Our Founders
Rebecca Mercurio & Pauline Goulah
Rebecca approaches this work through a philosophical, spiritual and somatic lens while Pauline is data driven and rooted in evidence based care. Together they cultivate a whole person approach through the physical and mental fortitude, trust in the body and its process, and navigation of a model of care that does not address any of this, determined to help families feel heard, seen and involved in this peak human experience.
While our own personal experiences with birth were in the care of midwives and outside the walls of a hospital, we recognize the value and necessity of the medical model in high risk pregnancies, we have absolutely witnessed it saving lives. Currently over 90% of birth happens in hospitals, this is not the same as being in the medical model of care. The hospital is the environment, the model is one of management and intervention. We are here to help families understand the difference, to navigate and advocate within the medical model. We honor all bodies in all choices and believe wholeheartedly, and want you to as well, that no matter what your birth looks like, you are the power source in the room.
THE YIN
Rebecca spent most of her adult life traveling the world, studying in Ashrams of India, teaching English in Japan, guiding people diving in the crystal clear waters along the Caribbean coast of Central America, drinking in the wide perspective that living nomadic life outside the box offers. Her experiences culminate in the central theme of the inner architecture- the capabilities of the human body and the expansive nature of the mind. She approaches life with a sense of curiosity and flow, intrigued & delighted by the way ritual and ceremony cultivate community and is dedicated to the restoration of this around the continuum of the childbirth experience. The oldest of six, she grew up in a role of caretaking and leadership, which instilled in her a strong work ethic and sense of social responsibility & collective care. The birth of her son was so powerful, so fully and intensely out of body, otherworldly incredible, that it changed the trajectory of her life and led her to this work. In 2013, she returned to Buffalo with a one year old to be closer to family at a time when there were only a handful of doulas in the community, met Pauline almost immediately (because you could count the number of doulas on both hands in 2013), slowly built a practice out of a space in Allentown known as Village, wrote for and received a 43 North Ignite Buffalo grant in 2018, with Pauline’s tech savvy assistance. It became very clear very quickly the two had an aligned vision around what they wanted to be putting out into the world. The Ignite grant was the seed that grew into Cary House, their “baby” together.
THE YANG
Pauline is a designer by day, working her magic in publication. She lends her skills to political publications in support of causes that are rooted in body autonomy and feel meaningful to her. She is the grounded, impressively even-keel mother to a blazing fire of a daughter and a passionate, dedicated doula & educator. Clear in her intention, integrity for miles, Pauline knows her way around a tool box and, as a typical type A, is extremely attentive to detail and can fix almost anything. Hers is a data driven, deeply pragmatic mind. Pauline makes our work actually WORK!!! She is the steady stoking of this fire. She is a Spinning Babies Instructor and teaches with wit, humor & grace as she gushes about hospital policy & pelvic alignment. Her technical brain and structured approach take the free flow of those yin ideas and give them form. Originally from WNY, she returned to Buffalo after spending her formative years in DC where she started her own design firm and found her way to political activism. Her daughter was born here at home, something that was beyond her comfort level at the time but felt more aligned for her than the medical model. A lifelong athlete, she knew the capabilities of her body and trusted her ability to meet the physical demands of labor. Her journey with a midwife and a doula opened her eyes to other possibilities and approaches around birth and her data driven soul considered the statistics. The autonomy of birthing the way she wanted was the overriding factor in her decision to stay home. Within hours of her daughter’s birth there was a pizza party and champagne flowing, which is a story Rebecca loves so much because ritual and ceremony!!!