Every Voice Counts: Julie's Story

When Julie Smolyansky, CEO of Lifeway Foods, met Christy at the Summit Series in April 2010, (a conference that unites young entrepreneurs, innovators and forward thinkers with folks, trying to solve serious global problems) it was the beginning of a great partnership.  Julie was deeply affected by Christy’s passion about global maternal health and as she watched "No Woman No Cry", Julie reminisced about her own near-miss maternal health emergency.  Here’s Julie’s story: 

My pregnancy with my first daughter, Leah, couldn’t have been better. I felt amazing and kept a full work and travel schedule the entire time.  Like any new mom, I was nervous about the actual birth, but once I arrived at the hospital, I received my epidural and all felt easy breezy. Bob Marley played in the room as we had planned; I was upbeat and making jokes. When nurses came into the room, they’d comment, “This is the cool vibe room - I want to stay here!”  My hair and make up were camera ready. 

After about five hours of fun and laughter, my OB/GYN said, “The baby’s head is too big for your pelvis.” She went on to explain that decades ago and in other parts of the world today, this is where mothers and babies die.  Suddenly the atmosphere grew quite serious. Bob Marley was switched off and I was being wheeled into the operating room, where I was prepped for a C-section while Jason, my other half, dressed in surgical scrubs. 

To be perfectly honest, I was terrified of what was about to happen, having never undergone surgery or experienced anesthesia. Would the medicine ever wear off? What if I fell into a coma or something worse? Even in the best hands and surrounded by state of the art medical technology, I was terrified. Within a few minutes, I heard Leah’s first cries. To say I was ecstatic is an understatement. There are no words to describe the absolute joy and relief we felt when we knew she was out and healthy.  I am eternally grateful for the medical care I received. If I had delivered Leah in Bangladesh, the country I’d just visited with Christy and her advocacy team, my daughter and I might both have died.  

Of course, after hearing Christy passionately discussing her endeavors, I wanted to do anything in my power to help woman around the world and prevent even one more avoidable death.  As I spoke to Christy at lunch, the idea was born to leverage Lifeway's reach and help spread her message. Inspired by Bono’s “Project Red,” we created a campaign where a bottle of Lifeway Kefir would be wrapped in Every Mother Counts’ logo. An educational message would be printed on the label and a portion of proceeds would go towards Every Mother Counts.  In the next few weeks the brainchild of this meeting began showing up on store shelves all around the United States.