Call to action:
Support the Gentle Beginnings Birth Center and Clinic in Norfolk

About the center
Gail Consoli, CNM, was planning to open a birth center in Norfolk this last spring. After more than three years of co-planning the center with her collaborating physician, he had to back out for reasons we cannot discern. The bank then reneged on its loan offer, again for inexplicable reasons.

After securing another loan and getting well underway with the million-dollar project, Gail herself was told that her current employer would not release her from her contract, so that she could treat her clients at the Center. Nor will they provide backup support for the Center, which puts Gail in a precarious position.

If CNMs were granted independent practice in Nebraska, the Birth Center could open. It could easily serve people from a large region of the state. Norfolk is roughly 150 miles from Kearney, roughly 125 miles from Lincoln and Omaha.

Instead, the Birth Center sits . . . ready to open . . . so much money, time and energy invested and not coming to fruition.

What you can do
Attend the Center's Open House on Saturday, November 17, and invite your friends, family and neighbors to attend as well. You do not need to be involved with NFoM to attend the Open House.

If you are able, please help us with the Open House. We are trying to arrange door prizes and a silent auction, so if you can donate items (or perhaps convince businesses to do so), please let us know. We will also be providing food and refreshments for the event, and could use some help with that. If you're able to help in any way, please contact us.

Special Sneak Preview!
After the Open House, stay for a special sneak preview of the new documentary The Business of Being Born. The film interlaces intimate birth stories with surprising historical, political and scientific insights and shocking statistics about the current maternity care system. During the making of the film, the director (Abby Epstein) discovered she was pregnant, making the journey even more personal. Please check out the trailer and plan to stay for the sneak preview (the film doesn't officially open until January 9, 2008). We are asking for a goodwill contribution to allay the costs of getting the film.

The Specifics
An Open House and press conference for
the Gentle Beginnings Birth Center and Clinic
1414 N 13th Street, Norfolk, NE (see map)
Saturday, November 17
2:00–4:00 P.M.