from our Executive director
Beloveds!
2020 wasn’t the easiest year, but for SisterWeb it was a year of tremendous success, and for me, personally, one of the most rewarding. In spite of huge challenges, my team and I feel triumphant for achieving our goals and staying connected to our community and purpose.
SisterWeb is doing it! We're changing lives!
It means so much for me to share this joy with you.
Thank you for your continued support of SisterWeb, it's really made such a difference.
At the beginning of 2020, SisterWeb was set with a successful program design, had hosted our first new doula training, and was part of the team sent to Sacramento to support new doula legislation at our state capital. The sky was the limit!
When COVID-19 hit we shuffled our programming and organization and like many others were forced to pivot and recreate what doula care would look like in the new socially distanced world. SisterWeb’s leadership team promptly began meeting twice a day EVERY DAY for the first months of the pandemic. We made an initial short term but difficult decision to pull doulas out of the hospital (many hospital protocols at the time kept us out as well) and the ethical decision to move up our plans to onboard our doulas as employees giving them the income stability and benefits (like health insurance and EAP access) they needed to weather the “COVID storm.”
With the support of generous donors and funding, SisterWeb was able to hire and stabilize staff at a time when many people were uncertain of their job status or were being laid off. That was and is a tremendous highlight to share!
SisterWeb’s staff is a resourceful bunch, and while there were many bumps and unexpected turns, we soon found our groove. We began regularly offering COVID-specific training to doulas and staff, providing company phones to staff for remote phone and video calls, organizing and coordinating regular food deliveries for clients, and distribution of PPE and other essential items needed by pregnant and postpartum moms.
I hope you continue to consider SisterWeb as a recipient of your giving. Your contributions support the work of doulas and our objective to make sure Black and Brown women in San Francisco have the safe and healthy births they deserve.
I would like to thank ALL our wonderful donors with all my heart!
Without the enthusiastic support of our donors and funders, we could not have made it through 2020. We appreciate the “web” of support that you’ve graciously helped us build.
In Community,
Marna Armstead, Executive Director
2020 Highlights
COVID-19 made our dedication to promoting and advocating for healthy pregnancies for our clients even stronger. Despite the challenges we have experienced, our organization continued to grow and our clients' needs were met.
We Grew Our Team
One of our greatest successes of 2020 was providing reliable employment to our team of doulas. We transitioned 10 doulas from independent contractors to full-time employees with benefits. We also sustained an administrative team of four coordinators and five organizational administrators. Additionally, we went through a selection process to hire a team of consultants who will steward our first Strategic Planning Process in 2021.
We also furthered our organization's use of Results Based Accountability as a common framework to set goals, measure agency, and program success, and evaluate the viability of strategic partnerships.
2020 marked the year of the "heavy lift" as we completed the process of setting up Compyle, our Case Management software. While staff training and adoption of Compyle will continue throughout 2021, we have established a documentation system that keeps client information safe, confidential and accessible to all SW staff.
We Invested In Our Community
- SisterWeb established its workforce development team and continued to promote lifelong learning through mentorship within the community.
- SisterWeb’s 7 doula mentors held 67 individual mentorship sessions.
- SisterWeb provided doulas 17 birth-related professional development sessions, totaling more than 80 hours of continuing education.
- We trained 23 new community doulas from within San Francisco's Black, Pacific Islander and Latinx communities.
- We partnered with hospitals, clinics, and birth centers to provide vital community engagement services during COVID-19, virtual childbirth education classes, and opportunities for bidirectional feedback at clinical sites to address implicit bias and structural racism.
- We expanded our scope to deliver essential items, food, and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to our clients and staff.
We Supported Our Clients
SisterWeb is committed to providing the best care, education, and support to our clients so they experience healthy and joyous births. SW clients achieve better health outcomes than mothers who do not receive perinatal doula support.
