Strength Based Community Change

Support SBCC's Community-Based Doula Program

SBCC's Community-Based Doula Program began as a pilot project and has been successfully supporting families, including those residing in Long Beach, since 2010. Over the years, SBCC has continued to train local residents and provide no-cost doula support to the community. In 2022, the program expanded to serve families throughout the South Bay and South Los Angeles communities. In 2024, we became the first accredited HealthConnect One Community-Based Doula training site in California.

For more than a decade, SBCC's doulas have partnered with hundreds of families, providing culturally responsive support throughout pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period. We believe that every family deserves access to compassionate, community-based care, regardless of income or insurance status.

Our program is more than a doula service—it is a workforce development and economic mobility initiative. Through our Community-Based Doula Career Pathway, individuals with lived experience, including parents, caregivers, and trusted community members, are provided the opportunity to receive high-quality doula training at no cost. Participants gain the knowledge, mentorship, hands-on experience, and certification support needed to build meaningful careers serving families in their own communities.

Community-based doulas improve birth outcomes, increase access to care, reduce disparities, and provide families with trusted support during one of the most important times in their lives. Our positive outcomes are proof of the difference doulas make.

While Medi-Cal reimbursement helps support some services, it covers only a portion of what it takes to operate a comprehensive doula program. Donations help fund doula training, certification support, mentorship, continuing education, travel reimbursement, diapers and baby supplies, lactation resources, childbirth education, family support services, and care for families who may not qualify for ongoing coverage, including undocumented community members.

With the support of our partners and generous donors, we can continue to provide no-cost doula services, train the next generation of community-based doulas, and create career opportunities for individuals with lived experience who are committed to improving maternal and infant health outcomes.

Your donation helps build healthier families, stronger communities, and a sustainable doula workforce.

Thank you in advance for your support.

Testimonials

"The best thing about the community-based doula program is the sense of community, the unwavering and nonjudgmental support, and the sense of empowerment it provided". Courtney R.

"The absolute best part about having a community-based Doula is gaining knowledge and power during childbirth that you never knew you had".
-Tiara T.

The Community Based Doula program at SBCC gave me the support I needed to have my dream birth. I felt so empowered by what I learned in the classes and having a doula at my birth was so helpful. I am forever grateful for the doula team.
-Michelle Z.