By Jamie Strickland
For Jessica Best, caring for mothers and babies is much more than a profession — it’s a calling that has shaped nearly every chapter of her life.
From a childhood spent helping her mother with doula clients to her current role as Executive Director of Choices Pregnancy Center in Smithfield, Best has dedicated herself to supporting families through pregnancy, childbirth and early parenthood. That commitment, spanning more than two decades in healthcare, has earned her the JNOW Honors 2026 Best Healthcare Professional Award.
As the daughter of a doula, Best grew up surrounded by expectant mothers and newborn babies. Her father served in the military, and living near the base in Goldsboro, her mother’s passion was supporting women whose spouses were deployed or otherwise unable to be present during pregnancy and childbirth.
“I grew up with pregnant people in our house all the time, learning about everything that’s going to happen during their labor and helping moms when they went home those first few weeks,” she said. “We’d make them food and help with the baby.”
As a senior in high school, she volunteered at a pregnancy center and knew what path she’d take from there. After earning her nursing degree from Wayne Community College, Best began working in healthcare and intentionally pursued certifications that would allow her to better serve women throughout pregnancy, childbirth and beyond. She became a certified doula, childbirth educator, international board-certified lactation consultant and completed extensive training in limited obstetrical ultrasound.
This year marks Best’s 22nd year as a registered nurse, with 20 of those years spent almost exclusively serving mothers and babies. Gaining the credentials along the way, she always knew where she belonged and feels like she has landed at home at Choices Pregnancy Center.
“I knew my passion was always going to be for these mamas and babies,” she said.
That commitment to continued education stemmed not only from her professional goals, but also from her personal experience as a mother.
Best and her husband have five children and have also served as foster parents.
“We really got passionate about getting certified for our home to have foster children,” she said. “My mom also fostered kids when we were younger, and my brother also has three adopted children. That’s a big passion of ours.”
She knows firsthand the joys, challenges and uncertainties that often accompany parenthood.
Today, that perspective helps her serve families throughout Johnston County and beyond through her leadership at Choices Pregnancy Center.
Best initially joined the nonprofit as a contractor to perform ultrasounds before becoming Medical Services Director and eventually Executive Director.
Every service the center offers is free of charge and the organization is funded by private donations.
For many women, it serves as an important first stop after discovering they may be pregnant.
The center provides pregnancy testing, ultrasounds, prenatal education, lactation support and referrals to medical providers and community resources. Clients can also receive assistance navigating insurance, connecting with pediatricians and obstetricians and accessing other support services.
“We do everything from when a client is walking in the door wanting proof of pregnancy. We do an ultrasound with them to find out how far along they are, and then referrals start,” Best said.
The organization’s mission extends well beyond that initial pregnancy confirmation.
Best oversees educational programming covering prenatal care, childbirth, breastfeeding, infant care and parenting. The center also offers specialized classes ranging from infant CPR to financial literacy.
“Education is a really big push for us,” she said. “We want to find the need and fill the need.”
The center also supports fathers through dedicated educational programs.
“We have dads come in and say, ‘I don’t know what I’m doing, but I want to be the best dad I can,'” Best said.
In addition to educational resources, the nonprofit operates a boutique stocked with donated baby supplies, clothing, diapers, wipes, car seats, cribs and more. Parents can earn points through educational classes and use them to shop for items they need from the boutique.
That model is designed to provide support while also empowering families.
“That helps them feel like they’ve earned it,” Best said.
One of the organization’s greatest strengths is its collaboration with other community partners. Best regularly works with the Johnston County Health Department, local physicians, the Partnership for Children and other nonprofits to ensure families receive comprehensive support.
Those relationships allow the center to connect clients with critical services quickly, particularly in urgent situations involving young mothers or high-risk pregnancies.
“We want our moms to get involved with prenatal care as early as possible,” Best said.
In her role, no two days look exactly alike.
Some clients arrive excited about a planned pregnancy. Others are frightened, overwhelmed or facing difficult circumstances. Best has worked with everyone from successful business owners to women experiencing homelessness.
“You never know if somebody’s going to come in and they’re ecstatic and it’s planned, or they’re distraught,” she said. “You just have to take every client at face value.”
That philosophy reflects the approach she has carried throughout her career — meet people where they are and provide the resources and support they need.
For Best, the most rewarding moments often come during an ultrasound, when an expectant mother sees her baby for the first time.
“That is like the first time a mom can bond with a baby,” she said. “Seeing that tiny little heartbeat and their little tiny baby — that’s something I really enjoy.”
Even as her leadership responsibilities continue to grow, she has no plans to step away from that work.
“No matter what my position will ever be, I will keep that up because I love doing that,” she said.
That same passion continues to drive her life’s work — helping families from the very beginning.
