El Nido(The Nest)
Birth and Family Ministries
Specializing in childbirth and parent education, doula services, lactation support, midwifery, and job training
for expectant mothers and families
in southwest MN, eastern SD, and San Diego County
El Nido Heritage
El Nido began as a tribute to Debbie Eakes’ history and her love for family and new life. Her connection to midwifery and a Christian heritage began with Debbie's great-grandmother, Trinidad Casillas. Trini's personal relationship with Christ began while being ministered to by a partera (midwife) during the birth of one of her children, in Mexico. After the death of her husband, Manuel, Trini moved to America to begin a new life with their eleven children.
Debbie’s grandfather, Johnny Hernandez, reached out to Trinidad and her eleven children and helped her with her transition to life in the United States. Trini's faith grew as well as that of her children.
In time, Johnny married Trinidad’s fifth daughter, Rebecca. They lived in San Ysidro and Tijuana.
John and Rebecca had a daughter, also named Rebecca, who married Ray Zuniga and had three daughters. One of those daughters was Debbie (Zuniga) Eakes. After the divorce of Debbie's parents, Rebecca and her daughters were welcomed into the shelter of Debbie’s grandparent’s home, El Nido.
Debbie's story has now gone full circle as she has finished midwifery school and is now a Certified Professional Midwife. Her first birth post completion occurred on the anniversary of Rebecca Hernandez's death and guess what they named her? You guessed it, Rebecca.
Our Vision
The vision of El Nido is to provide education and emotional, physical, social and spiritual support in order to meet the well-being needs of expectant mothers, new mothers, mothers and other family members so that they would experience hope and growth in Christ through a new birth, bringing glory to God
Our Mission
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Building Relationships: getting to know women and their needs in order to understand how to meet them
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Delivering Lives: physically assisting women birth their babies, emotionally providing safe places for healing and spiritually demonstrating Christ's love
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Educating for the Future: empowering women and other family members to support themselves now and in the future
El Nido of the present will serve as the El Nido of the past:
a safe place where warmth and love is always present.
Jesus Christ and His example of love and compassion were central
as more than one generation found refuge in "the nest"
and He is the center of El Nido today.