CAPPA Canada Labour Doula Trainer

Sonya has more than 13 years experience providing prenatal, birth and postnatal care to expectant families in a variety of birth settings including home births, hospital and birth centres. She has attended more than 250 births in Saskatchewan, Alberta, New Mexico, Texas and Colorado providing personalized, individualized care to meet the needs of her clients. From 2002 to 2007 she was the only community based Midwife providing home birth services in Regina, Saskatchewan. Sonya has held many positions in local, provincial and national organizations.  She was an appointed member of the Saskatchewan College of Midwives and various working committees for the implementation of regulated midwifery. She also was the President and an active member of the Doulas of Regina Association, not to mention a past-advisor for the Canadian Doula Association. She has been actively involved in the birthing community through CAPSAC, Birth Unlimited,  Friends of the Midwives and the Midwifery Association of Saskatchewan. She was Director of a community based organization called The Family Room in Saskatchewan and  contributed to the production of birth related publications such as BEARTH and BIRTHING Magazine. Sonya is the current Director of CAPPA Canada's Labour Doula program she oversees all CAPPA certified Doulas in Canada. As a Certified Doula Trainer and Certified Doula, she has been instructing Birth Attendants, Doulas and Community Health workers in supportive care, continuing education and Doula training since 2005. These experiences have been instrumental in her work in the implementing and advocacy of family-centered care in the province of Saskatchewan.

CAPPA Canada Postpartum Doula Trainer

Nadine is a certified birth doula, postpartum doula and childbirth educator that has been working with birthing families since 1997. Her previous life as the co-coordinator of a fertility clinic showed her compassion for working with women, which just naturally turned to support during the birthing process and immediate postpartum time. She also taught prenatal classes for Sheridan College, and has combined all of these loves by training doulas. She sat on the Board of Directors for Doula C.A.R.E. Inc. from 1998-2006. Her own company is TLC by Nadine, and as she says, "that's what I do”. She is married, mother of three grown children, and the proud grandmother of four delightful grandchildren.

Attie Sandink, RN, IBLC, CLD

CAPPA Canada Lactation Educator

Attie has been a Registered Nurse for 35 years. She has worked in many areas of the hospital and community and as a Labour and Delivery Nurse, volunteer labour coach for unwed moms and involved in Prenatal Education for the past 30 years, initially teaching clients in the London area, with many First Nations Families. After becoming an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant in 1991 she was instrumental in setting up a Breastfeeding Clinic in her area 10 years ago and teaching many courses and workshops pertaining to Breastfeeding. She began in 1992 by teaching the 18 Hour WHO/UNICEF Lactation Management Course both privately, through several area hospitals, INFACT Canada and acted as a Facilitator for several training sessions with the Quintessence Foundation and has presented workshops for both the LLL Canada and The National Breastfeeding Conference in Toronto.

Her volunteer involvements include being a past Board and organizational member of a Christian counselling and Advanced Workshops agency in Hamilton Ontario. However it is her own private practice as a Prenatal Instructor and Breastfeeding Consultant through Breastfeeding and Prenatal Support Services that keeps her grounded in the reality of working with the people that really count; the new families. The individuals that really keep her on track though are the men in her life. They are her husband and her 4 sons, who, as they are going to college and university, feel that they know more than her and they probably do.

Merle Ling, RN, CCCE, CLD

CAPPA Canada Childbirth Educator Trainer

Merle is a certified Childbirth Educator from CAPPA Canada and a certified Labour Doula for both CAPPA Canada and DONA International. She is a member of Doula Care and volunteers for non-profit organizations in Burlington Ontario. Merle was born in Trinidad, W.I. where she started her career as a nurse. Merle has worked in obstetrical nursing for over 25 years as a labour and delivery, postpartum and neonatal nurse; the experience gained by working with new parents and their families and as a mentor to student nurses and new staff has been helpful in a successful career as a childbirth educator. She has earned the respect of her co-workers and medical practitioners. Merle is the owner and founder of a very successful independent business called Childbirth Basics & Beyond, that provides prenatal education, labour Doula services and breastfeeding support. Merle lives in Burlington Ontario with her very supportive husband; she is the proud mother of three adults and has three beautiful grand daughters.

Kimberley Fernandez, CLD, CBE

CAPPA Canada Labour Doula Trainer

Kimberley is a Certified Labour Doula, Certified Childbirth Educator and a Hypnobirthing Practitioner. She is also currently teaching prenatal classes and infant care classes at York Central Hospital. She has three children of her own and has many years of experience working with families and birthing mothers and she has attended over 85 births. She currently owns and works with her friend and doula sister Stephanie Alouche at the Toronto Doula Group and its satelite groups in Durham and York Region.

CAPPA Canada Labour Doula Trainer

Noreen began work in the childbirth field in 1997. Noreen is a certified labour doula (CLD), certified childbirth educator (CCCE) and approved labour doula trainer through CAPPA. She is also Manitoba's first certified Birthing From Within® Mentor and program advisor, as well as the province's first Happiest Baby on the Block® certified educator (CHBE). She is also a certified Infant Massage Instructor (CIMI) and a vinyasa yoga teacher. Noreen has served on many various boards and committees, including South East Manitoba's Maternal/Child Team, The College of Midwives of Manitoba (CMM) Education Committee and is a past-chairperson of the Manitoba Association for Childbirth and Family Education (MACFE) as well as past-chair of their Education Committee. Noreen is wife to her high-school sweetheart, Greg, and mother to five beautiful children.