Get to Know Us
We are a team of three midwives sharing the joys and responsibilities of our work together. Although our backgrounds and training are quite different, we are blessed to share a common vision and management style in our midwifery care. Read on to see our individual bios.
Laura Doyle, LM, CPM
My three children were born into the loving hands of midwives at home. Giving birth was the most amazing, challenging, and transformative experience of my life. Midwifery clearly became my path after the homebirth of my first daughter. I was so impressed with midwifery care and its holistic approach, and how natural and intuitive it was. My homebirth experience was such a precious gift; I wanted every woman to have that same opportunity. Immediately after my birth, I started getting invited to my friend’s births and their friend’s births. From there it began.
​I attended Sonoma State University, majoring in Gender Studies with an emphasis on Women’s Health (1991-1996). It was there I learned to be an advocate for myself in the realm of health care. Empowering women became my focus, first through wilderness survival skills, and then on to body awareness. In 2002, I completed the Heart and Hands Midwifery Program, taught by Elizabeth Davis in Marin. Soon after I began working as a midwifery apprentice with licensed midwives Lorraine Carolan and Avi Livingstone in Southern Humboldt. I worked with Avi for 6 years until her passing in 2009. Learning in this rural setting, where the nearest hospital was 1-2 hours away, has taught me to always be prepared and think ahead. I attended local midwife Jan Perrone’s midwifery classes and continue to attend conferences and trainings to further my skills. I am certified in IV therapy, CPR, and Neonatal Resuscitation.
​In 2010, I went to Senegal, West Africa through a midwifery program called African Birth Collective. There I worked in a rural birth center, gaining clinical experience necessary to the process of licensure in California. I learned many great skills there and loved working with women on the other side of the planet. I am now a Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) and a California Licensed Midwife (LM).
​It was truly such a blessing for me to have midwives at my own births. The process of becoming a family is often times a huge transition. For most mothers and families it is crucial to have intimate support through these rites of passage. It is such an honor to participate and support families in this process. I believe birth is the vital roots of our beginning and should be as loving, peaceful, and safe as possible.
Calista Young, LM, CPM
I began studying midwifery in 1997. I attended beginning and advanced midwifery classes as well as many workshops and conferences over the next few years. I became a doula for Doulas by Nature in 1999. I began my 2 ½ year home birth midwifery apprenticeship in 1999, taking a break to have my son, Alder, who was born at home in the water. I have been a childbirth educator since 2000, specializing in home birth. I have studied homeopathy, acupuncture and herbs, and am a Level 1 Reiki practitioner. I am currently IV, CPR and neonatal resuscitation certified. I am also a member of CAM. I interned at Casa de Nacimiento, a birth center in El Paso, Texas, for two months (700 clinical hours), from December 2002 to February 2003, primarily serving Mexican women and their families. In total I have attended just over 160 births, 90 in the role of primary midwife. I began practicing as a primary midwife in 2003. I gave birth at home to my second son, Mateo, in December 2005, and my third child, a daughter, Annika, in March, 2008. I became a Certified Professional Midwife in 2009. Knowing how precious my own family is to me, I feel extremely blessed to participate in the gentle birth of each new being and to witness the blossoming of each incredible family.
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Marlee Adams, LM, CPM
Hi, I’m Marlee and I am so pleased to be a part of the Moonstone Midwives team! I was first drawn to community midwifery after viewing a home birth video on Youtube. I was amazed by the immense power that the birth-giver harnessed to bring their baby into this world! Moreover, I was enthralled by the gentle, yet trusting and attentive care that the midwife provided. I knew in an instant that midwifery was my calling. Each birth that I have attended since then has reaffirmed my passion and desire to do this work.
I trained to be a doula and childbirth educator in 2018. After that, I enrolled at Bastyr University and graduated with my Master’s of Science in Midwifery in 2022. I am highly passionate about perinatal mental health and wrote a master’s thesis about caring for people with bipolar disorder in the community midwifery setting. Additionally, I have a particular interest in providing midwifery care to queer folks like myself. I am committed to practicing evidence-based, anti-racist, inclusive, attentive, and client-centered midwifery care.
Pregnancy, birth, and parenthood are major life transitions! It is my honor and an absolute pleasure to be a part of that journey with you and your family.
Brighid Burkhalter, Office Manager + Birth Assistant
Hello! My name is Brighid and it is such a joy and privilege to be a part of the Moonstone Midwives community. I have been in Humboldt County for just over two years and have dove into the world of birth work in the last year and a half. My interest in birth work began when I came across a copy of Ina May Gaskin’s Spiritual Midwifery. The book's framework of thinking about birth and the body deeply resonated with me and I knew I wanted to be involved with birth, and to support birthing people in a holistic way. In March of 2023, I completed my doula training with Laura, and was lucky enough to join the birth center as Office Manager. It is a joy to have the opportunity to work as a Birth Assistant with the midwives, and to support families bringing their little ones into the world.