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Meet Our Team

Get to know the dedicated midwives and staff who provide compassionate, expert care at Minnesota Birth Center.

Midwives

Our midwives are highly trained health professionals who specialize in supporting healthy pregnancies, births, postpartum care, as well as well-person and gynecological care.

Ann Groonwald

Director of Midwifery

Ann's Bio

Jillian De Moya

APRN, CNM

Jillian's Bio

Sue Beavis

APRN, CNM

Sue's Bio

Shelby Fonley

APRN, CNM, IBCLC

Shelby's Bio

Lauren Mattson

DNP, APRN, CNM

Lauren's Bio

Raquel LaRocca

APRN, CNM

Raquel's Bio

Lori Geller

APRN, CNM

Lori's Bio

Aszani Stoddard

APRN, CNM, IBCLC

Aszani's Bio

Kimberly McNally

DNP, CNM, FNP-C, IBCLC

Kimberly's Bio

Birth Assistants & Clinical Staff

Our experienced birth assistants support you during labor alongside your midwife and provide a postpartum home visit. Each day, a nurse is available on our nurse line to answer questions, and our clinical assistants manage in-house lab services and daily clinic operations.

Abbie Hull, RN

Birth Assistant & Clinic Nurse

Nike Ajao, RN

Birth Assistant & Clinic Nurse

Hannah Beth Starr, RN

Birth Assistant & Clinic Nurse

Sophie Gettings

Birth Assistant

Paige Hepenstal, RN

Birth Assistant & Clinic Nurse

Aleta Wild, RN

Birth Assistant

Amanda Pruden-Meyer, RN

Birth Assistant

Anna Belc, RN

Birth Assistant

Marge Carty

Birth Assistant

Lili Debo, RN

Birth Assistant

Sarah Tablert, RN

Birth Assistant

Sarah Bailey

Clinic Assistant

Brynn Schaeppi

Clinic Assistant

Lactation Consultants & Specialists

Our lactation specialists support parents in their feeding choices and will work to balance the needs of your baby with your desires. Lactation Visits at MBC last about an hour and are scheduled at both of our Minneapolis and St. Paul sites throughout the week. 

Abbie Hull

Birth Assistant & Clinic Nurse

RN, IBCLC

Aszani Stoddard

APRN, CNM, IBCLC

Shelby Fonley

APRN, CNM, IBCLC

Administrative

Our Clinic Coordinators welcome you from behind the front desk and keep you informed about scheduling and other nuances. The rest of our administrative staff work behind the scenes to support you and your care team. Our Clinic Coordinators are the welcoming faces at the front desk, ready to assist you with scheduling and any procedural questions. Our dedicated administrative staff works diligently behind the scenes, ensuring seamless support for you and your care team.

Cate Van Halsema

Front Office Supervisor & Executive Assistant

Angie Posine

Billing Associate & Administrative Support

Jennifer Russell

Clinic Coordinator

Kerstin Nickodem

Clinic Coordinator

Lev Meerson

Billing Associate

Patty Darrah

Clinic Coordinator

Freya Russell

Clinic Coordinator

Sotricia King

Clinic Coordinator

Madison Manthei

Clinic Coordinator

Anna Hepsø

Fractional Director of Finance & Operations

Ultrasound

Minnesota Birth Center is pleased to offer in-house ultrasounds for routine 20-week scans as well as dating, growth, and other scans as medically indicated. MBC’s sonographers are passionate about offering supportive and family-centered care as you meet your baby for the first time on ultrasound.

Amber Zach

Sonographer

Enock Onchonga

Sonographer

Ann Groonwald

Director of Midwifery

While she may not be a native to Minnesota, Minnesota holds a special place in her heart as it is where she met her husband and is the birthplace of her 3 children. While growing up, Ann moved frequently to many different states, which contributed to her appreciation of cultural diversity. As a provider, she strives to empower the families she serves through education, support, and shared decision making. Her goal is to provide gentle, compassionate, holistic care to all.

Ann’s midwifery journey began in her teens after she was inspired by a group of midwives she had the pleasure of working with. She graduated with her B.S. in Nursing degree from Minnesota State University, Mankato in 2005 and continued to work as a labor and delivery nurse for the next 14 years.

