Honoring the strength of women everywhere
Outbrave Relief provides critical postpartum support to Israeli and Palestinian families impacted by war.
Honoring the strength of women everywhere
Outbrave Relief provides critical postpartum support to Israeli and Palestinian families impacted by war.
Our Mission
Outbrave Relief is focused on providing postpartum support to families across Israel and the Palestinian Territories.
We serve with compassion and neutrality, free from political agendas.
Outbrave empowers mothers across divides and works toward a promising start for the next generation.
Our Vision
Our vision is a world where postpartum care is recognized as a fundamental need: where every woman receives the support she deserves and every baby has a promising start, regardless of their background.
In Israel and Palestine, Outbrave stands with underserved and war-affected families, providing postpartum care when it’s needed most.
We champion a safe and just path forward for all communities, recognizing that prioritizing women’s health is key to building a thriving future.
Our Vision
Our vision is a world where postpartum care is recognized as a fundamental need:
In Israel and Palestine, Outbrave stands with underserved and war-affected families, providing postpartum care when it’s needed most.
We champion a safe and just path forward for all communities, recognizing that prioritizing women’s health is key to building a thriving future.
Our “Why”
Outbrave empowers disadvantaged women in practical ways, including them in the pursuit of a future rooted in justice and opportunity. Our “why” is to restore dignity and humanity to those living in conditions that threaten to strip it away.
These challenges go beyond physical hardship. Our goal is to elevate the voices of women in the communities we serve, ensure their inclusion in the global dialogue, and help restore their agency. By supporting new mothers in times of adversity, we affirm their worth – and show them they are seen, in all their strength, complexity, and resilience.
About our Team
Outbrave Relief’s founding team is made up of dedicated professionals based in Israel and the United States – united in their commitment to advancing women’s health and transforming the landscape of postpartum care.
With diverse backgrounds and lived experiences, the team brings a deep understanding of the challenges faced by mothers in Palestine and Israel, and works together across lines of identity to foster opportunity for all.
Mirjam van de Giessen
President & Executive Director
Urte Leopold
Deputy Director
Catie Newell
Vice-President & Treasurer on the Board
Dr. Mushira Aboodia
Board Director
Fanny Golan
Board Secretary
Why Postpartum Care Matters
Our Commitment to Supporting Women After Birth
The postpartum phase is a critical time of physical healing, emotional transformation, and unique challenges like breastfeeding, immense responsibilities, and chronic fatigue. Despite care during pregnancy and delivery, support often fades once women leave the hospital, leaving them without the professional help they need.
Research shows that many women and babies face serious medical issues in the first weeks, with a significant number requiring lifesaving interventions, which are not always recognized.
In conflict zones, the situation is even more severe. War and displacement take a physical, psychological, and social toll on mothers and babies.
Traditional support networks and community structures – so crucial for maternal and infant wellbeing – are often disrupted or destroyed, leaving them isolated during one of the most vulnerable times in their lives.
The consequences may be long-lasting, with potential intergenerational effects on health, stability, and development.
A child’s first 1,000 days (from conception to age 2) are critical for brain development, immune system function, and lifelong health. A mother’s health directly impacts this period: her nutrition, mental wellbeing, and access to care shape her child’s future; and by extension, the next generation of the community.
Our Focus Areas
Health Equity:
Fostering healthier communities by ensuring fair access to postpartum care and resources.
Crisis Response & Recovery:
Mobilizing relief and recovery support for Palestinian and Israeli communities facing the challenges of war and conflict.
Breaking Down Barriers:
Driving sustainable, cross-border solutions through daring, collaborative efforts that enhance women’s lives on both sides of the line.
Gaza
In Gaza, the humanitarian crisis has reached unimaginable levels, with women and newborns facing some of the harshest conditions.
Amid war, displacement, and the collapse of essential health services, many women are giving birth in overcrowded shelters, under-resourced hospitals, or with no medical support at all. Basic postpartum supplies -once routine – have become urgent lifelines.
With over 4,000 births each month and worsening hygienic conditions, Outbrave is stepping in.
In partnership with local healthcare providers, we are delivering postpartum kits to field hospitals – offering new mothers not only essential care, but a rare moment of dignity, comfort, and human connection in a deeply vulnerable and overwhelming time.
Gaza
Israel
Israel
In Israel’s northern border villages, fear and uncertainty have shaped daily life since October 2023.
Thousands of families have been displaced, while many others remain just beyond the evacuation zone – living under constant threat of missile and drone attacks. For new mothers, this means giving birth and recovering far from home, in temporary housing, or amid ongoing danger and emotional strain.
Outbrave believes every mother deserves care and comfort in the postpartum period – no matter the circumstances.
Guided by WHO recommendations and local health experts, we are providing free postpartum care to Israeli mothers in affected communities along the Lebanon border – offering a sense of safety, support, and connection as they begin to heal.
Israel
Rebuilding Communities
In Israel’s northern border villages, fear and uncertainty have shaped daily life since October 2023.
Thousands of families have been displaced, while many others remain just beyond the evacuation zone – living under constant threat of missile and drone attacks. For new mothers, this means giving birth and recovering far from home, in temporary housing, or amid ongoing danger and emotional strain.
Outbrave believes every mother deserves care and comfort in the postpartum period – no matter the circumstances.
Guided by WHO recommendations and local health experts, we are providing free postpartum care to Israeli mothers in affected communities along the Lebanon border – offering a sense of safety, support, and connection as they begin to heal.
Identified Need: Postpartum Kits
postpartum kits in Gaza where the humanitarian crisis continues to be critical, especially for women and girls.
The ongoing war, displacement, market shortages, financial constraints, and security risks have left many women without the basic supplies necessary for postnatal care. With approximately 4,000 live births in Gaza each month, Outbrave is stepping in to support mothers and newborns by distributing vital postpartum kits to those most in need.
Our efforts extend beyond Gaza to support mothers in Israel,
offering postpartum kits to those who have been displaced, to mothers residing in areas frequently targeted during missile strikes,
and to those facing healthcare access challenges.
Identified Need: Home-Care After Birth
Outbrave recognizes a universal need for personalized home-care after birth, with the goal of improving maternal and newborn health and wellbeing – especially during times of war and conflict.
A minimum of four postnatal care contacts is recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).* Research shows that 55% of postpartum home visits identify medical issues requiring care, with 2% involving critical problems that need immediate, lifesaving interventions.**
Outbrave seeks to offer these services free of charge in Israel’ s recovering communities along the Lebanon border and Gaza envelope, ensuring that no mother or child is left without the care they urgently need.
