Two organizations, one goal—ending fistula faster, for good

Worldwide Fistula Fund and Terrewode Women’s Fund are merging to become Maternal Dignity Project

For years, we’ve worked toward the same future: one where no woman faces the agony of obstetric fistula and related childbirth injuries. This fall, we’re combining to become Maternal Dignity Project to reach more women, faster.

Why we’re merging

We are committed to our shared purpose—ending fistula through prevention and holistic treatment. As Maternal Dignity Project, we can expand surgical treatment and prevention. We can strengthen the reintegration and community support that makes care whole. Joining together deepens the work you’ve believed in and helps us sustain and dramatically expand it until we end fistula for good.

Survivor spotlight

When Maria developed an obstetric fistula after prolonged labor, she faced the aftermath overwhelmed by shame and isolation. That changed at Terrewode Women’s Community Hospital, where she spent three weeks rebuilding her strength before surgery to repair her fistula, followed by the care that helped her return home. “I have never seen such a ‘home-like’ hospital, with such great care,” she said. Maria’s story is far too common in rural communities across sub-Saharan Africa. This is why we are joining forces. Together as a unified organization, we can help more partners serve more women in need.

New leadership

As we come together, we’re bringing our leadership together too.

Bonnie Ruder will serve as Maternal Dignity Project’s executive director. A midwife with a doctorate in medical anthropology and a master’s in public health, Bonnie co-founded Terrewode Women’s Fund and serves as its current executive. Learn more about Bonnie.

Tracy Spitznagle will chair Maternal Dignity Project’s board of directors. She is a Washington University professor, expert in physical therapy for pelvic floor injuries, and serves as current chair of Worldwide Fistula Fund’s board. Learn more about Tracy.

 

Thank you for your support of Maternal Dignity Project. To stay up to date, sign up for the email list, follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn, and visit our new website at MaternalDignityProject.org

Frequently Asked Questions

Terrewode Women’s Fund (TWF) and Worldwide Fistula Fund (WFF) are merging to become Maternal Dignity Project—combining our strengths to build even greater momentum toward our shared mission to end obstetric fistula and related childbirth injuries.

Both organizations share the same purpose: to end obstetric fistula and related childbirth injuries in sub-Saharan Africa. By merging, we can make more progress toward our goal: to increase access to high-quality fistula surgery and holistic treatment, and dramatically expand prevention efforts, moving us more quickly to a fistula-free future for all women. Merging will allow us to be more efficient, give us a stronger financial foundation, and allow us to direct more funding to local partners, expand treatment and prevention, and strengthen the reintegration and community support that makes care whole—moving us more quickly toward a fistula-free future for all women.

No. Two longtime partners are combining into one. Their people, partnerships, and decades of collective experience all carry forward as Maternal Dignity Project.

Terrewode Women’s Fund led the push to build Terrewode Women’s Community Hospital, Uganda’s first and only hospital dedicated exclusively to treating fistula and related childbirth injuries. Terrewode also elevates care beyond the hospital by training healthcare providers across the region through a community-rooted model.

Worldwide Fistula Fund is one of the longest-standing organizations dedicated to ending obstetric fistula, with decades of clinical and prevention expertise and established partnerships in five countries across sub-Saharan Africa. WFF has been a major funder of Terrewode for more than a decade.

October 1, 2026

No. We have worked toward the same mission for years: to end fistula through holistic treatment and prevention. The same work continues. What’s changing is our capacity. Together, we can reach more women, moving us more quickly toward a fistula-free future.

We will continue our long-term partnerships with visionary African leaders who are deeply embedded and committed to their local communities. They are the experts delivering holistic fistula treatment, designing prevention programs, and leading reintegration in their own communities. Maternal Dignity Project’s role is to resource, connect, and support our partners so they can do more of what they do best—helping women heal, rebuild their lives, and thrive.

