Natural Resources Celebrates 20 Years as San Francisco's Premier Pregnancy and Parenting Resource Center

SAN FRANCISCO, September 4, 2008 - Parents and parents-to-be are invited to a party on Saturday, Oct. 4, to celebrate Natural Resources' 20 years as San Francisco's premier pregnancy, childbirth and early parenting education and resource center.

The event at 1367 Valencia Street in San Francisco will celebrate the launch of the Natural Resources online store (www.store.naturalresources-sf.com) and will honor its history as an independent, mother-owned and community-based center and retail shop for expectant and new families.

Guests will enjoy music, food and a variety of fun and educational activities, including baby food making, free massages for moms, workshops on sleep and early pregnancy, and panels on birth, lactation and optimal fetal positioning. Each hour from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. prizes will be raffled, and later that evening former owners, employees and educators will join the current owner and staff for a private reunion.

"We would like to thank all of the families, community members and customers who have supported us for so many years," says Cara Vidano, owner of Natural Resources. "We are honored to serve San Francisco families and their friends and are proud of the range of classes and products we offer parents."

History of Natural Resources
New mother Deborah Jackson and labor and delivery nurse Chris Pritchard opened Natural Resources at 4081 24th Street, next to the Noe Valley post office, on March 21, 1988. The founders believed that pregnant women have "the natural resources to be informed, responsible and creative during this time of great personal transformation."

The center quickly became the place where parents made friends, obtained referrals, and attended childbirth classes and pregnancy and parent support groups. In addition, Natural Resources established a lending library of books and videos and a line of herbal products, including pregnancy tea. It was one of the first places in the Bay Area to offer birth and postpartum doula trainings.

In 1990, Nathalie Kelly, Ann Kenworthy and Lisa Moresco became the new owners, and three years later Samantha Allen stepped in as a new partner replacing Ann Kenworthy, who departed to pursue a nursing career and motherhood. In 1998, Nathalie Kelly moved to Vermont and a year later Lisa Moresco became the sole owner when Samantha Allen moved to Southern California. For a Natural Resources timeline click here.

The center operated from two other locations in Noe Valley and had a brief stint in Bernal Heights. In January 2006, Vidano bought Natural Resources and in December moved it to Valencia Street in the Mission District.

Under Vidano's stewardship, the store has grown to eight employees and has expanded its carefully selected line of products. Natural Resources continues to sell environmentally-friendly products, including organic baby clothing, cloth diapers and glass baby bottles. Vidano recently ensured that all products sold at Natural Resources are safe for children and adults by having its products tested for lead and PVC by the Center for Environmental Health (http://www.cehca.org).

Looking Toward the Future
"Natural Resources continues to thrive as a special place for expectant and new mothers, and their friends and families," says Vidano. "From the in-store classes and workshops to the new online retail experience we are committed to keeping Natural Resources true to its roots, and we look forward to our next 20 years."

About Natural Resources
In 2008, Natural Resources celebrates its 20th anniversary as San Francisco's premier pregnancy, childbirth and early parenting education and resource center. Located in the Mission District, the center was voted San Francisco's best shop for parents-to-be in the San Francisco Bay Guardian's 34th annual Best of the Bay Readers Poll in 2008. Families can become members, shop and register for classes online at www.naturalresources-sf.com. The address is 1367 Valencia Street at 25th Street in San Francisco and the phone number is 415.550.2611.

Media Resources

Natural Reources' news releases, a timeline and photos are available at http://www.naturalresources-sf.com/news.html.

Media Contact:
Susan Arthur
News(at)susan-arthur(dot)com
415.824.0663

A History of Natural Resources

On October 4, 2008, Natural Resources (NR) will celebrate 20 years as San Francisco's community pregnancy, childbirth and early parenting center.

Here is a timeline marking our memorable moments and accomplishments:

• 1988
  
  • March 21, the Spring Equinox -- Deborah Jackson, a new mother and California Institute of Integral Studies student of group dynamics and cooperatives, and Chris Pritchard, a labor and delivery nurse, open Natural Resources Pregnancy and Childbirth Resource Center at 4081 24th Street in Noe Valley.
    
    
  • Membership costs $35 per year, and classes include Deb's Changing Women Pregnancy Support Group, Childbirth Preparation and Vaginal Birth After Cesarean by Maggie Greenwood, Massage for Pregnant Women, Postpartum Support Group facilitated by Deb, Pregnancy over 30, Fertility Awareness, a Workshop for Fathers, Pregnancy Resources for Lesbians, and Labor Coach Training.
    
    
  • The Center also offers breast pump rentals and publishes a quarterly newsletter with articles and classified ads.
    
    
• 1989
  
  • NR hosts the Birth Consciousness Film Festival and graduates its first class of nine postpartum doulas or "mothers' helpers."
    
    
• 1990
  
  • NR hosts a "Doula Training Part II" class to train childbirth assistants.
    
    
  • New owners Nathalie Kelly, Ann Kenworthy and Lisa Moresco take over the helm.
    
    
• 1991
  
  • NR begins a 14-session lecture series. Topics and speakers include:
    
    • "Women, Witches and Midwives," by Z Budapest and Ann Fuller
    • "Reclaiming Our Birthrite," by Dr. Michel Odent, Suzanne Arms and Elizabeth Davis.
    
    
  • NR launches its own line of herbal products, including pregnancy tea and a postpartum sitz bath.
    
    
  • In response to an ABC 20/20 news program that encouraged parents to let their babies cry themselves to sleep, NR successfully lobbied the show's producers to broadcast a counter segment discussing how parents can use more nurturing methods to help infants sleep. ABC sends a film crew to an NR parenting class, films the family bed of NR educator Michelle Mason and per NR's suggestion interviews Dr. William Sears, a pediatrician who advocates attachment parenting.
    