National data shows the prevalence of racial disparities in maternal health among birthing people of color, who have higher ratesof cesarean births and lower vaginal births and lower rates of mothers who initiated breastfeeding at birth. At SisterWeb, we focus our efforts on reducing the negative health impacts caused by these disparities.
- 63 of clients' births were attended in person
- 38 of clients' births were attended virtually (text, phone, and or video chat).
- Doulas spent an average of 16.5 hours supporting their clients during labor and birth.
Overall, SisterWeb Clients resided in these zip codes of San Francisco
- 33% from 94124
- 19% from 94110 & 94112
Kindred
- 38% in 94124
Semilla Sagrada
- 16% in 94124
- 17% in 94112
- 22% in 94110
M.A.N.A.
- 30% in 94124
We Met Our Goals
SisterWeb is committed to building a community where Black, Latinx, and Pacific Islander pregnant and birthing people and their families benefit from the expertise, support, and advocacy of a doula.
SisterWeb Organizational Goals:
- Advocate for and nurture a skilled workforce of Community Doulas from within Black/ Latinx/ Pacific Islander communities in San Francisco.
- Help clients feel informed and empowered during their birth journey.
- Ensure birthing AA/Latinx/PI clients receive high quality, non-judgmental, culturally concordant doula care which helps them achieve their own birth goals.
- Coordinate care with healthcare systems in San Francisco and aim to address racial inequities in birth.
- Ensure that San Francisco’s Black, Latinx and Pacific Islander communities are aware of community doulas and their benefit to family success.
SisterWeb Doula Programs
Kindred Birth Companions (KBC): Kindred Birth Companions is a Doula program created by and for Black Doulas to support the Black family structure by empowering them to have safe, memorable, and joyous birthing experiences.
M.A.N.A. Pasefika (MANA): MANA Pasefika is a doula program created by and for Pacific Islanders of Melanesian, Micronesian, and Polynesian descent whose purpose is to Maintain Ancestral Knowledge and Autonomy in our communities. M.A.N.A. equips birthing families with the skills to successfully navigate the western medical system while grounding this rite of passage in the customs and sacred cultural understandings of their ancestors.
Semilla Sagrada (SS): Semilla Sagrada Semilla Sagrada employs Latinx-identified doulas to support Latinx pregnant families in including their cultures and traditions in their birth experiences and to help ensure they have memorable and dignified births.
Financial Picture
SisterWeb COVID-19 Birth Worker Relief Fund | $2,500
Zuckerberg San Francisco General COVID-19 Pregnancy Care | $5,000
Every Mother Counts | $100,000
Silicon Valley Community Fund | $50,000
The University of California Berkeley | $70,747
Reaching Our Sisters Everywhere | $3,000
San Francisco Public Health Foundation, Sugary Drinks Distributor Tax Fund | $150,000
San Francisco Health Plan | $100,000
Mission Neighborhood Health Center | $16,500
Collective Impact | $6,400
San Francisco Mayor's Office of Housing and Community Development (MOHCD) | $75,000
Every Mother Counts | $70,000
Solid Start Initiative | $18,750
SisterWeb The San Francisco Foundation | $237,825
Anthem Blue Shield | $117,000
ZSFGH Hearts Grant | $10,000
San Francisco Public Health Foundation, Sugary Drinks Technical Assistance Grant | $37,500
Individual Donors | $178,682
Client Testimonials
SisterWeb believes that community doulas not only impact our city by providing birth support but also by growing the trust and involvement that encourages people to come together and collectively address their health, wellness, and family resiliency.
“SisterWeb is an amazing organization and I hope to be able to have their support in my next pregnancy”
“I love SisterWeb! I'm happy I found you all. I hate that it's over. I recommend this program to all women. getting this support and knowledge motivates me to want to give back to other pregnant women of color.”