After expanding her family, she returned to school and graduated with a Master of Science in Midwifery from Frontier Nursing University in 2019. For the past 3 years, she has worked at a birth center in Southern California. She is excited to be back to the Twin Cities community and is honored to serve the families at the Minnesota Birth Center.

Outside of work, Ann enjoys traveling, hiking, crocheting, quilting, and spending time with her husband, 3 children, 2 dogs, and guinea pig.

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Jillian De Moya

APRN, CNM

Jillian learned about the midwifery model of care from the midwives at the Maternity Center Association Birth Center in NYC during her first pregnancy. Her childbearing years ignited a passion for normal, physiologic birth, and the rights of birthing people to be respected participants in their care. She realized her calling to midwifery while working as a doula and childbirth educator in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas at Holy Family Services Birth Center. Her advocacy for safe birth options includes bringing awareness of maternity care issues to communities with the play Birth! This documentary-style play tells the stories of eight birth experiences, including her own. After graduating from Goshen College with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Jillian worked as a labor and delivery nurse while she got her Master of Science in Midwifery from Thomas Jefferson University. Jillian has attended births in hospitals, homes, and birth centers and is committed to community options for childbirth. She loves partnering with people in their health and reproductive journeys and is passionate about dismantling systems of injustice that uphold health disparities and inequalities. She believes that every birthing person, their partners, and their family, deserve inclusive, respectful care.

Jillian is excited to be living in the Twin Cities. She enjoys exploring new places, learning about new things, music, and the arts. She loves how theatre, especially musical theatre, provides a space that allows people to explore new ideas. More than anything, she loves interacting with her grown children and is always eager to see in what new ways she will learn about the world from them!

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Sue Beavis

APRN, CNM

I was born and raised in Northwestern Minnesota. I started my nursing career as an RN at a critical care hospital. I cared for individuals with various needs for 12+ years, with the last 6 primarily in labor and delivery. This is where my passion for women’s health grew.

I continued on and got my BSN and MS in Nursing Leadership and Administration at Minnesota State University Moorhead and then went on to receive my DNP in Nurse Midwifery at the University of Minnesota. I worked as a midwife in the hospital setting for 2 years then transitioned to the Minnesota Birth Center in 2024.

Because of my own health journey I have a strong passion for women’s health and access to care. I feel women deserve to have choices and be allowed to make educated decisions related to their health. The midwifery model of care is true to my heart. It empowers women by allowing them to be their healthiest self and to have natural physiologic births.

I am also a nursing educator and enjoy sharing my passion for nursing. My hobbies include working with my hands doing home projects, spending time with family, and enjoying the outdoors.

Shelby Fonley

APRN, CNM

Shelby grew up in the Midwest and lived in the Twin Cities during high school. She received her BS in Biology at the University of Wisconsin, River Falls. As a wildlife biologist, she has lived and traveled to many areas of the US and developed an appreciation for its diverse cultures. After raising a family and having three home births with midwives, she was inspired to pursue her passion for mothers and babies by returning to school to become a Certified Nurse Midwife. She completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Florida and her master’s in Midwifery at Frontier Nursing University, KY. She has clinical experience in med surg, pediatrics, labor and delivery, worked with the Santa Fe Maternal and Child Health Council, and was a La Leche League Leader for four years. Outside of her clinical work, she enjoys outdoor activities like hiking, kayaking, and the arts, as well as spending time with her family and Jack Russell Terrier. Shelby is a dedicated and compassionate Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM) providing comprehensive, patient-centered care to individuals throughout the childbearing years, with a deep commitment to supporting women and families. In addition to midwifery care, she is passionate about educating and empowering individuals to make informed decisions about their health and childbirth options and providing evidence-based care that is holistic and personalized while always ensuring a collaborative approach with their patients and families.
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Lauren Mattson

DNP, APRN, CNM

Lauren Mattson is a lifelong Minnesotan and proud Twin Cities native, rooted in the community she serves. Her commitment to midwifery is grounded in a strong awareness of the disparities that continue to impact women’s healthcare—particularly among black and brown bodies. As a licensed midwife, she is dedicated to providing inclusive, affirming, and accessible care for all individuals across the reproductive and childbearing lifespan.

