Nonprofit spotlight: The Starting Place

​Originally created in Port-au-Prince Haiti, The Starting Place offers a full scope of Midwifery care for pregnant people and newborn babies. Tara Livesay and Bethany "KJ" Johnson worked in Haiti for more than a decade accomplishing their goal to leave the clinic in good hands and move to Bell County to open a stateside location.
 
The name came from Livesay and Johnson creating their manual for their model of care. Livesay says she simply stated, “when there are so many needs and the problems are great, what better place to start than with mothers and babies?” And thus, The Starting Place was named.
 
The two business partners feel extremely welcomed and accepted into the community. Livesay says they, “Work in partnership with [local] care providers. Because they are so incredibly busy and their volume is high, they are grateful for our ability to serve low risk clients.” They are proud to see how impactful their postpartum care and support groups are.
 
Livesay & Johnson will never fully lose their ties to Haiti. They say the Midwives in Haiti inspire them, “they live in very difficult circumstances but still show up daily when they are needed for a birth. They put their lives on the line to help others.” A portion of every birth at The Starting Place Temple, is donated to their Haitian sister birth center, the Heartline Maternity Center.
 
The Starting Place has resources for those in all stages of pregnancy, from pre-conception to 12 weeks postpartum. They offer support groups and educational resources for those in the postpartum phase when depression and anxiety are common. These opportunities are offered to their clients and the general community, even if they prefer to deliver at the hospital.
 
Overall, The Starting Place prides itself on being an affordable option for excellent holistic care. They look forward to, “continuing to meet needs of the community and to evolve as the needs do.”