Today we’d like to introduce you to Charis W. Asher.
Hi Charis, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in a family that believed deeply in Jesus Christ, loved people intentionally and understood that privilege and opportunity carry responsibility. My parents gave my siblings and me access to experiences and education, but they also instilled in us the importance of serving our community and using what we had to uplift others. My mother, Wanda, was my best friend, role model and one of the greatest advocates I have ever known. She stood up for people who could not always advocate for themselves, opened her heart and home to those in need and made people feel seen. So many people would tell me, “I wish I had a mother like Wanda.” She taught me that loving God should be visible in the way we love humanity.
Learning that I was four and a half months pregnant during a visit to the emergency room was a surprise, to say the least! I immediately knew I needed to become a quick study on pregnancy, birth and maternal health. I became fascinated by the extraordinary way a woman’s body adapts to grow and sustain human life, how our brains and hormones shift and how intricately and divinely designed our bodies are. Years earlier, I had watched my sister benefit from doula support during her birth, and I was already very aware of the maternal-health disparities affecting Black women in Texas. I knew that if I ever had children, I wanted care that was evidence-based, holistic, informed and centered on the whole woman.
That journey led me to Katy Birth Center and my midwife, Chelsea C. My care extended far beyond routine appointments. I learned more about herbal nutrition, iron support, natural tinctures, movement, positioning and practical ways to encourage my baby into an optimal position for birth. I was supported spiritually, emotionally and physically. On the day my son was born, I was surrounded by trusted women, mothers and support who prayed with me, encouraged me and reminded me that I was capable. I experienced an unmedicated, one hour and thirty-five-minute active labor and virtually pain-free birth in water. Praise God! It was the most transformational and peaceful experience of my life! I was now confidently aware of what it felt like to be informed, respected, heard and empowered.
My birth experience did not simply change the way I saw motherhood. It changed the way I understood what women deserve. I began asking a question that still guides my work today: if evidence-based, holistic and supportive care can make such a profound difference in a woman’s experience, why should access depend on her income, insurance, ZIP code or whether she even knows those options exist?
This same season of my life changed me in other profound ways. A few months before I welcomed my son earthside, my mother, my SHERO died of complications with cancer, and I found myself navigating an abusive marriage and isolation as a new mother. There were moments when the weight of grief and everything happening around me felt insurmountable. But I kept praying and believing God and His promises that my mother spoke to me. I eventually learned to trust myself again and to share my heart with safe people. I learned that surviving something does not mean we are destined to be defined by it.
Those experiences became part of the foundation of Lady Power Inc. Today, our organization exists so women, children and families do not have to navigate some of life’s most vulnerable seasons alone, uninformed or unsupported.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has not been a smooth road. I have had to build while grieving, mother while healing, serve others while rebuilding parts of my own life and continue believing in a vision when the resources did not always match the magnitude of the need. Losing my mother was devastating because she was not only my mother, she was my confidante, my advocate, my example and my safe place. Becoming a mother while navigating abuse also forced me to develop trust in my discernment, courage and healthy boundaries very quickly.
Those seasons taught me that faith and wisdom belong together. Healthy love should have boundaries. Forgiveness can coexist with accountability. Sometimes trusting God also means having the courage to make difficult but necessary decisions. Those experiences did not diminish my capacity to serve. They deepened my empathy and strengthened my determination to help women facing circumstances they never imagined they would encounter.
There are moments when I look at everything God has allowed me to walk through and realize that none of it was wasted. Esther 4:14 asks, “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” (NIV). I believe I have been uniquely prepared for this season, not because my path has been easy, but because it has not been. God has taken my education, professional experience, motherhood, grief, advocacy, faith and healing and given me an opportunity to use them in service to others.
That creates a determination in me that is difficult to extinguish. When I know a mother needs help, I will make the call, ask the question, find the partner, knock on another door, advocate, pray and keep building. I am not easily discouraged when I know the work matters, because there is a woman somewhere who does not simply need us to recognize the problem. She needs us to do something about it.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Lady Power Inc.?
Lady Power Inc. is where ladies elevate, lead and inspire. We exist to help women and families move from surviving to supported. Our two flagship initiatives are the Birth Equity Initiative and Wanda’s House. Through our Birth Equity Initiative, we connect underserved pregnant and postpartum mothers with free maternal-health support, with a particular commitment to women of African descent, women of color and other mothers experiencing significant barriers to care.
One of the clearest barriers I recognized from my own experience was financial access. My birth-center care was not covered by my insurance. While many birth centers offer payment plans, even a payment plan may remain inaccessible to a mother who is already managing housing, transportation, food, childcare and other essential expenses. That is why Lady Power Inc. is intentional about removing the financial barrier altogether.
Our process is personal and dignity-centered. A mother applies for support, and we connect her with qualified midwives, doulas, and other maternal-health workers who uphold professional standards and codes of ethics. The mother has the opportunity to choose the provider with whom she feels the strongest connection because trust, communication and relational safety matter. Once that provider is selected, Lady Power Inc. pays the maternal-health professional directly. We do not simply hand a woman a resource list and tell her to figure it out. We help close the gap between needing support and actually receiving it.
