Pasadena Birthing Project

Here at the Pasadena Birthing Project (PBP), it is our dream to build a community of greater compassion within Pasadena and the greater Los Angeles area by the year 2025. We seek to raise awareness of the crisis that exists with the exceedingly high and racially disproportionate infant mortality rate among African American infants. The problem at hand in not negligible, but rather alarming! African American infants have 2 times the rate of preterm delivery and low birth rates as Nonhispanic-White infants and 3 times the rate of very low birth weight and very preterm delivery. Low birth weight and preterm delivery are the leading causes of infant mortality for African American infants. The infant mortality rate is 5.7 per Caucasian infants and is 13.3 per African American infants. Pasadena Birthing Project offers its solution in the form of education, mentorship, and the fostering of community among its members and expecting mothers. The solution is unique in that it creates an “extended family” among its Sister Friend Network. Each volunteer woman claims one pregnant teen or woman as her “sister,” thus enabling every woman to have a Sister Friend and every child to have an Aunt. These volunteers impart their time, their love, their experience and wisdom to help their sisters to be the mothers they were destined to be. A Sister Friends make their sisters get the proper prenatal care, aid in labor, and help welcome new lives into the world. It is through this community of “extended family” that mothers are able to draw upon the knowledge and resources available to them. Ensuring a healthy pregnancy, baby, and reduction of the number of black births resulting in mortality. To volunteer and learn more about Pasadena Birthing Project Visit our main page at: