Denie Heppner is a missionary midwife who has lived in the Philippines since 1987. She and her husband, Dennis, founded Gentle Hands, Inc., in 1990 as a birthing clinic and a way to educate and provide safe childbirth for urban poor women. From 1990 to 2005, about 5000 babies were born under Denie’s supervision with skilled Filipino midwives whom she had trained. Gentle Hands is now a child rescue center. Denie is now retired and a full-time stay-at-home mom to Emma Rose, her 4-year-old adopted Filipino daughter. Visit Denie’s blog at: http://sunshinenshadowz.blogspot.com/.
The author, who served as a missionary midwife among the urban poor of metro Manila for 20 years, recounts the highs and lows of working in a matriarchal society rife with superstitions and radically different standards of care for the rich and the poor. Read more…. Birth the Filipino Way