We recently completed providing free postpartum doula support to a new mother, and that work is especially important because birth is not the finish line. Pregnancy-related health risks continue throughout the postpartum year. Texas continues to experience serious maternal-health disparities, particularly among Black women. Over 80 to 90 percent of maternal deaths in Texas and the Houston area, including Harris County, are considered preventable with proper medical care, early intervention and monitoring. Research also demonstrates meaningful benefits associated with doula support and midwife continuity-of-care models, including fewer preterm births, improved postpartum follow-up, increased breastfeeding, fewer interventions and more positive experiences of care.
That compels me to ask a very simple question: if we know that education, continuity, advocacy and trusted support can improve maternal experiences and outcomes, why would we not invest in it? We know too much now to continue treating evidence-based maternal support like a luxury.
A doula does not replace a physician or midwife, and a midwife does not eliminate the need for obstetric or emergency care when complications arise. What these models can do is strengthen the circle around a mother with education, continuity, advocacy, emotional support and skilled care. For a woman who might otherwise have no one in that circle, that support can be transformational.
And then there are the moments that bring joy to my soul. When the moms we serve share with tears of relief how instrumental our help has been, how it changed their lives, their self- esteem, their mental health and their family’s circumstances for good, I am in awe. Wow, this is amazing! I am so blessed and grateful that they can depend on us to walk with them, means more to me than anything. What an awesome privilege it is to serve.
Tell us about Wanda’s House.
Wanda’s House carries my mother’s legacy. My mother had a vision for helping women and families in our community in an even greater way, but she did not live long enough to see everything she envisioned come to fruition. I now have the privilege and responsibility of continuing that vision.
Wanda’s House supports mothers and children seeking safety and stability after domestic abuse. This work is not theoretical. Right now, we are helping a mother who escaped domestic abuse and is living in a hotel while she rebuilds her life. She needs stability, transportation support, baby necessities and a safe community around her.
That is what urgency looks like to us. Not six months from now. Not when another funding cycle opens. Today.
Why should someone support Lady Power Inc.?
Transparency and integrity are foundational to how I lead. I understand why donors sometimes wonder where their money actually goes. Large systems can become complicated, and families in crisis can become caught in paperwork, qualifications, waiting periods and institutional red tape while their immediate needs continue.
Lady Power Inc. remains intentionally close to the families we serve. Our leadership, board members and volunteers know the needs and understand where financial support is being directed. When someone gives to Lady Power Inc., that support can immediately help fund something tangible: a doula for a pregnant mother, midwifery support, postpartum care, maternal-health education, temporary housing assistance, transportation, diapers, baby necessities or practical support for a mother and children moving toward safety. Their contribution does not have to sit somewhere waiting to matter next month. It can begin making a difference today.
We have the programs. We have the relationships. We have committed board members and volunteers. We have women ready to serve. Most importantly, we have mothers asking for help right now. What we need are individuals, philanthropists, foundations, churches and businesses willing to stand with us financially so that when a mother calls, our first question can be, “How can we help?” rather than, “Do we have the funding to help?”
There are mothers waiting on the other side of our next donation.
What makes Lady Power Inc. different?
We are not simply telling women to be strong. We are surrounding them with the information, resources and trusted people that make strength possible. Sometimes society celebrates resilience so much that we forget people should not have to survive everything alone.
A pregnant woman should not have to go without a doula simply because she cannot afford one. A woman escaping abuse should not simply hear, “We care,” while receiving no practical help. To me, love has to become action. That is what I watched my mother do, and that is what I want Lady Power Inc. to continue doing.
Maya Angelou is widely credited with saying, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” That resonates deeply with me in maternal health. We know more now. We understand more about the disparities. We know most of these deaths are preventable. We know women benefit from being informed, listened to and supported. So now that we know better, we have a responsibility to do better.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Start with what God has placed in your hands. You do not need every resource, every connection or every answer before you begin. Be clear about who you are called to serve, protect your integrity, remain teachable and build authentic relationships.
I also wish I had understood earlier that asking for help is strength and collaboration is not competition. Community matters. Safe people matter. Aligned partnerships matter. You do not have to carry every part of the vision by yourself.
Do not despise small beginnings. Sometimes the vision God gives you is much larger than your current capacity, resources or reach. That does not mean the vision is wrong. Serve the person in front of you well, remain faithful to the mission and keep building.
And hold on to these words from Harriet Tubman: “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”
Pricing:
- Lady Power Inc. does not charge qualifying mothers and families for the programs we provide. Our maternal-health and family-support services are made possible through donors, sponsors, philanthropists, foundations, churches and community partners.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ladypowerinc.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ladypowerinc
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1UpdsrGTWE/
- Youtube: ladypowerinc
