Keep Us Together Campaign

The Keep Us Together Campaign to build the Ostara Mother Baby House is seeking $4.5 million to acquire, renovate, furnish, and launch Wisconsin’s first mother-child supportive living community that will serve as a humane alternative to incarceration for pregnant and postpartum justice-involved women.

Beyond Wisconsin, this facility will serve as a replicable national model – demonstrating how justice systems across America can prioritize maternal-infant bonds while achieving better outcomes for communities.

$
3% Cover the Fee

Campaign Purpose: Create a New Model of Holistic Maternal Health Support for Justice-Impacted Mothers and Their Infants 

A New Model of Care 

Designed to balance security with dignity, this new model of career community will include: 

  • Clean, secure place to deliver a baby 

  • Private and semi-private living spaces for mothers and infants 

  • Dedicated nursery spaces with infant-safe furniture and changing stations 

  • Communal dining and gathering areas for mothers and children 

  • Spaces for parenting classes, therapy, life skills, and evidence-based therapies 

  • Family visiting areas welcoming fathers, extended family, and support networks 

  • A secure outdoor space for recreation and bonding 

  • On-site laundry, staff offices, and 24/7 residential support 

The Program: 

Residents will follow a structured daily program that includes: 

  • Trauma-informed doula support through pregnancy, labor, and postpartum 

  • Parenting education on infant development, bonding, and responsive caregiving 

  • Evidence-based trauma programming and life skills development 

  • Substance use recovery support led by peer specialists with lived experience 

  • Case management covering housing, employment, family reunification, and reentry support 

  • Scheduled family visitation designed to strengthen family connections 

What the Campaign Will Fund

  • Acquisition of a suitable residential property to bring Ostara's program design to life

  • Renovation and furnishing to meet federal standards

  • Administrative infrastructure, licensing, and compliance systems 

  • Specialized staff recruitment, training, and onboarding 

  • Support for developing and implementing evidence-based programming: parenting education, doula support, somatic and occupational therapy, and peer recovery services

  • Funds to sustain the facility through its first year of full operation

Join Us in This Historic Moment 

A gift to the Ostara Initiative Keep Us Together Campaign is more than a donation. It is an investment in the reinvention of prison birth. Wisconsin has a once-in-a-lifetime chance to lead the nation in showing what justice and humanity can look like together. 

We invite you to make a meaningful contribution to the campaign through a one-time gift or multi-year pledge. Your investment in the Ostara Initiative is an investment in Wisconsin’s mothers, children, and communities. It is a smart investment in public safety, family stability, and a more humane approach to administering justice. 

Other Ways to Give

Thank You For

Your Support!

Hear from Ostara Initiative Executive Director, Erica Gerrity, on how your support creates change.