Meet The Doulas: Mary Kendig
Meet Mary Kendig, one of the talented Allo Doula Academy doulas.
Tell us about yourself:
My name is Mary Kendig. I am a professional birth and postpartum doula and also provide infant sleep support for families. I started my career as a preschool teacher, working with all age groups from infants to pre-kindergarten for 20 years. I made the choice to transition to the birth world in 2017 and have been working as a professional doula ever since. I attended St. Lawrence University in upstate New York, graduating with a degree in Anthropology and Caribbean-Latin American Studies. I received an MA degree in Educational Psychology through Boulder Journey School and the University of Colorado Denver. I originally received my Postpartum Doula training through CAPPA. In 2020 I completed my Certified Professional Doula certification through Allotribe Academy.
Outside of work I enjoy snowboarding, reading, gardening, seeing live music and spending time with my 9 year old son, Summit James and our Border Collie. I would be honored to have the opportunity to work with your family through the birth and postpartum period.
Do you specialize in anything?
I have taken a number of courses focusing on lactation education and infant sleep support. I also enjoy learning about how the ayurvedic tradition can be used to support new families and have studied ayurvedic cooking and massage for new mothers as well as belly binding.
Why do you do what you do?
My passion for working with babies and families stems from growing up as the child of a neonatologist. I view infants as being born competent and capable citizens that should be treated as such. After becoming a mother myself in 2012 I truly understood the benefits of having extra support during labor and postpartum.
If you could live anywhere, where would it be?
I feel so lucky to live exactly where I l should be. I love Colorado for the beautiful weather, the mountains and the amazing friends I have made living here. There is nowhere I would rather be!
If you could do anything for a day, what would it be?
Although I love living in Colorado I do miss the beach! So if I could do anything for a day it would probably be to sit on the beach with my Mom, my son, and a good book!
What is your favorite children’s book?
I have so many it is hard to choose. Some of my favorites include “Bark George” “Is your Mama a LLama?” and “Goodnight Moon”.
What is your favorite thing about your career?
What I enjoy most about this work is connecting with families and helping to ease new parents into this major life transition. I love having the opportunity to share my knowledge with others and supporting parents to become confident in their own abilities and strengths. I am passionate about infant sleep and creating positive sleep habits and strategies for families.
What did you want to be when you you grew up?
I have always wanted to work with babies and children, so if I had known that Doula was a job it is probably what I would have wanted to be. I always wanted to be a teacher and a mother.
Who is your hero?
I feel so lucky to have had many great role models in my life but my hero is my father. He devoted his life to saving babies and he was a kind and caring man. I feel connected to him when I support families and I believe that he would be proud to see the career path that I have chosen.
If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
I love to eat, so this is a hard question for me also! But I think if I had to chose one thing to eat it would be a bowl of vegetable soup made by my grandmother.