One-Day Conference Presenters
Educators and Birth Professionals

ONE-DAY CONFERENCE PRESENTERS

Naolí Vinaver, Traditional and Professional Certified Midwife, Speaker, and Educator
Naolí Vinaver is a Mexican midwife who combines traditional Mexican and contemporary home birth practices, with a profound respect for the physiology of natural birth, having attended over 1800 home births in both Mexico and Brazil. Naolí is a passionate speaker and educator, teaching hundreds of workshops and seminars in over 30 countries around the world.

Social Media Handles
Instagram: @naolivinaver_english, @naolivinaver_portugues,
@naolivinaver_espanol, @naolivinaver_francais
Facebook: /nvinaver

Debby Amis, BSN, former RN, CD(DONA), LCCE, FACCE
Debby Amis’s career in childbirth education spans 40 years. She has taught childbirth education classes, trained new childbirth educators and doulas, and updated educators at international conferences and specialty workshops. A long-time volunteer with Lamaze International, Debby has served as President of Lamaze, Education Council Chair, and on the Certification Council. Debby and her business partner, Jeanne Green, authored the popular childbirth education handbook, Prepared Childbirth – The Family Way, which has sold almost 3 million copies. Debby and her husband, Steve, also a past Lamaze Board Member, live in Houston, Texas.

Social Media Handle
Facebook: /debby.amis, /familywaypublications

Tomesha D. Walker, LCCE, CD (DONA), CBC
As a Certified Birth Doula, Childbirth Educator, Lactation Consultant, Author, and Speaker, Tomesha specializes in developing and implementing programs to assist pre- and post-pregnancy women with classes and workshops through her business and nonprofit. Mrs. Walker primarily works with families, hospitals, nonprofits and community organizations that seek tailored techniques and solutions for women and families connecting as an International Bestselling Author, Mrs. Walker uses her books to bring hope, support and encouragement to women with the skill and knowledge to birth in peace and power. Her international network of support rejoices over creating "Fearless Moms" and inspires by her birth work experiences with personally birthing four children, one of which was premature and a kidney transplant recipient. Mrs. Walker's books include Purpose in Pain, Pregnancy Prayers Vol. 1, and The Real Me book series, which provide hope, a better understanding of pregnancy, the phases, resources and how to defeat the natural fears that come as a part of the journey with encouragement. Tomesha lives in Cleveland, Ohio, with Darnell, her husband of 20 years, and their four children by birth. She loves singing, dancing, traveling, and learning new things, yet nothing compares to the adventures and joys of motherhood and serving the Lord!

Social Media Handles
Instagram: @TomeshaWalker, @YourBirthDestiny

Emily Wannenburg, DNDM, CLC, AdvCD(DONA), HBCE, AFAA, 4TFM
Emily Wannenburg is the founder of 4th Trimester Fitness® Method, a company devoted to the physical and educational preparation for labor, birth and postpartum. Living internationally for most of her life, she is a South African trained nurse midwife and has worked with more than 900 families as a personal trainer, and birth doula in the United States. It has been her delight to combine her 30+ years of professional expertise to create a company culture devoted to “Improving Birth through Movement and Education”. She is a popular speaker known for her “hands-on-get-up-and-move” approach to sharing information and firmly believes that when you teach one, you reach many!

Social Media Handles
Instagram: @4thtrimesterfitnessmethod
Facebook: /4thTrimesterFitnessMethod

Melissa Lennox, MBA, RYT, RPYT; Founder, Yoga For Birthing™
Melissa Lennox is the Founder of Yoga For Birthing™, a specialized prenatal yoga methodology designed to support physiologic birth by balancing the tone, tension, strength, and suppleness of the soft tissues to prepare the body for birth & optimize maternal fetal positioning. Melissa aims to make physiologic childbirth more accessible to more people, naturally, by teaching them how to prepare their body and mind for the birth experience. In addition to her Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees, Melissa holds yoga teaching certifications in Hatha Yoga, Prenatal Yoga, and Yoga For Labor & Delivery, as well as a Certificate in Anatomy of the Chest, Neck, Abdomen, and Pelvis from Yale University. She has also completed the official Spinning Babies® Workshop. Melissa lives with her husband and daughter in beautiful Raleigh, North Carolina.

Social Media Handles
Instagram: @yogaforbirthing
Youtube: Motherhood With Melissa (free prenatal yoga videos)
Website: yogaforbirthing.com

Mary Jo Podgurski, RNC, EdD, LCCE
Dr. Mary Jo Podgurski is an RN, educator, counselor, author, and speaker of more than 900 workshops/trainings. She is a past Lamaze International president and has been an LCCE since the 1970s. She is also AASECT certified as a sexuality educator and sexuality counselor. Dr. Mary Jo is the creator of the 12 books in The Nonnie SeriesTM on the challenging topics of death, consent, disability, gender, sex, trauma, relationships, mental health, quarantine, race, pregnancy and birth, and puberty. She has authored 38 books for parents, young people and professionals.