    
  • Michelle Mason flies to New York to be a guest on the Phil Donahue show to advocate for the family bed and attachment parenting.
    
    
• 1992
  
  • Nan Scott, owner of Dydee Wash diaper service, is named Natural Resource of the Year
    
    
• 1993
  
  • The Natural Resources newsletter publishes Iyla's birth story, launching birth stories as a regular newsletter feature.
    
    
  • Ann Kenworthy, pregnant with her first child, departs to pursue a nursing career and motherhood. Samantha Allen steps in as a new partner, joining Lisa Moresco and Nathalie Kelly.
    
    
  • NR gains a new classroom in an adjacent building behind its 24th Street store.
    
    
• 1996
  
  • NR moves around the corner to 1307 Castro Street, quadrupling its size, offering more retail and educational services.
    
    
  • "Welcome to our new home, a place to explore the beauty of becoming a family, a center that fills our need for community . . . From menses to menopause, we like to educate, support and nurture women and their families through all stages of life," from the Winter/Spring 1997 newsletter.
    
    
  • NR begins certifying doulas who attend NR doula trainings.
    
    
• 1997
  
  • The Natural Resources catalogue goes online at www.fcinet.com/naturalresources.
    
    
  • Natural Resources is voted as the Best Pregnancy Resource Center in the San Francisco Bay Guardian's Best of the Bay Readers Poll.
    
    
• 1998
  
  • NR celebrates 10 years.
    
    
  • NR Partner Nathalie Kelly moves to Vermont, and NR Partner Samantha Allen moves to Southern California. Lisa Moresco remains as the sole owner.
    
    
• 2000
  
  • Natural Resources obtains its own URL: www.naturalresourcesonline.com.
    
    
• 2003
  
  • NR closes its Castro Street location in July, moves temporarily to 406 Cortland in Bernal Heights and re-opens in September at a new Noe Valley location at 816 Diamond Street near 24th Street.
    
    
• 2006
  
  • In January Cara Vidano buys Natural Resources from Lisa Moresco and in December moves it to 1367 Valencia Street in the Mission District more than doubling its size.
    
    
• 2008
  
  • Today membership costs $80 per year. Classes offered include Childbirth Preparation, Breastfeeding, Newborn Care & Parenting, Hypnobirthing, Birthing from Within, and Birth and Postpartum Doula Training. The store also hosts many free events, including vaccine information and acupuncture clinics for pregnant woman.
    
    
  • NR wins Best Shop for Parents-to-Be in the San Francisco Bay Guardian's 34th annual Best of the Bay Readers Poll.
    
    
  • NR ensures that all products are safe for children and adults by having them tested for lead and PVC by The Center for Environmental Health (http://www.cehca.org).
    
    
  • NR celebrates its 20th anniversary on October 4, 2008, with an in-store gala.
    
    

Downloadable Press Kit With Photos (zip)


August 14, 2008
Information about lead testing done at Natural Resources

As you are no doubt aware, there has been much news coverage of lead content in children's toys and accessories. As the owner of Natural Resources I felt it was my responsibility to ensure that all items in my store were safe for you and your children, and so recently I had all items in the store tested by the Center for Environmental Health (www.cehca.org), an organization dedicated to protecting the public from environmental and consumer health hazards.

All but a very few products at Natural Resources contained no or very low levels of lead (much lower than the Government standards). For the few that had questionable lead levels, The Center for Environmental Health was not able to say definitively that these products were a danger to your children. They said they would continue testing to determine possible exposure hazards. For example, high lead content showed up in a changing pad (included in a diaper bag), but because of the way the diaper pad is manufactured the CEH was unable to determine exactly where the lead was located (e.g. on the fabric surface or on the interior side). We all agreed, however, that high lead content in a diaper bag or other products that children had repeated exposure to was unacceptable.

As a result of the tests conducted, I've made the following decisions about items in the store:

JJ Cole (Logic Diaper bag and System Diaper bag)
JJ Cole Pacifier Pod (sky/lemon color only)

JJ Cole has sent me their own testing results, which show that though their products contain some lead, it is within US Government standards for this type of product. Because of the conflicting information between their test and mine, I made the personal decision to pull these products from my shelves.

3 Sprouts Organic Sleep Sack, with red snaps

The snaps on these sleep sacks tested positive for lead but were still within US government standards. In response to my calls to 3 Sprouts about the test results, they have changed suppliers for their snaps and are offering customers the option of exchanging the Organic Sleep Sack, with red snaps, for the new product. The new product is not yet available. If you would like to exchange your old sleep sack for the new one, please bring it into the store before September 15, 2008 and we'll contact you when your new sleep sack has arrived.

Sugar Booger (Ultimate Diaper Bag Deluxe) by Ore Originals

Ore Originals agreed to provide their test results for this product. Their results showed lead content within the guidelines from the federal government, a different result than the one provided by the Center for Environmental Health. Because of the conflicting information between their test and mine, I made the decision to pull the products from my shelves.

Medela Bottle Cooler

Medela assures me this product has been tested for lead by an independent third party and those results showed no accessible lead. They have, however, replaced the product with one that has a PVC-free backing, and are encouraging families with old Bottle Coolers (bought prior to June 2008) to return them directly to Medela for an exchange. The customer service number at Medela is: 1-888-633-3528.

Natural Resources is, as always, proud to being San Francisco's most dedicated pregnancy and parenting resource center. If you have further questions, please contact the manufacturer in question. We all know that one way to change corporate behavior is through education and advocacy.

Thank you,

Cara Vidano
Owner, Natural Resources