Katherine Bramhall: Vermont Midwife of Global Humanitarianism

Katherine Bramhall runs her own international disaster relief organization, works as a midwife, travels from Vermont to Bali twice a year to provide midwifery services to women who have no access to them, launches successful campaigns to supply families with much-needed resources, raises large amounts of money on behalf of those who need it, and meets the suffering of the world head-on. You, like others who meet her, might be tempted to think of her as a "legend." But Bramhall knows better.

"In [today's] culture, you can't just be someone doing good work," she explains. "You have to be a 'legend' for people to pay attention." Compared to those of so many of us, Bramhall's efforts do seem superhuman. "But," she cautions, "that [description] doesn't recognize the truth of the work I do: that it takes every person, no matter the role they play, to make what I do possible."

Bramhall worked for 20 years in the Boston area as a holistic health care practitioner and doula, then returned to school to train at the Birthwise Midwifery School in Maine. Recently graduated, she is now practicing as a midwife apprentice and doula with Erin Ryan, licensed midwife, in Barre, where she moved in 2004.

Bramhall also started her own disaster relief organization which responded to the 2003 earthquake in Bam, Iran, the 2005 earthquake in Pakistan, as well as the Chechnyan crisis in Russia - and currently addresses the health care needs of women and families in Indonesia affected not only by the 2004 tsunami, but also the terrorist bombings that crushed the tourism industry in 2002 and 2005. "Additionally, my husband and I are beginning the plans for a youth center in Barre that will offer young folks an opportunity to work on humanitarian projects-sewing baby blankets to send to the clinic and emailing with youths in Bali to help them learn English," Bramhall says. "This youth center will be linked with the youth center in Nyuh Kuning Village in Bali."

Bramhall is currently focusing much of her considerable energy on creating sustainable support for the Yayasan Bumi Sehat Free Birth Clinic, also in Nyuh Kuning Village, run by award-winning midwife Robin Lim, author of After the Baby's Birth. The non-profit organization has another clinic in Aceh, Indonesia - Ground Zero for the tsunami. "The tsunami is considered 'over' by the world, unless you live in Aceh and need good-quality care," says Bramhall. She notes that maternal mortality rates in Bali are currently 373 deaths per 100,000, compared to 12 per 100,000 in the U.S. Postpartum hemorrhaging, largely due to malnutrition, is a constant concern.

Bramhall's work in Bali is a labor of enormous love, both in the scope of care she offers and the magnitude of need. The Yayasan Bumi Sehat clinic provides free pre-natal care, vitamins, and support to women and families. When it is time to give birth, the women receive expert care, blankets, hats, and medical support for free. Bramhall travels there at least twice a year, usually laden with bags of medical supplies and donations. "By returning to the same village, I'm woven into the fabric of village life and that helps me more effectively see their specific needs and how I might meet them," says Bramhall. "The best part for me is how large my 'family' is becoming."

Bramhall has secured ongoing donations of pre-natal vitamins from Brattleboro-based New Chapter Vitamins for the clinic, which serves 40 to 50 birthing women per month. She has also raised money for much-needed supplies, including a clothes dryer for the piles of towels and sheets they go through, and a new computer to keep up on paperwork.

Bramhall has thrown her entire heart behind supporting the people of Nyuh Kuning Village, and her work there. Her policy - and a probable reason for her far-reaching success - is to stay in email contact with everyone who donates their time, materials, or money. "So many people are starving to help with the suffering that they see - whether it be in their home, their neighborhood, their nation, or places they don't even know how to find on a map," she marvels. "People are seeking a 'link-up' to the actual and direct effect of their giving. For me, this is the most important thing I can do - link people up. I'm only one person and my scope of influence will never be large enough to affect change as large as it's needed, no matter how hard and long I work."

Bramhall uses her lengthy international email list to keep givers informed of the work she is doing, which they directly support [see info below]. "I carry every single person's generous heart and their donation of time, money, [and] supplies with me. I am just the person who gets on the plane and delivers. What I deliver is an army of loving and connected help. I then put each person's generosity to work. By emailing home, I hook people up to what they have done so they have the direct experience of how helping is fulfilling a heart's need - both theirs and the recipient of their love."

Bramhall's current goal is to raise $100,000 for Yayasan Bumi Sehat to help with the purchase of land in Bali for a permanent location for the clinic.

"The clinic is at a pivotal place in its growth and development," explains Bramhall. "Growing pains are felt daily due to lack of clinic space, cramped staff and volunteer housing, and structural damage, because it is not an earthquake-proof building."