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Pittsburgh Courier NEW
www.newpittsburghcourier.com Vol. 112 No. 48 Two Sections
DECEMBER 1-7, 2021
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A ‘RAY’ OF HOPE Support growing for Black mothers who experience stillbirths by Rob Taylor Jr. Courier Staff Writer
Raymond Ager was used to having a football in his hands, but nothing like this particular football. Instead of being in a Perry High School Commodores uniform on the field, on this day, Sept. 12, 2020, he was surrounded by his wife, Tasha, and 60 other impatiently waiting family, friends and supporters, about to punt a custom-made football that would explode with either a pink or blue substance. Some in the audience at the “Touchdowns or Tutus” gender reveal party at Monroeville Park on that Saturday, September afternoon were hoping to see pink fill the air, which would mean that Tasha, who at the time was five months pregnant, was having a girl. Others were hoping to see nothing but boy blue. When Raymond Ager kicked that football, the football disintegrated, and blue substances filled the sky. The rejoicing began. Everyone went crazy. Tasha and Ray were having their
first child together, a boy. Not even a month later, Tasha, Ray, and Ray’s mother, Ruthie Walker, left UPMC Magee Womens Hospital in Oakland with just the clothes on their backs. They said their final goodbyes to “Baby Ray,” Raymond Akil Ager. “Baby Ray” was stillborn. A STILLBIRTH IS THE DEATH or loss of a baby before or during delivery, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While miscarriage and stillbirth describe pregnancy loss, the CDC said that in the U.S., a miscarriage is usually defined as loss of a baby before the 20th week of pregnancy, and a stillbirth is loss of a baby at or after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Black mothers are more than twice as likely to experience stillbirths compared to White or Hispanic mothers, according to recent CDC studies. In the results of a CDC study from 2015-2017, health problems that occurred during pregnancy or underlying health conditions
RUTHIE WALKER, of Stanton Heights, stands next to her custom-made throw blanket honoring the life of her grandson, Raymond Akil Ager, who was stillborn. The “Baby Ray Fund” is now established to help Black families get mental health services following the loss of a baby to stillbirth. (Photo by Rob Taylor Jr.)
In Allegheny County, Black mothers experience stillbirths at more than twice the rate of White mothers.
were listed as the cause of the stillbirth three times more often among Black mothers than among White mothers. Even in the United Kingdom, the data reveals the same conclusion. According to a BBC report, Black mothers there experienced stillbirths at a rate of 7.23 for every 1,000 births in 2019, while White moth-
ers experienced it at a rate of 3.22. In Pennsylvania, the rates for stillbirths are higher than the national average, as roughly 800 stillbirths occur yearly in the state. In Allegheny County, Black mothers experience stillbirths at a rate of 9.0 per 1,000, more SEE HOPE A8
Lisa Haley-Huff named Western Pa. Market Executive for JPMorgan Chase by Rob Taylor Jr. Courier Staff Writer
TASHA AND RAY AGER, in this photo during their gender reveal party in September 2020. Their son, Baby Ray, was stillborn.
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Lisa Haley-Huff, the proud 1988 Allderdice High School graduate who has spent decades in the banking industry with stops in Chicago and New York City, has come home. The New Pittsburgh Courier has learned that Haley-Huff was recently named Western Pa.’s Market Executive for middle market commercial banking at JPMorgan Chase. She said she’s tasked with “serving businesses of all sizes throughout their life cycle, from startup to expansion to IPO (Initial Public Offering) and beyond.” While Chase only opened its first Pittsburgh branch two years ago at One Oxford Centre, Downtown, Haley-Huff said the institution has been “doing business in Pittsburgh for several decades...Pittsburgh is a thriving city with a robust economy. There are a diverse number of businesses/indus-
tries such as advanced manufacturing, logistics, robotics, life sciences, and of course health care to just name a few. What company wouldn’t be attracted to a city like that, including those of us in financial services?” Haley-Huff said the middle market commercial banking group helps bring capabilities to local business communities, helping them succeed in growth through credit and financing, digital banking and payments, treasury and merchant services and international banking. Haley-Huff, who grew up in Point Breeze, graduated from Brown University with a bachelor’s in economics. She then earned a Master of Business Administration from Northwestern University in 2000. Haley-Huff’s parents are no stranger to success— Elizabeth Ann Haley and Leon Haley Sr., the latter is professor emeritus of public policy at the UniverSEE HALEY-HUFF A2
LISA HALEY-HUFF