News Details

Solano County Breastfeeding Coalition to celebrate 20 years – hosts breast milk drive

July 17, 2017

SOLANO COUNTY – The Solano County Breastfeeding Coalition will celebrate 20 years of providing breastfeeding education to mothers and families and resources to healthcare professionals at a community event and breast milk donation drive on Thursday, July 20 from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the Family Health Services building, located at 2101 Courage Drive in Fairfield.  Everyone is welcome!

Participants will receive free, fresh produce and take part in activities including riding a smoothie bike, taking photos in the photo area and breastfeeding education.  The breast milk drive is designed to encourage mothers with additional milk supplies to donate to children in need at local Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs).

"Similar to a Blood Drive, the Breastfeeding Coalition is collecting human milk for the Mothers' Milk Bank, where it will be processed, pasteurized and provided to infants who are medically fragile," says Christina Hatcher, Regional Breastfeeding Liaison for the Solano County WIC Program.

The breast milk drive will support San Jose’s Mothers’ Milk Bank, the only organization in California accredited by the Human Milk Banking Association of North America for adherence to standards for processing and delivering human milk to the NICU. According to Mother’s Milk Bank, just one quarter of an ounce of donated breast milk can help the tiniest of premature infants thrive.

“Breastfeeding plays an important role in our local community in many ways,” Hatcher says. “Breast milk provides optimal nutrition to infants and promotes lasting health and well-being. It also saves money, reduces waste in the landfills, and is environmentally friendly. It really is the complete package and we want to honor our community and families for their dedication and hard work.”

The Coalition is also taking the opportunity to get a head start on World Breastfeeding Week to honor breastfeeding mothers and their families. World Breastfeeding Week is an annual celebration that is held from August 1 – 7, 2017 by more than 120 countries. This year’s theme is “Sustaining Breastfeeding Together,” which emphasizes working together for the common good.

Mothers are invited to bring their families to the event to celebrate and be recognized for their efforts in supporting healthy infants, families and communities.  For information on the celebration and breast milk drive, contact Christina Hatcher at (707) 784-8329 or email at [email protected].