Social Media Handles
Instagram: @drmaryjo_teen_outreach
Facebook: /mary.j.podgurski
Twitter: @DrMaryJoPod
LinkedIn: dr-mary-jo-podgurski
Websites: www.healthyteens.com, www.drmaryjopodgurski.com

Mechell Duran, DNP, APRN, FNP-C, CDCES, BC-ADM, NBC-HWC, LCCE
Dr. Mechell Duran is a trauma-informed pregnancy health coach, diabetes specialist, and a Lamaze-certified childbirth educator. She has over fifteen years of healthcare experience as a nurse and family nurse practitioner and has been trained to facilitate comprehensive trauma programs by the Center of Mind Body Medicine. She is the owner of Sugar Bump Coach, a community where women with Gestational Diabetes can be inspired and informed with recipe ideas and evidenced-based information from pregnancy to the 4th trimester. She resides in South Florida with her husband, their 4-year-old son and two furry children, sugar and brownie. In Dr. Duran’s spare time, she enjoys cooking, making aromatherapy recipes, journaling and attending her local church.

Social Media Handles
Facebook: /SugarBumpCoach
LinkedIn: /mechellduran
Pinterest: /sugarbumpcoach

Hillary Melchiors PhD, MPH, LCCE, CD(DONA)
Hillary Melchiors PhD, MPH, LCCE, CD(DONA) is a medical anthropologist, childbirth educator, birth doula, and writer in Evansville, Indiana. She received her PhD in Medical Anthropology and Masters in Public Health from Case Western Reserve University, and has practiced as a birth doula since 2014 when she founded the Doula Group of Evansville. She has served as a leader of the Evansville Birth Network and member of the Southwest Indiana Breastfeeding Coalition, as well as serving on the DONA advocacy committee. She helped found The Birth Geeks podcast and lives in Southern Indiana with her partner, two children, and adorable dog Buzz.

Social Media Handles
Instagram: @HillaryMelch, @thebirthgeeks, @doulagroupofevansville

Kay’La Mumford- Full Spectrum Holistic Doula and Doula Trainer, CHW, Executive Director of Birth & Embrace Communities Inc
Kay’La Mumford is a Full Spectrum Holistic Doula, Doula Trainer, CHW, and birth educator. Kay’La has been certified as a Doula for several years but has been in birth work for far longer. She has completed several doula certification courses, placenta encapsulation, postpartum doula training, lactation specialist training, and childbirth education. She founded her organization Birth & Embrace Communities Inc in 2021 and has trained close to 50 Doulas. Kay’La focuses on providing equity and education to bridge gaps in maternal health.  In 2020, she led the development of a project to support other Doulas and families during the pandemic.  Not only has she learned about birth through her profession but she has also conquered birth as a mother of 3. She has experienced home, hospital, and an unassisted birth and has lots of experience and wisdom to share with everyone. Her mission is to provide community expansion in under marginalized communities and collectively work to redefine infant/maternal health in our country.

Lakeeta Watts Full Spectrum Doula, CHW, Trauma Informed Trainer
Lakeeta is the founding Executive Director of Essentially Empowered, Inc, an organization based in Milwaukee that services multiple counties in Southeast Wisconsin, Essentially Empowered provides youth development opportunities, resource and referral services, trauma-informed programming, and youth doula support. Lakeeta is a Certified Community Health Worker, Full Spectrum Holistic Doula, and Certified Lactation Specialist, and student midwife. Lakeeta aims to reduce health disparities experienced by people of color through trauma-informed care, advocacy, and policy change.

Teresina Simmons RN, Wisconsin Perinatal Coordinator, Doula
Teresina Simmons is the Founder and Executive Director of Regal Family Services and Founder and CEO of Regal Aspire, LLC.  She is a Registered Nurse, RN Consultant, Doula and Doula trainer, Perinatal Educator, CHW Instructor, CPR Instructor, health and wellness educator, and student midwife.  She has assisted in a number of pilots and community sessions within the community surrounding such topics as COVID/ vaccine hesitancy, health literacy, patient advocacy, Doula work and parenting.  She has provided assistance and mentorship to individuals and community organizations to create and/or streamline processes and programs.  She is also currently working at the Wisconsin Association for Perinatal Care as the Regional Support Specialist where her role is to develop and support the levels of care designation process, contribute to the educational programming, and create and implement a program of collaboration and support for hospitals and perinatal care providers following level of care designation.

Jessie Harrold, B.Sc., MA, CD(DONA)
Jessie Harrold is a coach and doula who has been supporting women and mothers through the most radical transformations and rites of passage life have to offer for nearly fifteen years.  She is the founder of the internationally-acclaimed matrescence support program MotherSHIFT and its sister program for postpartum professionals, The Village.  Jessie is the author of the upcoming title Mothershift:  Reclaiming Motherhood as a Rite of Passage.  She is a mother of two and lives on the East Coast of Canada.

Social Media Handles
Instagram: @jessie.es.harrold
Facebook: /jessie.es.harrold
Website: www.jessieharrold.com

Search