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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

Shelby's Bio

Tara Schwandt

APRN, CNM, IBCLC

Tara's Bio

Lauren Mattson

DNP, APRN, CNM

Lauren'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

Nurse Manager

Abbie's Bio

Nike Ajao

RN Birth Assistant & Clinic Nurse

Nike's Bio

Hannah Beth Starr

RN Birth Assistant & Clinic Nurse

Hannah's Bio

Sophie Gettings

Clinic Assistant / Birth Assistant

Sophie's Bio

Lauren Bird

RN Birth Assistant & Clinic Nurse

Lauren's Bio

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

Nurse Manager
RN, IBCLC

Abbie's Bio

Aszani Stoddard

APRN, CNM, IBCLC

Aszani's Bio

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

Position

Cate's Bio

Angie Posine

Billing Associate & Administrative Support

Angie's Bio

Jennifer Russell

Clinic Coordinator

Jennifer's Bio

Kerstin Nickodem

Clinic Coordinator

Kerstin's Bio

Lev Meerson

Billing Associate

Lev's Bio

Sarah Bailey

Clinic Coordinator

Sarah's Bio

Patty Darrah

Clinic Coordinator

Patty's Bio

Freya Russell

Clinic Coordinator

Freya's Bio

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

Amber's Bio

Enock Onchonga

Sonographer

Enock's Bio

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!

jilliandemoya

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.

Tara Schwandt

APRN, CNM, IBCLC

Tara’s journey to becoming a Certified Nurse-Midwife is deeply rooted in her personal experiences and dedication to empowering families. After earning her B.S. in Nursing from Minnesota State University Moorhead and settling in Minnesota, her own birth experiences ignited a sincere interest in birth and midwifery. Inspired by her aunt, a birth doula and lactation counselor, Tara developed a strong philosophy centered on physiologic birth, shared decision-making, holistic care, and education as a tool for empowerment.

Her nursing career provided a foundation, with clinical experience in Emergency Medicine, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Maternal Fetal Medicine, Postpartum, Lactation, and Labor and Delivery. Beyond the hospital, Tara served as a birth doula and home birth assistant, and was a La Leche League Leader before achieving her IBCLC certification. After 14 years of nursing, she advanced her education at Frontier Nursing University, graduating with a Master of Science in Midwifery. Tara is thrilled to be living in the Twin Cities, where she can serve the community and be closer to family. In her free time, she enjoys running, practicing yoga, and spending time with her husband and three active boys, often traveling to the family lake home.

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**

Abbie Hull

Nurse Manager

Abbie started her journey into the birth world by watching baby goats be born on her family’s farm and also by seeing the births of her two younger brothers. She first started at the Minnesota Birth Center as a facility cleaner, then became a birth doula, then went to nursing school, and has been at the Minnesota Birth Center as a registered nurse since 2017. In 2020, she became a certified lactation counselor and loves helping families in their feeding journey. Abbie, her husband Brandon, and their daughter love exploring local coffee shops, traveling whenever they can, enjoying the outdoors, and gardening.

Nike Ajao

RN Birth Assistant & Clinic Nurse

Hi! My name is Nike. I’m a Registered Nurse with a background in Med surg and mental health nursing. I graduated from nursing school in 2023 and worked my first job at United hospital. I’ve always had an interest and excitement for women’s health and have been eager to enter the world of out of hospital birth.

Most recently, I’ve been working as a doula, supporting families through labor, delivery, and the postpartum period. This work has deepened my appreciation for the power of informed, compassionate care and solidified my commitment to advocating for birthing people in every setting.

In addition to doula work, I’ve been a nanny, worked in a dermatology clinic, a homeopathic doctors office and have always found deep meaning in walking alongside people through major life transitions. Outside of work I love to do yoga, roller skate, and recently have been learning to sew.

Amber Zach

Sonographer

I grew up and went to college in Wisconsin where I got my Ultrasound degree. I have been doing ultrasound for over 20 years, 18 of them in Maternal Fetal Medicine. OB has always been my passion since even before I knew exactly what I wanted to do for a career. I met my husband in college and we moved to MN for my internship and decided to stay here to raise our family. I’m a boy mom. My 15 year old is a freshman at Lakeville South and keeps me busy with football, being his chauffeur and currently teaching him to drive. My 20 year old is currently going to Normandale, graduating in May with an associate degree in biology, then moving on to the U of M for his bachelors in biology. We have a very spoiled 7 year old pit bull/great Dane mix.  In my free time I spend time at our seasonal camper in Zumbrota, go hiking, boating & traveling to tropical destinations.
amber zach

Enock Onchonga

Sonographer

I was born in Africa, Kenya where I was raised and schooled. I did my Diagnostic Sonography Training in Kenya and thereafter practiced general Sonography for more than 13 years including Obstetrics and Gynecology practice. I recently relocated to the USA and expanded my sonography practice in MN. Having worked in Africa and now here, exposes me to a diverse cultural  background. I am a father of 3, with my 13 year old daughter in grade 7 and my 10year old twin boys in grade 5. I enjoy soccer with my boys and volleyball with my daughter. I also like socializing and enjoy walking and biking around some of the Minnesota lakes.
Enock Onchonga