Tikur Anbessa Hospital could be considered the birthplace of Wax and Gold. In 2009, the five founding members became volunteers at the Tikur Anbessa Hospital Neonatal Unit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, through the Vermont Oxford Network-Tikur Anbessa Hospital-Addis Ababa University Project. https://public.vtoxford.org/global-health/. Although they started this journey independently, their common goals and passionate advocacy for newborns and their mothers soon brought them together.
From 2009 to 2014, these five volunteers worked on maternal-newborn health quality improvement projects and made 32 four-week long trips to Ethiopia. They witnessed firsthand the need for ongoing support, and soon formed relationships with dedicated professionals and organizations in Ethiopia. In 2014, Wax & Gold was born. In 2015, a partnership was formed with SPHMMC.
