The county jail is partnering with a reproductive nonprofit to provide pregnant inmates with maternal support and training.
The Arlington County Sheriff’s Office announced a partnership with the Richmond-based organization, Birth in Color, to provide pregnant people in custody with birthing support while training other inmates to become community-based birthing coaches or doulas.
Sheriff Jose Quiroz said he hopes implementing this program will improve conditions for inmates who can use such support.
“The doula support and training provided by Birth in Color will not only benefit the individuals directly involved but will also contribute to the overall well-being of our detention facility,” said Quiroz in a press release. “We recognize the importance of ensuring that female individuals in our custody have access to resources that promote positive birth experiences and empower them during this significant life event.”
The founding Executive Director of Birth in Color, Kendra Sutton El, said the program will create a healthier environment for those who are pregnant while providing inmates with experience-based skills.
“We not only provide them with valuable skills but also contribute to creating a more supportive and holistic environment within the correctional facility,” said Sutton El.
The “empowering” experience can be shared by both the mother in labor and trained inmates when they address and understand the cultural and racial differences in the child birthing process, the press release notes. Participants will get “an understanding of different practices, beliefs and traditions related to pregnancy and childbirth.”
The partnership follows a series of complaints and reports from former and current inmates, the Arlington Human Rights Commission and the NAACP about the well-being of those in custody. The facility has been under scrutiny for a series of inmate deaths over the past several years.
More on the partnership, below, from a press release.
Icy Conditions on N. Glebe Road — The northbound lanes of N. Glebe Road are closed at Military Road “for an unknown amount of time” due to icy conditions. [Twitter]
County Board Member is Pregnant — Arlington County Board Chair Katie Cristol and her husband Steve are expecting their first child in May. [Twitter]
Long-Time APS Employee Dies — Charles Weber, a World War II veteran who “worked for Arlington County Public Schools for thirty-seven years and served as Principal of Swanson Junior High School and Stratford Junior High School,” has died at the age of 91. [Dignity Memorial]
Scooter Trips > Bikeshare Trips — “In October, when Arlington, Va.’s scooter pilot began, there were 69,189 Bird and Lime scooter trips for 75,425 total miles traveled with Bird and Lime. Meanwhile, Capital Bikeshare – routinely and still considered a success, with lots more potential – had 26,532 total trips in Arlington in October.” [Mobility Labs, Twitter]
Growing Number of $200K+ Earners in Arlington — “If there’s one place in America that doesn’t need a helping hand from Jeff Bezos, it could be [Arlington and the D.C. suburbs]. The Washington commuter area is home to four of the top 10 (Nos. 2, 3, 5 and 6) fastest-growing census tracts of high earners.” [Bloomberg]
Conspiracy Theorists Eye Cemetery — “QAnon believers have become convinced the deep-state cabal has a bunker under Arlington Cemetery, connected to a tunnel running straight to Comet Ping Pong.” [Twitter]
The Virginia Hospital Center’s Outpatient Clinic has an additional $70,354 to support uninsured and low-income pregnant women in the area, thanks to a recent grant from the Jennifer Bush-Lawson Foundation.
The bulk of the grant money — $64,354 — will support the second year of a telemedicine pilot program, which facilitates virtual appointments for patients with high-risk pregnancies who are unable to schedule some appointments in-person due to work, child care commitments or transportation barriers.
Another $5,000 will go to “transportation cards” for pregnant women who are low-income. The remaining $1,000 will go to purchasing “pack-and-plays,” which provide a safe place for newborns to sleep, for families in need.
The Jennifer Bush-Lawson Foundation was founded in memory of Jennifer Lawson, a mother of three who died in a 2014 accident. Registration is now open for the fourth annual Jennifer Bush-Lawson 5K & Family Fun Day, scheduled for Nov. 17. The event will raise additional funds for the Virginia Hospital Center’s Outpatient Clinic.
Photo courtesy Jennifer Bush-Lawson Foundation
Ellen DeGeneres surprised two Arlingtonians via live shot today (March 13) after one wrote to the show asking to share their surrogacy story.
After Katelin Buchanan suffered from five miscarriages, her best friend Erica Huston offered to be a surrogate for Buchanan and her husband. She’s now pregnant with the couple’s twins.
Ellen DeGeneres Show correspondent Jeannie Klisiewicz met with the best friends and surprised them with a live streamed meeting with DeGeneres. DeGeneres gifted Buchanan and Huston tickets to a live taping of the daytime talk show, and added that Buchanan would receive the prizes from the upcoming Mother’s Day show giveaway.
Buchanan spoke of her longtime friendship with Huston and how watching The Ellen Degeneres Show helped her cope with her infertility struggles.
Feeling helpless watching her best friend go through miscarriage after miscarriage, Huston added on the program that she jumped at the opportunity to surrogate for Buchanan.
“The moment that I hand those babies over to Katelin and her husband will be the best moment of my life,” Huston told Degeneres during the live shot. “And then, I’m going to pour myself a big glass of wine.”
Arts Center Gets Warhol Grant — The Arlington Arts Center has received a $70,000 grant from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. “Funding from the Foundation will increase AAC’s capacity to support and present the work of new artists and spur the development of new initiatives and exhibitions,” AAC said in a press release. “Programming support of this scale makes new programs possible, like one for rising curators, while also furthering the ongoing work of the arts center.”
Bicycle Billboard Towers Sought — The Washington Area Bicyclist Association and BikeArlington are seeking bike ambassadors for a safety campaign. Volunteers will ride around Arlington while towing a large, wheeled billboard that tells drivers to pass bikes with at least three feet of space. The sign also encourages all road users to be predictable, alert and lawful. [WABA]
Arlington Couple Get Baby Wish Times Three — The Washington Post’s “This Life” feature profiles an Arlington couple who had trouble conceiving a child when, all of a sudden, fate blessed them with three via various means. [Washington Post]
Voting Machines May Go Old School — As part of a state-wide switch, Arlington election officials are considering replacing all touch screen voting machines with digital optical scan machines in time for the 2016 presidential election. The new machines will utilize what is fundamentally an old-school voting method: scanning paper ballots, which then leaves a paper trail for recounts. [InsideNova]
Jane Goodall to Speak at Marymount Benefit — Famed primatologist Dr. Jane Goodall will speak at a benefit event for Arlington’s Marymount University this spring. The event is taking place at DAR Constitution Hall on Friday, April 17. Ticket proceeds will “help establish a fund at Marymount that will enhance the work of volunteerism and community engagement.” [Marymount University]
Flickr pool photo by Erinn Shirley
An Arlington County police officer helped to deliver a baby while out on a traffic stop on Columbia Pike last night.
Corporal Steve Troyano had just pulled over a car on the 5300 block of Columbia Pike when a woman ran over and frantically requested the officer’s assistance for her pregnant sister, who was in labor in a nearby SUV. The officer used his radio to request paramedics, but when he arrived at the SUV the baby’s head was crowning and ready for delivery.
Corporal Troyano helped to deliver a healthy, 6 pound, 3 ounce baby girl at 6:41 p.m. He managed to unwrap the child’s umbilical cord from around her neck, then wrapped her in a towel until an ambulance arrived four minutes later.
“The family remains at the hospital at this time and has informed the Arlington County Police Department they will be using the middle name ‘Stephanie’ in honor of Corporal Troyano,” said police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck. Corporal Troyano, an 11-year veteran of the department, said he acted instinctively to handle the situation.
“When I realized I would be delivering the baby in the backseat, my instincts took over,” he said.
As for the car Corporal Troyano pulled over, another officer was called the scene to assist with the traffic stop, Sternbeck said, but ultimately no ticket was issued.
