Stephanie Spencer (fourth from left) and staff of Urban Baby Beginnings (Photo courtesy Urban Baby Beginnings)
In recent years, babies in Richmond and throughout the commonwealth have been born amid a crisis. Mortality and health risks to infants and new and expecting mothers more than doubled between 2017 and 2023, according to data collected by the Virginia Department of Health, reaching a peak during the COVID-19 pandemic as both groups faced unprecedented threats.
During that time, politicians, health care providers, nonprofits and other organizations united to turn the tide. Increased funding, new partnerships and innovative health care models are shaping Virginia’s perinatal and postnatal outcomes at the local and state levels, and Urban Baby Beginnings, a maternal and infant health nonprofit based in Richmond, is leading the charge.
Established in 2015 by Stephanie Spencer, Urban Baby Beginnings descends from successive infant-focused organizations in the area. Capital Child Care launched in 1994, providing free and reduced cost day care before becoming the Capital Diaper Bank — the commonwealth’s first — in 2004. As volunteers provided diapers, food and clothing, they realized that mothers, too, needed support.
“During that time, we learned that when community members become pregnant or after they have a baby, they often have a very tough time with navigating [support] systems and finding a community. ... When you’re able to navigate those challenges, you have better outcomes, period,” says Spencer, the nonprofit’s executive director. “In 2015, we knew we needed to add maternal [support] to the work we do. We needed to focus on pregnant and parenting people, because that’s where it starts.”
In the last 10 years, Spencer and others have expanded the scope of the nonprofit, offering education and programming for prenatal, perinatal and early childhood care as well as doula services and lactation support. They also refer community members to other resources in the area and collect and share data on the health care needs of recent and soon-to-be mothers.
The group’s physical presence has grown, too. Urban Baby Beginnings now counts health hubs in Richmond, Petersburg, Roanoke, Newport News and Norfolk in its footprint, centralizing care and resources in high-need communities for expectant mothers throughout their pregnancies and for children until age 2.
The challenges mothers and infants face are diverse, including mental health disorders, pregnancy complications, low birthrates and inadequate access to care. In many cases, mothers may also have additional health problems unrelated to pregnancy, lack access to education or employment, or face a public health crisis. Improving health outcomes often means addressing multiple problems at once.
“Because we’re community focused, all our efforts are responding to what the need is,” Spencer says. “During the water crisis in Richmond, we were collecting water, but we were also educating moms on the fact that they had to boil their water ... before using formula. Our goal is to provide an infrastructure so that we help now but also help to strengthen the larger systems for the future.”
Spencer notes that the organization’s emphasis on community support has allowed it to expand in size and scope and remain among the first to reach mothers and infants in crisis. “We see things in the community much quicker than the data can show us,” Spencer says.
In response to the rise in mortality rates, officials in Virginia have sought solutions from health experts and groups including Urban Baby Beginnings and the Virginia Neonatal Perinatal Collaborative, a multidisciplinary team focused on improving quality of life for mothers and babies. These efforts led to recent policy wins in the state legislature, particularly a package of 12 maternal health bills dubbed the “Virginia Momnibus” in June, and from Gov. Glenn Younkin, who introduced more than $4 million for maternal health improvements in the state budget bill adopted in May.
More than half that funding will support perinatal health hub pilots in the state, funded by Virginia Department of Health-administered grants and complemented by Urban Baby Beginnings’ expertise and facilities. According to the VDH’s Office of Family Health Services, having access to multiple forms of support helps families navigate the challenges of pregnancy with well-rounded care.
The coordinated efforts from lawmakers and experts come on the heels of encouraging statistics: In 2023, mortality rates dropped to 18.4 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, down from 47.1 maternal deaths the year prior, per VDH data.
“We’re trying to strengthen care from our position, from the community, and there have been some improvements,” Spencer says. “What this funding says is, ‘We know that 90% of what happens is at the community level, and we need to help you all figure that out.’”
