rhonda stephens, rm ~ Midwifery Team of 2 w/ Cindy
Rhonda Stephens (she/her) came to Midwifery following an AH-HA! moment when her husband told her about a CBC interview with a midwife that he had heard. She had never heard of midwifery as a profession until then but had always had an interest in pregnancy, birth and babies. This started at age 7 when her little brother was born, and was reinforced when she had her own daughter many years later. She soon made the shift from a dull career in banking to working as a Pregnancy Outreach Worker and a Doula, before being accepted into UBC’s Midwifery program.
Rhonda offers a warm and caring attitude, with a side of humour. She gives evidence-based, non-judgmental information about the available options and believes that birthing people are the best ones to decide what works for them: home or hospital, unmedicated or epidural, breast or bottle, and everything in between. Rhonda has caught babies in various settings: big-city hospitals in Vancouver, small-town hospitals in Campbell River and Comox, a birth centre in El Paso Texas, and low-resource cities in Uganda, Africa.
Rhonda has been serving the families of Nanaimo since 2011. In her spare time, she loves traveling, getting her dogs dirty on epic walks, and hanging out with her family.
cindy storie-soth, rm ~ Midwifery Team of 2 w/ Rhonda
Cindy Storie-Soth’s (pronouns she/her) journey to becoming a midwife began with her first pregnancy. Under the amazing care of midwives in Victoria, BC she learned what it meant to be empowered to make choices that she felt were best for her and her birth. Recognizing that all women deserved the care she had received in her pregnancy she started first working as a doula and childbirth educator and then as her children got older made the plunge to apply to the UBC midwifery program. Cindy has now been practicing as a full time midwife in Nanaimo since 2017.
In her spare time Cindy loves to read, swim, travel and spend time with her two beautiful daughters who are now young adults exploring the world.
Rebecca Vincent, rm ~ Solo Midwife
Rebecca (pronouns she/her) began her journey to midwifery while volunteering with Island Sexual Health Society, acting as both a doctor’s assistant and birth control educator. Working with Island Sexual Health emphasized the importance of inclusivity and informed decision making in reproductive healthcare. Rebecca obtained her B.Sc. in Microbiology from the University of Victoria and went on to complete a M.Sc. in the Reproductive and Developmental Sciences program at UBC. As a graduate student in the Faculty of Obstetrics and Gynecology she conducted research in the area of reproductive genetics. During this time she attended many lectures, workshops and courses related to maternal and fetal health which sparked her interest in maternity care and led her to apply to the UBC midwifery program.
Rebecca enjoys exploring the local beaches and trails with her 2 young children and husband, spending time with extended family who are all from the Island and of course, Netflix!
Kate LORIMER ~ 3rd year STUDENT Midwife (w/ Cindy & Rhonda)
Hello! My name is Kate Lorimer (pronouns she/her), and I am a third year Student Midwife at UBC. I am so grateful to join the Nanaimo Registered Midwives for my practicum this year. I am a settler with Western European heritage and I am grateful to live, work and study with my family on the traditional and unceded territory of the Ləkʷəŋən (Lekwungen) People, known
also as Esquimalt and Songhees Nation. I grew up on the traditional territory of the Kwanlin Dün First Nation and the Ta’an Kwäch’än Council, known today as Whitehorse, Yukon Territory. I have worked as a Birth Doula for the past 6 years and am very excited to be continuing my Midwifery studies this year.
Birth has always been an interest of mine and I am passionate about advocating for personal choices and individualized care. Playing a role in how a person experiences pregnancy and birth is extremely important to me as a care provider. I was introduced to the midwifery model of care after the birth of my first child in 2008 and the impact of that led me on this midwifery path. After having my second child in 2014 under the care of my inspiring midwives, I knew it was something I was meant to do. As a steppingstone to my education and career, I have been so grateful to work in the Victoria birth community, helping families as their doula since 2017. I know firsthand the difference midwifery care makes for families and I am so proud to be among such an inspiring team.
In my downtime I like to get out to the woods as much as possible with my family. Our dog Luna insists on taking in all the flora and fauna on each walk! If I am not outside, I like to knit or sew lots of little projects!