“My doulas were amazing and everything you guys do is greatly appreciated. I will recommend siterweb to anyone that is pregnant”
“Very happy with doulas, vital resource to community, addresses infant mortality rates, saves lives”
SisterWeb Staff
Leadership Circle: Marna Armstead, Executive Director. Deundra Hundon, Director of Workforce Development. Marlee-I Mystic, Director of Doula Programs. Laura Perez, Director of Mentorship. Patty Rodriguez, Operations Manager. Alli Cuentos, Director of Evaluations.
Coordinators: Bria Donaldson, Kindred Birth Companions Doula Coordinator. Rudi Mondragon, Semilla Sagrada Doula Coordinator. Ruta Lauleva Aiono, M.A.N.A. Pasefika Doula Coordinator.
Administration: Brianne Taylor, Communications Administrator
Jason McMonagle, Development Consultant
Doulas: Samantha Judkins, KBC Doula. Azraa Muhammed, KBC Doula. Brianna Skinner, KBC Doula. Ka'xia Draper, KBC Doula. Jaya Pruitt, KBC Doula. Ruta Aiono, M.A.N.A. Doula. Elena Mariscal, SS Doula. Vinia "Vanessa" Castro, SS Doula. Daisy Orellana, SS Doula.
Doula Mentors: Jen Madanat, Karen Lopez-Acero, Shannon Padlog
2020 Interns: Lavette King, Communications Intern. Summer Parrish, Champion Dyad Initiative Intern. Obaida Abdallah, Evaluations Intern.
Thank you to our donors.
Aaron Johnson. Abigail Stopper. Abuelita Esperanza. Adam Ting. Addie Bjornsen. Aileen Clark. Al & Terry Everley. Alex Granados. Alicia Pollak. Alison Golden. Allison Filice. Allison Sander. Amanda Klinger. Amara Humphry. Amber Bouabdallah. Amelia Barth. Amy Benedetto. Amy Whittle. Amy Zelezen. Ana Gonzalez. Andrea Ravich. Andree Sosler. Andrew Casteel. Anna Altshuler. Anne Petrides. Annette Spector. Anthem Blue Cross. April Spears. Arin Babakhani. Ashley Mahoney. Ashley Scatena. Audrey Osuna. Becky Berry. BellyFull Birth. Brianne Cannon. Britt Fohrman Yoga. Brittny Gettman. Bryan Igarta. Carmen Martin. Cassidy Blackwell. Cassie Schemper. Catherine Gieser. Catherine Gieser. Catherine Lofgren. Centering Healthcare Institute. Cerena Ishaq. Chana Greene. Charles Brinton. Chasa Toliver-Leger. Cheryl Howell. Chris Kirby. Christine Arnold. Christine Hicks. Christine Yeh. Christopher Rodman. Claire Jensen. Clara Vaknin. Clifford Warren. Connie Lin. Cora Marie Kirk. Courtney ODonnell. Craig Micon. Cynthia Lum. Daphina Melbourne. David Wachsman. Davida Silverman. Dawn Gordon. Dawn Noelle Smith Beutler. Deborah Anderson. Deborah Cohan. Deborah Zicht. Desiree Tamsky San Francisco Doula Group. Devin Kelsey. Devon Vandewiele. Diana Young. Dilek Barlow. Dylan Atchley. Elisa Bernstein. Eliza Dryer. Elizabeth Jensen. Elizabeth Klein. Elizabeth Morrison. Elizabeth Smith. Elizabeth Steinfield. Ellen Pedersen. Elspeth Connatty. Emelyn Bluhm. Emily Distel. Emily Kriner. Emily Mitnick. Erica Nunez. Erin Cahill. Erin First. Erin Flynn. Euni Lee. Every Mother Counts. Fabian Fernandez. Fidelity Investment. First 5 San Francisco. Francesca Boulton. Gerry Brinton. Golden Gate Mothers Group. Hannah Addario-Berry. Harmony