OUR TEAM

LAURIE BRAUNSTEIN, LM, CPM

Licensed Midwife, Owner

Owner and Founder of Wenatchee Midwife Service in 1985, Laurie has devoted her life to helping pregnant people and their families through pregnancy, birth and postpartum. She completed her nursing education in 1975 and graduated from Seattle Midwifery School in 1985. She is an active participant on the faculty of Seattle Midwifery School as a preceptor for midwives-in-training, and works on the board for Midwives Association of Washington State (MAWS). Laurie is the mother of three beautiful children. She is loved by many of the families in the Wenatchee Valley community. In her free time, she enjoys the great expanse of her garden, swimming, and skiing.

DANELLE AURILIO, LM, CPM, MSM

Licensed Midwife

Danelle is a graduate of Bastyr University with a Master's of Science in Midwifery.  Born at home with a midwife in Wisconsin, she grew up trusting the natural wisdom of women’s bodies and the birthing process.  Her three children, Leora, Antonio, and Dante, were born at home with midwives in Massachusetts, Nevada, and California.  When her youngest son was three years old, Danelle’s desire to be a healthcare provider was rekindled, with a focus on supporting women and fostering a gentle entrance into the world for little ones.

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Danelle feels blessed to call this beautiful valley home.  Her interests include herbalism, traditional food preparation, sports, hiking, mountain biking, improving her Spanish language skills, and raising well-loved, independent children.  She also currently offers Placenta Encapsulation services and Craniosacral Therapy.  She is passionate about promoting racial and social justice within healthcare, midwifery and the greater community.

EVA LORENZ, LM, CPM, MSM

Licensed Midwife

Eva still keeps the diary from when she was 13 years old where she wrote that she wanted to be a midwife. She attended her first birth as a doula in 2011, and knew as soon as the baby emerged that this was meant to be her life’s work. During her years as a doula, she also worked as a co-teacher in a preschool, a daycare provider, and private nanny. Her experience with young children and new babies has given her a particular passion for including siblings in the pregnancy and birth process.

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Her dream came to fruition when she left her home state of Virginia to attend Bastyr University where she received her Master's of Midwifery. She came to the Wenatchee Birth Center as an advanced student. During that time, she completed her Master's thesis on the safety, efficacy, and standardization of fetal heart rate monitoring of babies in the birth center or home setting. She was hired by Wenatchee Midwife Service the day she graduated.

Eva has been catching babies at our birth center since 2016. In her spare time, she enjoys canning and preserving from her garden, knitting, skincare, and bubble baths.

LIBBY HICKMAN

Office Manager, Childbirth Educator

Wenatchee Midwife Service holds a special place in Libby’s heart. Her own babies were born at the birth center and in her home and were caught by Midwife Laurie (most of them are teenagers now!). Libby has been teaching natural birthing classes in the valley and assisting at births for over 15 years.

These days you'll find her working as our Office Manager. She is passionate about helping women to understand their bodies, their choices, and to birth their babies in their own way. She believes that giving birth to your baby has the potential to be one of the most wildly beautiful and deeply empowering experiences of your entire life. She continues to teach her Natural Childbirth class, and has expanded her classes to include a postpartum preparation class.

BRITNEY ZELL

Student Midwife

WMS believes strongly in the importance of training new midwives.  Our local communities, the U.S, and the world are experiencing a shortage of trained maternity care providers, and we aim to be part  of the solution!  We usually train our students over the course of 6 months to a year, while they are participating in the didactic portion of their learning.  Students observe and participate in prenatal and postpartum visits as well as during labor and birth.  Our students are friendly, eager and sensitive learners.

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Our current student is Britney Zell. She is attending the Masters of Midwifery program at Bastyr University. Becoming a midwife has been Britney's longest and most dearly held dream. When she was a teenager, she read a book about midwives and immediately knew that someday she would become one herself. She got distracted by her love of nature and science, became a botanist, and traveled all over the U.S. and the world studying plants. During the day, she measured photosynthesis and identified seedlings, and at night, she read articles about pregnancy and birth. She also worked as a doula both in hospitals, birth centers, and homes, and truly believes that birth can be beautiful in any setting. Britney is beyond excited to work with the midwives and families here at the birth center. In her free time, she loves outdoor adventures, traveling, cooking, and crafts.