Vida Midwives

Britt Jackson, CPM, LM

She/her

I’m Britt, and my calling to midwifery began with the birth of my third and last daughter. I became a mother at a young age and experienced the traditional healthcare system without much knowledge of pregnancy, birth, or how my experience of each would impact my journey into motherhood. During my last pregnancy, I had this drive (that at that time, I had no idea where it came from) to do things differently. I began to reflect on the confusion and emptiness I experienced after my first and second births, and dove into researching EVERYTHING pregnancy and birth related. I chose a midwife-attended unmedicated birth for my last birth and left that birth feeling so powerful, transformed, and deeply proud of myself. Motherhood felt different this time around - I felt whole, I breastfed for two years, I felt connected and bonded to my baby. I took my first doula training four months later.

I experienced yet another beautiful transformation in 2016 after attending my first out-of-hospital birth. The patience, autonomy, reverence, strength, and absolute fierceness I witnessed moved me so deeply. The consistent presence of the midwives like a pillar, intuitively attending to the birthing person’s needs. The gentleness and respect of this new little life entering the world. Having witnessed so many births in so many settings, I walked away knowing with complete certainty that this was where I wanted to be.

I began training to become a midwife through the traditional apprenticeship model at a busy birth center in Minneapolis, MN. One of the things I am most grateful for about apprenticing in a high-volume setting like a birth center was the opportunity to care for many families from all walks of life, and to attend many more births than was required for me to graduate. This experience taught me the ancient art of midwifery while allowing me to develop a very strong clinical skillset that I am able to lean on in the rare event that it is needed.

After sitting my board examination and obtaining my CPM and LM credentials, I opened my own home birth practice and practiced for two years before joining my dear friends and colleagues to create Vida Midwifery Collective. As one of two Black midwives practicing in the home birth setting in Minnesota, I see midwifery through a different lens and have found that my commitments to community activism and justice have really walked hand in hand with midwifery. I believe that our identities and lived experiences are deeply relevant to our health, and should be relevant to our healthcare as well. My deepest commitments are to serve my community with integrity, radical acceptance of the families I work with, and to make community midwifery care accessible to all.

Outside of midwifery, I am an artist, mother, wife, activist, horror-movie and netflix documentary buff, and a generally quiet, observative human. I live in Plymouth with my wife and our three daughters, and a small collection of pets (cause each kid needs their own special friend, of course!) including two large cane corsos, a ball python name Peter, and a small collection of guinea pigs.

Professional Qualifications & Associations

• Certified Professional Midwife credential (CPM)

• Licensed Traditional Midwife, MN Board of Medical Practice (LM)

• Member & volunteer, Queer Birth Project

• Member, MN Council of Certified Professional Midwives

• Member, MN Healing Justice Network

• Founder, Black Home Birth Initiative

• Former board member, The Childbirth Collective

• 500+ families served

Evelyn Yaeggy, TM

She/her

Hello! I am Evelyn (Eveleen). I was born in Guatemala and I am a Traditional Midwife who is bilingual (English/Spanish). Midwifery and birth has been in my blood and my heart since early childhood - I had the privilege of watching of watching my grandma work as a lay midwife in a small town called Mazatenango, Guatemala. I have had the honor of serving over 400 families as birth worker over the span of 16 years. I worked as a community doula and prenatal educator before I began my midwifery training. Currently, I teach parenting classes for incarcerated fathers in the Ramsey County Jail, as it is also a passion of mine to support our communities in all kinds of settings. I have two kids who are the power source of my life and who have taught me resilience, acceptance, and love. I enjoy spending time behind a pottery wheel when I get a chance, and I love to connect with nature on walks.

I completed my midwifery training through birth centers in Florida, Puerto Rico, and Minnesota. I have been able to complete the last phase of my training with home birth midwives in the Twin Cities and Southern Minnesota.

My dream is that every birthing person may have a choice on how and when to birth their babies in a safe, loving, and peaceful environment. I am excited to be part of Vida Midwifery Collective with my dear friends and fellow midwives, and building a sustainable, community-based midwifery practice serving Twin Cities families and surrounding areas!

Professional Qualifications & Associations

• Associates of Science Midwifery Degree - Southwestern Technical College Direct Entry Midwifery Program

• Minnesota Prison Doula Project Volunteer

• Member of MN Healing Justice Network

• International Peer Support Specialist

• Parenting Inside Out Facilitator

• 15+ years professional birth work experience, 400+ families served

Sasha Bariffe, LM, CPM, CCM, IBCLC

She/they

Sasha is a dedicated midwife and lactation consultant with an unwavering commitment to providing culturally affirming and compassionate care to individuals during their childbearing years. As an Afro-Latinx Certified Community Midwife, Sasha actively strives to listen without judgment and responds to the complex needs of each individual with respect, dignity, and kindness.

Fueled by her passion to improve birth outcomes in America for Black and Indigenous people, Sasha's "why" has always been to ensure everyone, regardless of gender, race, socioeconomic status, or body size, has access to affirming care. She recognizes that racism and unchecked biases contribute to the worst birth outcomes in the nation for these groups, and her work is committed to changing this.

With over two decades of experience in the healthcare field, Sasha began her journey as a certified nursing assistant and education as a practical nurse before discovering her calling in birth work. She has since earned the highest accreditation a healthcare professional can in lactation, the International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) credential in 2022, and completed rigorous midwifery training to become a Certified Professional Midwife, and is licensed in the states of Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Sasha's ability to be present and attentive to the unique concerns of each individual she works with is grounded in her belief that all people, regardless of their background, deserve to feel valued and heard when it comes to their healthcare needs. Her mission is to continue to provide compassionate, personalized care to individuals and families throughout their childbearing years.

During Sasha’s free time she can be found tending to her indoor and outdoor gardens, creating digital art or spending time with her two dimple cheeked children, loving partner and jumbo-sized dog. 

Professional Qualifications & Memberships

• Certified Professional Midwife Credential (CPM)

• Licensed Midwife (WI), Licensed Traditional Midwife (MN)

• Member of MN Healing Justice Network

• Member of MN Council of Certified Professional Midwives

• Member National Association of Certified Professional Midwives

• Member National Black Midwives Alliance

• Member WI Midwives Guild