Today’s Woman Who Inspires me is someone that I don’t expect most people to know, unless maybe they’ve trained as a midwife, Mizan therapist or doula (basically she’s big in the women’s health care circles) and that woman is: Ibu Robin Lim.
As with all the women I write about, she’s incredible.
Ibu Robin Lim
Lim is a Filipina-American midwife and health activist. Her father was stationed by the US Army in the Philippines after the Vietnam War, and she was raised in both countries. She lived in Hawaii for many years with her husband before they moved to Bali. Lim originally trained as a midwife after the death of her younger sister and her child in an American hospital due to complications from pregnancy.
She founded Yayasan Bumi Sehat (Healthy Mother Earth Foundation) health clinics which offer free prenatal care, birthing services and medical aid to anyone who needs it.
She and her team have been working since 2003 to help combat Indonesia’s high maternal and infant mortality rates. Her clinics originally started in Bali after the 2004 earthquake and tsunami. When a natural disaster strike, she takes her clinics to affected areas (she went to Yogyakarta in 2006, Pandang in 2008 and Haiti in 2010).
In 2011, Lim won CNN’s Hero of the Year award; an award which honours individuals who make extraordinary contributions to humanitarian aid and make a difference in their communities. (You can watch her acceptance video here, and I dare you to keep a dry eye.)
Every mother counts, and healthcare is a human right.
Robin Lim, CNN Hero of the Year 2011 acceptance speech
Lim has written several books on maternal care, and I own her wonderful “Eat, Pray, Doula”. From a professional standpoint, I admire Lim’s work greatly and have frequently referred back to her words during my doula training. But no matter what industry you work in, her efforts to make the world just a little bit safer for mothers and children is incredible.
In August, a massive 7.0 earthquake hit Lombok. Hundreds of people have died, huge swaths of people are without shelter, water and electricity. An estimated 42,000 families are now homeless.
I strongly, strongly urge you to donate money to the Bumi Sehat clinic today as it helps coordinate relief and care for this disaster and others in the future.
What women inspire you in your career and daily life?
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Women Who Inspire Me #1: Joan Didion
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Women Who Inspire Me #2: Sylvia Plath
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Women Who Inspire Me #3: Georgia O’Keeffe
Women Who Inspire Me #4: Ruth Bader Ginsburg
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Women Who Inspire me #5: Audre Lorde
Women Who Inspire Me #6 Roxane Gay
Women Who Inspire Me #7 My mom
Women Who Inspire Me #8: Frida Kahlo
Women Who Inspire Me #9: Lindy West
Women Who Inspire Me #10: Margaret Charles Smith
Women Who Inspire Me #11: My Grandmother
