In This Issue

About Pregnancy
     Alcohol's Effect on Fetal Development
About Children
     Can Parents Get Separation Anxiety?
One Doctor's Opinion
     Test Leads to Needless C-section
Our Charis Family
     Elizabeth Lugmayer, CCE, CD, EMT
Charis Cuisine
      Rainbow Salad
Tidbits from Ebony
     Visits with My Guard

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Our address

Charis Childbirth, Inc.
P.O. Box 6900
North Port, FL 34290

It's been over a year since Charis headquarters moved to Florida.  If you use our old Virginia Beach address, your mail will not reach us as the post office is no longer forwarding mail.  Be sure to mail your yearly membership fees to the Florida address!

Our Director's Heart

Guess Where...

We at Charis have a heart for the nations and we try to keep a finger on the pulse of different cultures and their birthing practices. I have been learning a little bit about a culture lately that I thought you might find very interesting. I'm going to tell you a little about the culture and I want you to guess where they live.

This people group lives in small, overcrowded, insect-infested, dilapidated homes. Extended family or several families all live under one roof.  Many of them live a migrant life and most are not originally from the country where they currently live.

Disease is rampant in this community.   HIV, syphilis, tuberculosis, hepatitis, and others are just some of the diseases they face and the people have very little understanding of how to prevent transmission of these diseases. Women, especially, are at risk for HIV.  Leprosy has even been found there.   Health care available to them is limited.

The life they live is especially difficult for pregnant women.  The work they do, extreme poverty, malnourishment, and substandard living conditions put them at risk for many pregnancy complications such as spina bifida, gestational diabetes, severe birth defects, IUGR, preterm birth, and more. These expectant moms do not usually receive prenatal care and will just show up at the nearest hospital when they are ready to deliver their babies.

They work long, hard hours with rarely a day off in one of the most dangerous jobs there is: farm work.  Pesticide and other hazardous chemical exposure, stoop labor, climbing tall ladders with 100-lb bags of produce on their backs, accidents involving farm machinery, unavailability of drinking water, lack of bathroom and hand washing facilities, and other hazards lead to many health problems, injuries, and deaths. Both men and women do this work, but women are paid only about half of what the men are paid to do identical work. Women are mistreated, harassed, and raped on the job.

The average income for one of these farm workers is the equivalent of $5,000 to $7,500 a year.  Some crews are reported to be paid only in drugs and alcohol.

Have you guessed yet???

Most of these people spend their life savings to move to the country where they now live in hopes of a better life for their families.  Many are deceived and coerced into paying huge sums of money for "papers" they need to enter the new country, only to find out afterwards that they have been scammed. All their money gone, they feel trapped in their new life.

Cultural and language barriers make it difficult for them to integrate into the culture of their new country.   Shopping is especially a challenge for them.  There are schools available, but sending their children to be taught within an unfamiliar culture with different morals and values is very scary for these families.

Have you figured it out???

With these third-world living conditions and with working conditions and treatment resembling slavery in the US in the 1800's, one would expect this to be happening somewhere in perhaps Africa or South America.  These impoverished communities, however, exist unnoticed right here in the United States of America, in the shadows of pristine residential communities with manicured landscaping and man-made fountains. 

I knew there were people who worked on the farms here where I live in Florida, and I knew they were probably not paid well; but until recently, I had no idea how bad it really is.  Although the majority of them are either United States citizens or are here working legally, their life is eerily similar to the life of slaves on southern plantations, but just with a different name: migrant and seasonal farm workers.  I didn't know that so many of these workers brought their families to live here under false pretenses. I didn't know that there are people out there deceiving and scamming in order to get cheap laborers to come to the US.

Now that I know, I wonder what I can do to help. I wonder if, as a midwife, I will be able to do something to make life a little better for these moms and babies. I don't know exactly what I will be able to do, but I know that the first step is to learn their language. I now have a huge desire to learn Spanish along with my children during homeschooling. I don't know what the next step will be, but I'm sure God will reveal it to me when it is time.

Florida is not the only place where these communities exist. They are all over the United States and there may even be a migrant or seasonal farm worker community in your "backyard". I encourage you to find out. Education is desperately needed. Perhaps YOU will be able to provide childbirth classes, doula services, or a "free access" clinic where they can come to receive prenatal care. Perhaps you are able to do some grant writing in order to provide the funding for such endeavors.  Those kinds of things save lives.

My ultimate hope is that more and more people will become aware of this "modern day slavery" and that something can be done to bring it to an end. Until then, I want to do whatever God leads me to do to help these beautiful people.


Blessings,
Kristin Schuchmann
Executive Director, Charis Childbirth, Inc.
 

The information in this newsletter is for educational purposes only and is not intended to take the place of medical care and advice from your health care provider.