The Birth Tour comes to Ashland on July 29

Event promotes parenting networks

By Vickie Aldous
Ashland Daily Tidings

After Ahri Golden gave birth, a friend dropped by, and without saying a word, gave her a two-hour massage.

Other friends supplied her with meals for six weeks.

It wasn’t until later that she discovered most new moms lack such a network of supporters to help as they recover from childbirth, care for a newborn and adjust to parenthood.

“I started realizing how rare my experience is,” Golden said. “There used to be an ancient ritual of people supporting you and helping you when you give birth. We’re a very isolated country. There isn’t that

kind of rallying that occurs.”

Now the Berkeley, Calif.-based co-executive producer of Thin Air Media, an organization that creates audio documentaries, is kicking off The Birth Tour in Ashland.

Mothers, fathers and families are invited to The Mobius, 281 Fourth St., from 3 to 5 p.m. on Saturday, July 29.

In small and large groups, they will share stories about how they were born, how their children were born, how giving birth has changed their lives and how to create their own supportive community.

In addition to meeting other parents at the event itself, participants can continue to meet through activities planned by the Living Earth Circle in Ashland. The organization, which holds such events as the annual Grandmothers Council, is sponsoring the Ashland leg of The Birth Tour.

Lisa Pavati of Living Earth Circle said she is forming a play group for parents of babies and toddlers that will meet from 10 a.m. until noon on the first and third Fridays of the month in the Cotton Memorial area in upper Lithia Park.

“It will be a place that participants can then go to and gather and further the community-building that is catalyzed at the event,” she said.

After Ashland, The Birth Tour will continue on to Portland and then New Mexico, Kansas, Colorado and California.

In addition to the tour, Thin Air Media is producing a one-hour public radio documentary about the practices and perceptions of birth in America, according to Golden.

The documentary will be distributed for Women’s History Month in March 2007 by Public Radio International. Golden is encouraging people to call their local public radio stations to ask them to broadcast the documentary.

She said The Birth Tour is not part of the documentary, although she hopes the months-long tour through five states will create interest in the documentary.

Ultimately, Golden said she wants participants in The Birth Tour to form bonds in their own communities so that when someone gives birth in the future, the new mother can get the kind of support Golden received — whether that’s having another person to talk to or having a warm dinner dropped off.

“It was a really amazing experience that every woman who gives birth should have,” Golden said.

The fee for The Birth Tour is $10, although it is on a sliding scale. To RSVP, contact Golden at ahri@thinairmedia.org or 312-330-3232. Although an

RSVP is not necessary, people who do RSVP will have first access to the event if the number of participants exceeds the space’s capacity, Golden said.

For more information on Thin Air Media, visit www.thinairmedia.org.

For more information on Living Earth Circle or to become a volunteer, visit www.livingearthcircle.org or e-mail Pavati at lisa@livingearthcircle.org or call her at 201-0372.

The Birth Tour and Birth the documentary are sponsored by Motherlove Herbal Company, Mothering Magazine, the Institute of Noetic Sciences and The Public Radio International Program Fund.

Staff writer Vickie Aldous can be reached at vlaldous@yahoo.com or 479-8199.

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