Breastfeeding Champion Awards
June 2019 Breastfeeding Champion Award
Laura MacDougall
Laura MacDougall of Prospect Bay has been working tirelessly for years now supporting expecting and new moms.
Laura trained as a doula, and eventually began a weekly volunteer Breastfeeding Support drop-in clinic at the Prospect Road Community Centre. Every Monday Laura offered techniques and tips for new moms that were struggling or just looking for guidance in nursing the new babies. Not only did Laura spend the time at the community centre, but she would chat online with moms that could not come to visit. She would even do in-home visits in for moms that needed some extra assistance.
I don't have the number of the women she help, but it is not insignificant. She has also been recognized by the community a couple of times for the contribution she's made to the community.
Laura did all that while raising three small boys of her own and studying to become a nurse.
Thank you Laura for your continued passion! Laura has been presented with a gift certificate for a massage, courtesy of Renee Curry RMT.
Laura trained as a doula, and eventually began a weekly volunteer Breastfeeding Support drop-in clinic at the Prospect Road Community Centre. Every Monday Laura offered techniques and tips for new moms that were struggling or just looking for guidance in nursing the new babies. Not only did Laura spend the time at the community centre, but she would chat online with moms that could not come to visit. She would even do in-home visits in for moms that needed some extra assistance.
I don't have the number of the women she help, but it is not insignificant. She has also been recognized by the community a couple of times for the contribution she's made to the community.
Laura did all that while raising three small boys of her own and studying to become a nurse.
Thank you Laura for your continued passion! Laura has been presented with a gift certificate for a massage, courtesy of Renee Curry RMT.
September 2018 Breastfeeding Champion Award
Riiko Bedford
|
Riiko was nominated because of her altruism and extraordinary commitment to advancing understanding regarding the value of human milk in Nova Scotia. Riiko is a mother of two sons. She recently received her PhD in Medical History from the University of Toronto and moved to Halifax last summer. She begins medical school at Dalhousie University this fall. Recognizing the value of human milk for our fragile infants at the IWK, Riiko regularly donates milk to the Northern Star Milk Bank in Calgary, Alberta from which the IWK acquires pasteurized milk for use in the NICU. In May 2018, Riiko generously agreed to present on Human Milk Donation as part of the celebration for World Human Milk Donation Day, which was held at the IWK. Riiko has also agreed to provide photos and assistance in developing the IWK's Donour Milk information pamphlets and is helping to promote understanding and use of human donour milk in Nova Scotia. Thank you Riiko! |
October 2017 Breastfeeding Champion Awards
At the Breastfeeding Fair for 2017, we decided to honour 2 members of our community.....
Dr. Sarah Davidson
Sarah is an orthodontist and co-owner of "The Brace Space" on Larry Uteck Dr. I met her and her amazing staff last week when I took my daughter for a consultation. She is expecting her fourth baby in another week, and like she did with her others, will bring her baby to work after 4 weeks. She has breastfed each of her babies exclusively for 9 months, while starting up and running her business, and bringing her babies with her to allow for on cue Breastfeeding or having her Mother bring them in as they got older, for feeding in between appointments. While this clearly demonstrates her commitment to providing her babies with breastmilk while maintaining her career, I was impressed that she's also advocate for her patients. She encourages her breastfeeding mamas to bring their babies to appointments, and to breastfeed or sleep on their mom while they are having their dental work done. She is happy to stop mid- appointment so that a baby can be settled, and the staff are encouraged to help out as well, and will often hold a baby for a parent. I was so impressed with this community based business- the pictures that hang on the walls are all clients of the clinic, and there is one with a group of four mothers and their babies, who were regulars at their mom's appointments.
The Rev. Mellanie Cohoon
Sunday morning worship services are a wonderful time for families and communities to come together. Many churches now have family friendly spaces which often include comfortable seating for nursing mothers. What do you do though when you are the priest and your child wants to nurse? Mellanie was faced with this dilemma and did what she felt was right and was comfortable with. She nursed between readings. She is a Breastfeeding Champion not only because she has challenged the status quo in her church but also because she managed to accomplish this task while in full liturgical robes!
Dr. Sarah Davidson
Sarah is an orthodontist and co-owner of "The Brace Space" on Larry Uteck Dr. I met her and her amazing staff last week when I took my daughter for a consultation. She is expecting her fourth baby in another week, and like she did with her others, will bring her baby to work after 4 weeks. She has breastfed each of her babies exclusively for 9 months, while starting up and running her business, and bringing her babies with her to allow for on cue Breastfeeding or having her Mother bring them in as they got older, for feeding in between appointments. While this clearly demonstrates her commitment to providing her babies with breastmilk while maintaining her career, I was impressed that she's also advocate for her patients. She encourages her breastfeeding mamas to bring their babies to appointments, and to breastfeed or sleep on their mom while they are having their dental work done. She is happy to stop mid- appointment so that a baby can be settled, and the staff are encouraged to help out as well, and will often hold a baby for a parent. I was so impressed with this community based business- the pictures that hang on the walls are all clients of the clinic, and there is one with a group of four mothers and their babies, who were regulars at their mom's appointments.
The Rev. Mellanie Cohoon
Sunday morning worship services are a wonderful time for families and communities to come together. Many churches now have family friendly spaces which often include comfortable seating for nursing mothers. What do you do though when you are the priest and your child wants to nurse? Mellanie was faced with this dilemma and did what she felt was right and was comfortable with. She nursed between readings. She is a Breastfeeding Champion not only because she has challenged the status quo in her church but also because she managed to accomplish this task while in full liturgical robes!
