International Cesarean Awareness Network

Gretchen Humphries is the Advocacy Director for ICAN, the ICAN email list administrator, and co-leader of the ICAN of Ann Arbor Chapter. She is also a Veterinarian, working in emergency and critical care at the Animal ER Center in Southeastern Michigan. She has written extensively on birth topics and many of her essays can be found at Birth Matters. She’s the mother of 4 wonderful children and the wife of a man who realized how much they’d both lost with the cesarean, after his third child was born at home.She’s had one cesarean for breech twins and then 2 wonderful HBACs.

Krista Cornish Scott is a classically trained musician with a graduate degree in voice who never imagined the turn her life would take when the planned homebirth of her first son turned to a cesarean for "CPD". She has worked extensively with ICAN as a Chapter Leader, Regional Co-ordinator, co-editor of "Cesarean Voices" and most recently as the Chapter Director on the International Board. Krista’s poems have been seen in Mothering, New Beginnings, the Compleat Mother and other publications, and her birth songs have been heard and sung by ICAN women all over the globe.

Lily is the International Director for ICAN and one of the leaders of ICAN of St. Louis. She is a native of Chile, has lived in Japan, Spain, and Saudi Arabia, and has traveled to multiple other countries around the world. Lily works in research for Washington University in St. Louis while spending most of her time at home with her three beautiful children, born by cesarean for "CPD," VBAC, and home VBAC. Her transformation from passive patient to empowered consumer was one of the most defining moments of her life, and she is passionate about empowering women to find their own voice.

Desirre was elected President of ICAN in June 2009 after serving on the Board of Directors as Vice President since 2007. Desirre found ICAN during her doula training and knew immediately it was the organization for her to become a part of. The mission statement deeply spoke to her since Desirre had her own 2VBA2C births with her four sons and lacked the very support and care during her own births that ICAN offered. Desirre began her work with ICAN in 2004 as the Chapter Leader in her city, was CEU Chair for the 2007 conference, and then became the Vice President serving under Pam Udy. She is committed to pursuing the mission and vision of ICAN for the mothers and babies of today and tomorrow.

Elaine serves as Secretary on ICAN’s Board of Directors and is Co-Leader of ICAN of Atlanta. She has been involved with ICAN since 2003. She is mother of 3 children, the first two born via cesarean and the last aVBAC after 2 cesareans.
 

Christine serves as Subscriber Relations Director on ICAN’s Board of Directors.  She has been involved with ICAN since 2007, and is the webmaster for ICAN of Atlanta.  She has two daughters and a son, her first a cesarean for breech, and then two hospital vbacs.

Kara is the treasurer for ICAN International and the chapter leader of ICAN of the Twin Cities.  She is the mother of two children, Luke and Lydia both of who were born by cesarean.  Luke was born after an induction for pre-clampsia and she went into labor with Lydia at 39 weeks and she never descended into the birth canal.  She is aslo a CPA and works as an accoutant for a printing and direct mail company.  She also have a wonderful husband who support her work with ICAN.

Lauren Cooper is the mother of three children. Her first daughter was born by planned cesarean for a birth defect she had. Her second child was a CBAC for failure to progress (FTP) and big baby (CPD). Her third child was born at home with both hands by his head, almost a full pound bigger than her CPD baby, and after a longer labor than her previous labor. She has helped co-lead the ICAN of Syracuse NY since 2007, and she coordinated the Silent Auction for ICAN’s 2009 Birth Conference in Atlanta. As Chapter Director, she hopes to help facilitate the growth of ICAN chapters in order to better support women all over the world.