Terrewode (Uganda), ARENA (Burkina Faso), Let’s End Fistula Initiative (Kenya), Danja Fistula Center (Niger), and Mekelle Urogynecology Fellowship (Ethiopia)—across five countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Yes. Every existing partnership continues, and the model is built to grow and welcome new partners over time.

As a whole, Maternal Dignity Project is clear and self-explanatory. The name highlights our focus: maternal health care centered on dignity.

Each piece of the name adds substance. “Dignity” is a word our partners use to describe their work because it speaks to something fundamental: the right to be treated with the utmost respect. This is especially important for women who have been isolated, stigmatized, or overlooked because of a treatable medical condition. Paired with “Maternal,” it becomes specific and deeply human-evoking motherhood, vulnerability, strength, and restoration all at once.

“Project” was also a deliberate choice. It implies an end point, or a goal to be achieved rather than an ongoing challenge. This work is not meant to continue indefinitely. By supporting African-led organizations to prevent and treat fistula, we will end this condition for good.

The board selected Maternal Dignity Project after a thorough and thoughtful process that included feedback from a diverse set of supporters, partners, and board members.

We chose to keep the focus of the new organization’s name centered squarely on our vision of a world where fistula no longer exists. Today, most of the work that Maternal Dignity Project’s partners do focuses on providing holistic fistula treatment, including reintegration care. One of the big reasons we are merging is to increase our focus on prevention, to address the root causes of fistula, such as lack of access to maternal health care and inadequate care for obstructed labor in existing health facilities.

Our tagline is: Ending Fistula, Restoring Health and Hope. It does the work the name doesn’t do on its own – naming fistula directly so there’s no ambiguity about our focus, while “restoring health and hope” carries forward that same emotional register of dignity and renewal. Together, the name and tagline give us both precision and heart. Maternal Dignity Project tells people who we are. The tagline tells them what we do and why it matters.

Bonnie Ruder will be the executive director. Bonnie is a midwife with a doctorate in medical anthropology, a master’s in international public health, and the current executive director of Terrewode Women’s Fund.

Tracy Spitznagle will chair the new board. Tracy is a Washington University professor, expert in physical therapy for pelvic floor injuries, and chair of Worldwide Fistula Fund’s board.

Yes. We are doubling down on our commitment to preventing fistula and other childbirth injuries. Your continued generosity will fuel this vital work, empowering more women with high-quality treatment and support that restores dignity and hope.

It depends on how you currently give:

  • If you have a recurring gift set up with Worldwide Fistula Fund, you’ll need to re-enroll your gift in the new giving system. Someone from our team will be in touch personally to walk you through it.
  • If you have a recurring gift set up with Terrewode Women’s Fund, no action is needed. Your giving carries over automatically.
  • If you give via mail or online, you can give to Maternal Dignity Project starting October 1, when we launch our new website and donation page with all the information you need to make your gift, however it works best for you.

Our team will reach out to recurring Worldwide Fistula Fund donors to help transfer monthly, quarterly, or annual gifts to the new platform. If you have any questions, please contact Dayna Stock at Dayna.Stock@wffund.org.

Terrewode Women’s Fund recurring donors will be automatically set up to continue donating to the new organization.

Yes. Your relationship and history of support carry forward.

Yes, Maternal Dignity Project is a 501(c)(3), so gifts are tax-deductible. Our EIN number is 47-2304060.

We would be happy to accommodate any type of gift. Please reach out to Executive Director Bonnie Rueder at bonnie@maternaldignityproject.org for more information.

Yes. You’ll continue to receive acknowledgments and the documentation you need. After October 1, gift receipts will come from Maternal Dignity Project.

We’ll share news on our new website, and you’ll continue to receive updates via email and social media, just like you did as subscribers and followers of Worldwide Fistula Fund and Terrewode Women’s Fund before, provided you follow Maternal Dignity Project on social media. You can follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook.

Please reach out to Bonnie Ruder at bonnie@maternaldignityproject.org or Tracy Spitznagle at spitznagle@wustl.edu with any questions.