Misty Ward
Certified Professional Midwife, Owner, Clinical Director
I began my path to midwifery at the age of 16 after attending the birth of my nephew. When I was supposed to be doing
my algebra homework I was reading pregnancy related books! For Christmas 2000 my dear friend Melanie Copeland gave me a copy of Spiritual Midwifery by Ina May Gaskin. I was immediately hooked
and knew that midwifery outside of the hospital was where I belonged.
Soon after, I began my midwifery studies while also completing my bachelors degree at Eastern Mennonite University, getting married, and giving birth to my own two children! Those were busy years and so very precious.
My midwifery training has been a reflection of my commitment to caring service: I have worked with 9 different Virginia midwives, volunteered with Medical Ministry International (Dominican Republic), African Birth Collective (Senegal), interned at Casa de Nacimiento (El Paso, TX), and birth assisted at Heartland Health Clinic (Dayton, VA). I have attended over 500 births and thousands of prenatal and postpartum visits.
Emily Friar
Certified Professional Midwife, Licensed Midwife
I’ve had an interest in birth since childhood. At the age of nineteen, while browsing through various book titles at a local bookstore, I discovered ‘Spiritual Midwifery’ by Ina May Gaskin. Like others, I was captivated by the images and words written by women fully engaged in the birthing process; welcoming and celebrating the process of childbirth. Several books on childbirth later, I began my midwifery studies at the National College of Midwifery and the Northern New Mexico Women’s Health & Birth Center in Taos, New Mexico. Having graduated and completed my training, I sat for the NARM exam in August of 2003 achieving the Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) credential. Later that year, I became a mother with the birth of our son, born at home into the hands of a midwife and friend.
In 2006, I opened a small community home birth practice, Rockbridge Midwifery. Over the years I’ve enjoyed caring for women and their families, while also growing my own family with the birth of our second son in 2006 and our daughter in 2012.
Birth is powerful as are women! I believe in the intuition of mothers and that birth works best when a woman is in the environment she feels safest, with the people of her choosing. I’m happy to be working with the families of Brookhaven as we collaborate for the safest and most satisfying birth possible in the birth center or at home.
I am licensed to practice midwifery by the Virginia Board of Medicine, certified in neonatal resuscitation and adult CPR and a member of the Virginia Midwives Alliance.
Heather Brown
Office Manager, Billing Specialist
I am a Harrisonburg native and currently live in Rockingham County with my husband and two super busy boys. I decided to become a part of Brookhaven Birth Center stemming from my own birth experiences and desire for more natural pregnancy and delivery.
I knew from the moment I discovered I was pregnant with both of my children that I would hire a midwife for my care. After having two natural hospital births I still somehow felt as if something was missing from my experiences. I wanted more options of birthing positions, being able to deliver in water, laboring at my own pace, and generally feeling more freedom. Having those options at Brookhaven, along with many others, are the reasons I feel blessed to have the honor of helping families achieve the birth experiences that they desire.
Alice Dunn
Office Assistant
I was introduced to Brookhaven in the fall of 2015, but I’ve been surrounded by stories of natural birth my entire life. My mother has had 5 births and I was raised with an understanding that a woman’s body is capable and excels in childbirth. When I discovered that I was pregnant, I knew that an out of hospital birth would be ideal for my family. My partner and I were excited to find Brookhaven and in late 2015 our son was born in the Willow suite!
Brookhaven provided me with such great care and community. I’m excited to be a part of bringing that to other families in the community.
Danika Johnson
International Board Certified Lactation Consultant,
Midwife Apprentice
My interest in midwifery was sparked after my first son was born in 2007. My prenatal care and delivery left me with a feeling that I had no control in my care and my wishes and feelings were brushed off by my provider. Once I became pregnant a second time I automatically knew our family would pursue care through a midwife. We had an amazing experience and delivery of our twins. By the time our fourth child came along I was a huge advocate for midwifery care and felt a strong calling to help other women have the same fulfilling experiences I had with my last two pregnancies.
Hand in hand with midwifery I am a strong breastfeeding advocate. The bond between a mother and baby is like no other. I have been working as a breastfeeding counselor since 2014 helping breastfeeding dyads overcome barriers and reach their breastfeeding goals. I have attended Blue Ridge Community College to expand my knowledge in the Health and Sciences field and completed enough lactation education training hours that I am also an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. You can learn more about lactation services here.
I am beyond thrilled to begin my midwifery apprenticeship with the amazing staff at Brookhaven!
Cassandra McDermott
Midwife Apprentice
I started my midwifery journey in 2016 at Birthwise midwifery school. I was inspired to apply to school after spending a summer with a traditional Russian midwife in Thailand who focused on water births. My first clinical rotation was with a CNM at a women’s clinic in Damariscotta, Maine, and then I went on to work with two CPM’s in southern Maine and New Hampshire. Having worked in mental health for a number of years before entering the birth world, I am very passionate about the emotional and psychological processes of pregnancy, labor, birth, and the postpartum period. Last year I worked part-time as a postpartum doula, and I look forward to continuing to provide this service to more families in the future. I am pleased to be here at Brookhaven, and I’m grateful for this special opportunity to learn and grow
Kai Lyons
Midwife Apprentice
I graduated from the University of Virginia in 2014 and immediately joined the first class of midwifery students in the Academy of Experiential Midwifery Education in Charlottesville. In 2015, after a year at the academy, I was honored to begin an apprenticeship at Brookhaven. I spent two wonderful years attending birth in the community and learning from these dedicated midwives. For the past year and a half, I spent time traveling and experiencing new things while learning a lot along the way. I’m so thrilled to be back at Brookhaven and starting the role of Primary Midwife Under Supervision. This is a lifelong dream realized for me, as I grew up always wanting to follow in my mother’s footsteps as a midwife and I feel so grateful to be doing that here with you all. As a primary student under supervision I look forward to taking an active role in informed discussions about pregnancy, birth and postpartum. Being able to attend births with the families of Brookhaven has been a life changing experience and will forever shape the midwife I become.