Younes. Hayley Nelson. Heidi Moseson. Holly and Jose Cost and Gutierrez. Humanurture. Jacqueline Candido. Jacqueline Kurzer. Jairo Avalos. Jean Krasilnikoff. Jeffrey Songco. Jeni Frudden. Jennifer Gilomen. Jennifer Honea. Jess Garon. Jessica Easter. Jessica Rix. Jessica Rubenstein. Jillian Lohndorf. John Addicott. John and Katrina Clifford. Joseph Hurst. Joseph Zadeh. Joy Burkhard. Julia Lorraine Doula + Photographer. Julia Strasser. Julian Ward. Juliane Diamond. Julie Vinogradsky. Kaity Popov-Fox. Kara Myers. Karen Scott. Karla Gregorio. Katherine Grote. Kathleen Hawkins. Kathleen Joglekar. Kathleen McKinnon. Kathryn Aaker. Katie Gruzd. Kelsey Morrison. Kerri Smith. Kerynne Tejada. Kim de Haan. Kimberly Dillon. Kimberly Kingsley. Kimberly Sarquis. Kimberly Segar. Kira Poncele. Kiran Malladi. Kristan Elman. Kristen Bell. Kristen Fortier. Kristin Lin. Kristy Eiffert. Kyle Tomlinson. Laura B Callahan. Laura Bowen. Laura Johnson. Laura Norrell. Laura Rillos. Lauren Demitry. Lauren Miller. Lauren Thrower. Leah Chalofsky. LesLeigh Ford. Lesly Simmons. Lindsay Ferstandig. Lindsey Weinstein. Lola Behrens. Louise Cronin. Madeline F Oden. Madison Smith. Mai Le. Marcia Longoria-Chardavoine. Margaret Hutchison. Margaret Mann. Margaret Murray. Margot Fahnestock. Marna Armstead. Marni Chan. Mary Murray. Masharika and Sean Maddison. Matt Biggar. Matt Martin. Matthew Levy. Max Segar. Meagan Trevino. Megan Kelly. Megan Quental. Megan Teves. Meredith Hork. Merritt McLean. Mialani Federico. Michael Nuttall. Michael Rolig. Michaela Lambert. Michelle Kraemer. Michelle Kreger. Michelle Lee Rich. Miriam Doyne. Molly Condon. Molly Freedenberg. Monnie Reba Efross. Nancy Myrick. Nancy Myrick. Natasha Selvey. Nathalia Isenegger. Natural Resources Doula Trainees. Nicole Pariser. Nicole Rattner. Noelle Brodeur. Nora Houseman. Nora Murray. Paige Taylor. Paloma Herman. Pamela Faricelli. Patricia Rodriguez. Paulette J Meyer and David A Friedman. Peter Chenaux. Rachael Arreguin. Rebecca Amirault. Rebecca Sabrina Mahoney. Rebecca Mendez. Rebekah Kaplan. Rebekah Premo. Renee Gross. Robin Fragner. Robin Nasatir. Rory Sayres. Rudy Behrens. Rupa Robbins. Ruth M. Pardee. Ruth Saunders. Ruth Schoenbach. Sabrina Mahoney. SalesForce.com. Sandi Lane. Sandra Lloyd. Sara Byruck. Sara DeLong. Sarah & Tom Mertel. Sarah Ezrin. Sarah Kenny. Sarah Riley. Semmantha Chie. Shalini Desroches. Shara Kaufman. Shipra Kayan. Shireen McSpadden. Siedra Loeffler.Silicon Valley Community Foundation. Sola Morrissey. Sonia Kahn. Sonya Abrams. Stacey Newman. Stephanie Lane. Stephanie Rich. Stephen Spector. Steven Morris. Sue Belen and Phil King. Tara Bozorg-Grayeli. The James N Cost Foundation David Cost. The San Francisco Foundation. Thea Delage. Tiffany Dao. Trisha Kral. Tushani Illangasekare. UCSF. Veronica Belmont. Victoria Beasley. Victoria McCartney. Weston Clay. Whitney Hill. William Cartagena. William Minton. Wilson-Westergren Family Charitable Fund. Young Community Developers, Inc. Zachary Lewis.