A Conversation with Our Board Chair: Leslie Rohrbacker

There are people who support this work from a distance, and there are people who carry it personally. Leslie Rohrbacker, our Board Chair, is the latter. The mother of twin boys who spent three weeks in the NICU after being born prematurely, Leslie knows firsthand what those first fragile days of life ask of a baby, and of a mother.

We asked her to share her story.

Leslie with her twin sons in the hospital

Do you have a personal story that connects you to Embrace's work or mission?

"My twin sons, now 19, were born prematurely and both required an incubator along with many other significant medical interventions. The experience of their three weeks in the NICU, the sounds, the sights, the feelings and emotions, is all inscribed on my soul. When you watch the tiniest and most fragile human beings, including your own children, fight to live and take their place on this imperfect and beautiful Earth, something in you fundamentally changes forever."

Why did you get involved with Embrace, and what keeps you committed to the mission?

"Very simply, I could not bear the thought of any mother not having access to resources to save her baby. I am tremendously privileged and fortunate to have medical insurance and to have access to sophisticated, premium healthcare where I live. My children were born in a hospital with a world-class NICU. And, by the way, the myriad medical professionals who take care of neonates are heroes. Full stop. But so many women, particularly in low and middle income countries or in places impacted by humanitarian crises, do not have these same resources and privileges, not even close, and this is tragic and unacceptable to me. The opportunity to support babies who have been forgotten by much of the world, and to save their mothers from unimaginable sorrow and grief is what keeps me committed to the mission."

What moment, story, or memory connected to Embrace has stayed with you the most?

"I am still incredibly moved by the video of the Embrace warmers being used to transport premature infants to bomb shelters in the basement of a hospital in Ukraine in the early days of the war. To think that we were able to offer aid during such unspeakably cruel and terrifying moments is beyond humbling."

What do you wish more people in your community knew about what Embrace does?

"I wish they knew more about the conditions under which many women live and are forced to give birth and the health inequities that exist for women and children virtually everywhere. I hope that they see the simplicity and effectiveness of the Embrace solution particularly in the devastating wake of the recent wholesale reductions of international aid and are moved to support our work."

What does motherhood mean to you, and how has being part of Embrace shaped that?

"I was never a woman who felt like I absolutely had to be a mother to be fulfilled in life, although I certainly wanted to have children. I now identify first as a mother because it fundamentally colors my worldview. Feminist author and activist Glennon Doyle likes to say, 'There is no such thing as someone else's children.' I believe that and believe that the world would be a far better place if we all did."

Is there a woman or mother in your own life who inspired you to get involved with this work?

"I do this for all mothers everywhere who carry the sacred worries and treasures of motherhood in our hearts."

Leslie said it best. There is no such thing as someone else's children.

Thank you to all of our partners, to all of the mothers, and to all of the healthcare workers that help move our work forward.