CeCe’s Place: Affordable Maternal Medical Care for All of North Texas

Hope Cottage traces its roots to infant adoption and children’s health. We opened in 1918 to meet the needs of sick, abandoned children. We were determined to provide these children with healthcare, a safe place to sleep, food, and, eventually, a loving family to take care of them. 

Although we have adapted and expanded our services over the years, we have never lost sight of our identity as an agency that supports all women, children and families. We were disturbed that in 2022, 75% of our birth mothers had zero access to prenatal care. Maternal healthcare access is a tragically common problem, and Texas ranks second to last in maternal mortality outcomes across the United States. 90% of those deaths are preventable with the right access to maternal healthcare. We knew that we had to do something to protect our pregnant clients.

Last Tuesday, we opened CeCe’s Place, our Maternal Medical Clinic partnership with HHM Health. CeCe’s Place is named after Carol Young Marvin, a Hope Cottage “class of 1947” adoptee who also volunteered her time serving on our Board of Directors. The clinic was paid for by a generous gift from the George and Fay Young Foundation. CeCe’s Place welcomes new clients into our space while taking us back to our roots.  

CeCe’s Place will help us get upstream of both the maternal and infant mortality crises facing North Texas and the parenting challenges that can cause children to get placed into foster care. Hope Cottage provides clinic patients with optional wraparound social services, including Parenting Support and Options Counseling. CeCe’s Place will bring community members to Hope Cottage, while Hope Cottage will bring community resources to CeCe’s Place patients. 

CeCe’s Place is a one-stop shop for all pregnant people in need of medical and social services. Now open every Monday from 8:30 AM to 3 PM, CeCe’s Place provides free pregnancy tests, prenatal screenings, Medicaid sign up, and pap smears. CeCe’s Place welcomes all patients regardless of pregnancy status, insurance status, or identity. All CeCe’s Place medical services are provided by HHM Health, an FQHC (Federally Qualified Healthcare Center) with expertise in OBGYN healthcare.