Shamika Alexander, Director of Organizational Development
Meet Shamika >
Shamika Alexander graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a BA in Psychology. She has experience in non-profit program development and working with children and families within the foster care and school systems since 2003. Shamika began as a participant of MSVW programs.
Trachell Trice, Birth Support Program Director
Meet Trachell >
Trachell Trice is a full spectrum doula serving Austin families since 2016. She became a birth companion to protect women of color during the most transitional and vulnerable times in their lives. To add to her offerings, she became a yoga instructor to teach women of color how to balance the daily stresses that came with being a mother of color. Her mission is to inspire more black and brown women to become Birth Companions so that more women in our community are supported, educated, and protected throughout their childbirth experiences.
Tiek Johnson,
Operations and Human Resources Director
Meet Tiek >
Tiek Johnson graduated from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette with a B.A in Public Relations. She has over 10 years of experience in non-profit working in various capacities and areas of concentration. She is particularly fond of empowering families through postpartum, and nurturing healthy parent-child bonds and wellbeing.
Lourdes Kaman,
Program Coordinator and Event Strategist
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Lourdes Kaman has worked in the community for 21 years in various capacities. She served on the Arte Sana Board as President and was Chair for the Head Start Program as well as a council member for the Indigenous Women's Network/Alma de Mujer. Lourdes has developed and managed summer camps for 18 years for low-income children, promoting cultural awareness, art, music, and healthy eating, and has facilitated cultural appropriate parenting groups for many years in different settings in the Austin community.
Taylor Huntley,
Director of Communications and Community Engagement
Meet Taylor >
Taylor Huntley has spent most of her life serving people in various realms of work and community projects. Her experience with pregnancy and postpartum encouraged her to make reproductive justice her life work. Taylor is a trained full spectrum birth companion/doula and lactation educator. Her mission is to expand our reach so we can provoke more advocacy for birth justice. As well as obtain more community partnerships that help us provide our services to more pregnant people of color in Austin. Taylor began as a participant of MSVW programs.
Jeanette Monsalve,
Director of Organizational Innovation and Strategy
Meet Jeanette >
Jeanette Monsalve is a co-founder of Mama Sana Vibrant Woman and of Mamas of Color Rising (MOCR). She worked in women's repro health care for 15 years specializing in bereavement and loss, as a newborn care specialist for 5 years, and co-founded Yo Mama’s catering cooperative. She has also co-hosted a radio program for mamas for 8 years, created a zine on pregnancy called Knocked Up and a board game on social inequities for a MOCR workshop at Critical Resistance. Her focus within MSVW is on creating equitable, healthy and sustainable communities using principles of alternative economics and through skill sharing and works to uplift invisible work within our communities while celebrating together.
Ellen Gonzalez,
Meet Ellen >
Ellen/Elena Gonzalez is a registered trauma sensitive yoga therapist with studies at Sundara Yoga Therapy Center, specializing in helping those who suffer from anxiety, depression and trauma. She enjoys creating a warm, safe healing space for others and offering holistic and traditional medicine practices. In the realm of healing, she practices with communities as an Aromatherapist and Herbalist, Certified Birth Companion (Doula), Reiki and Tantric practitioner. A student of life, she continues to learn traditional and indigenous medicine, actively apprenticing with the Concilio Taino Guatu Ma Cu de Boriken of Puerto Rico. She is a Healer, earth and water protector and aspiring student midwife.
Elena Colón,
Meet Elena >
Elena Rose Colón (she/her) is a queer bilingual boricua (puertorriqueña) student midwife, community heath worker and organizer. She works locally with Mama Sana Vibrant Woman and Casa Marianella providing support in birth, postpartum, abortion, pregnancy loss and grief. She works remotely for the Queer and Trans Midwives Association, building community and working to create more resources for queer folks who are trying to build their families, as well as the midwives supporting them. Elena is also a babywearing educator and a lactation educator and has been providing these services to her community since 2014. Elena is a single parent to a confident and creative six year old who is full of energy. Her work is inspired and driven by the work of her ancestors and the other black and brown healers and medicine makers who have come before her.
Maya Pilgrim,
Meet Maya >
Maya Pilgrim has been a part of collective efforts towards more equitable and just communities within the US and internationally for over twenty years related to gender-based violence, reproductive justice, forced migration, and racial justice. She now spends her time advocating for liberatory learning and evaluation practices. When not leading the Learning and Evaluation team at the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault she also works as a consultant and facilitator. She is also a partner and a mother. She has a Bachelor's in Psychology and a Master’s in International Development and Social Change.
Shannon Spriggs Murdoch,
Meet Shannon >
For sixteen years, Dr. Shannon Spriggs Murdoch has been a global messenger committed to
the prevention of all forms of gender-based violence. As a leading gender violence
prevention educator, Dr. Murdoch has impacted thousands of people worldwide by
delivering transformational education regarding the issues they face in their everyday lives,
and the far-reaching impact of intimate partner violence, sexual violence, sexual
harassment, gender roles and language.
Virginia Wittebort,
Meet Virginia >
Virginia is a traditional Midwife, a trained Western Herbalist, and a Breathwork facilitator. A 2007 graduate of the Florida School of Traditional Midwifery who had the privilege to apprentice under the mentorship of Jennie Joseph at her Easy Access Clinic and birth center in Winter Garden, Florida. Through her work at this birth center and clinic the beautiful seed of working for a just world where pregnant people are empowered, respected, and loved was planted deeply in her heart. Virginia moved to Texas in 2010 and spent several years homeschooling her oldest child, training as an Early Childhood care giver based on Waldorf Education through Lifeways of North America, and training as a Western Herbalist through the Wildflower School of Botanical. She is ready to return to midwifery and allow the seed of love within her heart for supporting pregnant people and families of color to flourish at MSVW.
Stephanie Perez,
Birth Companion
Meet Stephanie >
While Stephanie was on her youth homelessness advocating journey she realized she was expecting with her 3rd child. After giving birth she felt very called to giving other expecting families full-spectrum support around the birth of their choice. Since joining the birth world Stephanie has become a Certified Birth Companion with MSVW, completed massage school, and is currently a CIMI. Her personal and professional birthing experiences in the Austin area has fueled her passion towards helping families get the quality birth and postpartum experience that everyone deserves. When Stephanie isn't working or advocating you can be sure she's out trying new foods around the city with her family.
Denise Washington,
Birth Companion
Meet Denise >
Taylor Huntley has spent most of her life serving people in various realms of work and community projects. Her experience with pregnancy and postpartum encouraged her to make reproductive justice her life work. Taylor is a trained full spectrum birth companion/doula and lactation educator. Her mission is to expand our reach so we can provoke more advocacy for birth justice. As well as obtain more community partnerships that help us provide our services to more pregnant people of color in Austin. Taylor began as a participant of MSVW programs.
Ro Jones,
Birth Companion
Meet Ro >
Ro is a Birth Companion + Postpartum Facilitator with Mama Sana Vibrant Woman. She is a self-care connoisseur with an emphasis on not losing self in parenthood. Ro is the keeper of The Embodied Womb, where she offers Brain Health + Personal Development Coaching. She is an enthusiast of herbs, nature, aerial arts, museums, reading, kayaking, journaling, and making lists. Ro’s passions are to create sacred spaces during their labor and nourish connections after birth.