albano
Maggie (she/her) started studying women’s health in college, she realized that she didn’t really know much about how bodies worked…
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Tamara Davis
Tamara Davis (she/her) served as a medic for 10 years in the Army, is a military spouse and mother of three living children and two angel
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Staff
Elizabeth Parish
Executive Administrative Director
Elizabeth (she/her) felt the first tugs in the direction of childbirth when she was in college and spent time with a midwife…
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Priyanka Banerjee-Guenette
Content Strategist & Infant Development Advisor
Priyanka (she/her) built her interest in perinatal, infant and child health during her Physical Therapy education in Canada.
Rebecca Justus
Policy, Research and Advocacy
Rebecca (she/her)
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Shaleen Ford
Payroll & Wellness Resource Advisor
Shaleen enjoys being part of a group that is dedicated to improving birth and honoring each individual.
Passion & Professionalism
Something all of our team members share is the belief that growing humans is sacred and difficult work – the kind of work that deserves the attention of a professionally trained and dedicated team.
As a socially-conscious small business, we would not be able to do our work without the additional support of volunteers who donate money and time to support the work of birth equity. If you are passionate about reproductive justice and you are looking for an opportunity to give back to the community, send us an email!
