Pettaway Pursuit Foundation (PPF) was founded by Theresa Pettaway in 1999. Theresa experienced the anxiety of early labor with all three of her children and the pain of watching her newborns in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). She spent years overcoming these traumatic experiences while caring for her fragile infants together with the loving and constant support of her husband. Referencing her own struggles, Theresa came to the realization that women of all ages have faced the same problem and are in need of assistance. Thus, PPF was born.
Since 1999, Theresa has made herself available as an on-call mentor for distressed and postpartum mothers at the NICU of Hahnemann Hospital and Saint Christopher's Hospital for Children, both located in Philadelphia. Working with both social workers and nursing staff, she has successfully rendered support by providing a listening ear, sharing experiences, and promoting self-confidence in new mothers who are desperately in need of emotional support. As time went on, other mothers began volunteering their time to assist Theresa with her mission.
Beyond being the leader of her organization, she serves on the following committees: Delaware County Baby's 1st Project Breastfeeding Work Group, Community Action Network, and National Association of Professional Women. Previously, Theresa has also been involved with the Maternity Care Coalition’s Breastfeeding Advisory Board and the Worcester Baby Collaborative.
In July 2001, PPF was incorporated as a non-profit educational and community outreach organization operating under section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, serving low-income families in Philadelphia and its surrounding counties.
Considering its steady growth as an organization, PPF began providing free educational workshops in 2002 in various Philadelphia locations. These workshops were designed to promote community awareness and to educate and inform affected families about high-risk pregnancies and how to care for premature infants. In addition, PPF provides expectant mothers with information on the importance of prenatal care for the prevention of premature births. Through this support, PPF expects to lower the mortality rate of premature infants and the costs associated with their healthcare. Further expanding its mission, in 2005, PPF formed an alliance with the Helen O. Dickens Center for Women's Health at the hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP), providing support services for high-risk, bed rest pregnancy patients and their families. PPF also works in partnership with the University of Pennsylvania's Intensive Care Nursery (ICN) and Transitional Care Nursery (TCN) to mentor parents of premature infants who require round-the-clock care. The ICN and TCN at full capacity handle 36 beds of premature and sick babies at one of the largest Hospitals in the U.S., broadening PPF’s outreach.
In 2006, PPF collaborated with Keystone Mercy Health Plan (KMHP) to provide education and encouragement to members on bed rest to improve birth outcomes by preventing preterm births. In order to serve these vulnerable mothers and their families, PPF was required by KMHP to have all certified doulas.
After nearly two decades of servicing both the prenatal and postpartum needs of mothers from various backgrounds, Pettaway Pursuit Foundation has rewritten this narrative by becoming the first company to collaborate with insurance companies to offer the doula experience as a fee for service. Through Medicaid, PPF expands its outreach to mothers across numerous demographics.
Included in these demographics, we serve communities across three states: Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Pennsylvania, having been founded there 22 years ago, boasts PPF’s largest member clientele with an agreement to serve 5 counties within the state. Massachusetts, although not far behind Pennsylvania, has developed a niche-like market that has seen a steady growth rate in members within the past few years. Having started in this sector in 2015, PPF takes pride in steadily progressing towards the statewide doula coverage for which we’ve been approved. Rhode Island is our most recent expansion in which PPF will be providing doula services this year. PPF has already begun its process of selecting doulas who represent the methodology to serve in this sector of the country.
In May 2018, PPF launched its headquarters. Operating out of Lansdowne, Pennsylvania, the location serves as a central hub for its surrounding communities as well as its two other branches in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. In addition, new classes and workshops are available as an extension of the services previously provided.
PETTAWAY PURSUIT FOUNDATION ®