Lauren began her journey in maternal health as a Labor and Delivery nurse and birth worker, where she developed a solid foundation in both clinical care and patient advocacy. Following her graduation from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, she brings a full-scope, evidence-based approach to her midwifery practice, supporting patients in making safe, informed, and individualized decisions about their health. She honors the physiologic process of birth while thoughtfully integrating modern tools and knowledge to offer a holistic care experience.

For Lauren, midwifery is not only clinical—it is cultural, historical, and deeply relational. She is passionate about holding space for the profound transformation that occurs through parenthood and remains inspired by the trust her patients place in her. She believes that representation matters in healthcare and is committed to showing up with integrity, compassion, and humility in every interaction. Lauren considers it a privilege to walk alongside individuals and families as they grow, heal, and thrive—bringing together evidence-based practice, patient preferences, and the evolving needs of today’s families.

***Biliteracy in Spanish**

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Raquel LaRocca

APRN, CNM

Raquel’s path to midwifery began while working as a nursing assistant in postpartum care during the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time, she deepened her studies in maternal health and community birth, which solidified her passion for midwifery. After graduating from the College of Charleston with a Bachelor of Science in Public Health, Raquel moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where she earned her Master of Science in Midwifery from Vanderbilt University.

Raquel values providing care across the full spectrum of sexual and reproductive health. She supports people through pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period, as well as during their first menses and the transition into menopause. She is deeply committed to creating healthcare spaces that are welcoming and free of judgment. Her clinical interests include trauma-informed care, sexual health, and LGBTQ+ health.

When she’s not at the birth center, Raquel enjoys practicing yoga, painting, and going on walks with her partner, Jane, and their boxer, Rudy.

New to Minnesota, Raquel is grateful to be reconnecting with her Midwest roots.

RLaRocca

Lori Geller

APRN, CNM

Lori began her journey in the amazing world of women’s health as a young teen volunteer at a local hospital in the nursery and labor/postpartum units. She continued to pursue this passion for birth and babies by earning degrees at the College of St. Benedict in Spanish, the University of Minnesota in Nursing, and eventually again at the U of M in Nurse Midwifery (all the while working in Labor & Delivery as a nursing assistant and then a labor nurse).

Lori is a midwife with over 14 years of experience in hospital and out of hospital birth. She takes great pleasure in helping women to discover the normalcy of pregnancy and birth. She is driven to help women achieve the most desirable and educated wellness and birth experience. She loves teaching women of all ages and connects especially well with teenagers. Discussions on contraception, ultrasound technology and just connecting on a personal level are all things she’s blessed to be able to incorporate every day into her midwifery work. When at home Lori enjoys traveling, cooking, boating, entertaining guests, and being active within their faith community. She is blessed with a supportive husband, boy/girl twins and numerous “bonus” children that have blessed her home through foster care.

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Aszani Stoddard

APRN, CNM, IBCLC

Aszani has been a midwife for over 20 years and an IBCLC for over 10 years. She founded and directed the first nationally accredited, baby-friendly birth center in Wisconsin in 2003. Aszani has deep experience in all birth settings, including home, birth center and hospital birth. She is passionately committed to supporting women and birthing people in their power during the maternity cycle and beyond. Aszani has her own private practice doing Functional Medicine and loves the detective work that comes with solving complex medical issues. In her free time, Aszani enjoys live music, gardening, knitting, moving her body in the outdoors and hanging out with friends and family.
Aszani Stoddard

Kimberly McNally

DNP, CNM, FNP-C, IBCLC

Kim is a midwife who has attended over 1400 births across home-, birth center-, and hospital-based care. She is a doctoral-prepared, dual-certified APRN Certified Nurse-Midwife and Family Nurse Practitioner, with over 20 years of midwifery and women’s health experience. She is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, worked as Registered Nurse in L&D and Emergency Depts, labor/birth doula, midwifery case reviewer, and university nursing instructor. She is also certified in Functional Medicine and works as a Family Nurse Practitioner in Golden Valley. Kim’s approach to care is to center each person and family, holding sacred their need to be fully heard and seen on their most important day.
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