April 2016 Breastfeeding Champion Award
Please join me in congratulating Larissa Page and Terra Lorrette who were both nominated and selected as the next Breastfeeding Champion Award winners! The Breastfeeding Community of Practice presents this award quarterly as a way to formally recognize an individual or an organization who has gone above and beyond in promoting, protecting, and supporting breastfeeding.
Both of these amazing women/mothers were nominated for their strong advocacy work for breastfeeding, including their initiative and ongoing work to create an additional La Leche League meeting in Dartmouth that is geared towards military mothers and their specific needs/challenges. Congrats!
Thanks again Terra and Larissa, for all you have done and continue to do to help promote, protect and support breastfeeding.
Both of these amazing women/mothers were nominated for their strong advocacy work for breastfeeding, including their initiative and ongoing work to create an additional La Leche League meeting in Dartmouth that is geared towards military mothers and their specific needs/challenges. Congrats!
Thanks again Terra and Larissa, for all you have done and continue to do to help promote, protect and support breastfeeding.
January 2016 Breastfeeding Champion Award
The Breastfeeding Community of Practice is so pleased to announce the January winner of the Breastfeeding Champion Award to The Nova Institution for Women in Truro, Nova Scotia.
We received the nomination for this organization and even though we typically give the award to residents of HRM, we felt that their work really could not go unnoticed. Nova is being recognized for the work they are doing to help ensure incarcerated women are able to have access with their newborns, have access to pumps and appropriate refrigeration at the prison, and are provided with day passes to see their children in NICU with correctional officers present. We appreciate Nova's commitment to attachment, bonding and breastfeeding.
Well done Nova!
October 2015 Breastfeeding Champion Awards
October is when we celebrate World Breastfeeding Week in Canada. The theme this year is Breastfeeding and Work: Let's Make It Work! In keeping with the theme this year, we are celebrating two women who have made great strides in creating supportive environments for working breastfeeding families. The Breastfeeding Community of Practice would like to congratulate Laura Smith and Nancy Cashen as our next Breastfeeding champion award winners!
Laura Smith is a Workplace Health promotion Coordinator in Organizational Health in the Nova Scotia Health Authority, Central Zone as well as a breastfeeding mom. Laura was the lead for the former Capital District Health Authority Employee Breastfeeding Policy which affects over 13, 000 employees. Laura continues to work on improving this policy so breastfeeding employees have what they need to combine breastfeeding and work successfully. Congrats Laura!
Nancy Cashen is currently the manager of the prenatal special care teams at the IWK, however this is a new role for her. Prior to that she was an employee with the IWK but was not working with mothers and babies in the Women's and Newborn Health Program. During the past couple of years, she has been a strong advocate for breastfeeding at the IWK, including working to ensure the IWK has comfortable private breastfeeding spaces open to anyone. This nomination came about specifically for all of the work she was instrumental in, ensuring that the IWK Workplace Breastfeeding Policy was created. Nancy is key to ensuring that the work continues and has promoted the policy through opportunities such as Breastfeeding Grand Rounds. Great work Nancy! Congrats!
Laura and Nancy have both won a signed hard cover copy of Megan Marentette's children's novel called "The Stowaways".
January 2015 Breastfeeding Champion Award
The Breastfeeding Community of Practice would love to congratulate Nicole Kawajafraser as our next Breastfeeding Champion! Nicole is a mother of five, currently breastfeeding twins and has previously breastfed a set of twins! She is able to inspire confidence in other mothers who were not sure if they could breastfeed. Nicole has had a lot of adversity that she has had to overcome in her mothering journey. She has had a number of stressors including significant family illness, and other family stressors, that have been ongoing while trying to manage her own health and care for her twins. She endured a NICU stay and one of her twins had to have surgery in the months after his birth. Most poignantly, Nicole herself has experienced depression throughout her life but has had significant exacerbations of depression after the birth of her babies, including the most recent birth of the twins.
Nicole’s story is one of a mother who has overcome obstacles to continue to breastfeed her babies into toddlerhood, promoting their health and doing what she felt was best for her own health as well. Nicole feels it was so important to her mental health to continue to breastfeed, and how little support there was at times in the medical system for that choice. She has had to be a real advocate for herself, even finding a new care provider that could better support her.
Nicole has also been a true advocate and support to other mothers with breastfeeding, dealing with discrimination, as well as being a support to other women suffering from postpartum depression.
She is truly deserving of this Breastfeeding Champion Award! Nicole has won a Massage stick donated by Dr. Karen Smith, Chiropractor at Clayton Park Chiropractic Clinic.
October 2014 Breastfeeding Champion Award
The Breastfeeding Community of Practice would like to take this opportunity to congratulate our October 2014 Breastfeeding Champion which was presented during the World BF Week Family Fair at the IWK. Leslie Bagg is the proud mother of three year old Avery and new baby Torin. Leslie was a relatively new breastfeeding Mom when she moved to Halifax. She sought out Le Leche League both for support for herself, but also looking for opportunities to help other breastfeeding mothers. She ended up training and becoming a LLL leader herself, which took approximately 1 year. During this time, she recognized a need in the Community for breastfeeding toddler support groups. Leslie successfully restarted the HRM LLL toddler support group and leads this meeting once/month. She has also organized and led 2 family picnics with the toddler group meetings as a way to increase support for fathers of breastfeeding toddlers and help create much needed community support. Congrats Leslie!
The La Leche League HRM nursing toddler group gives mothers a chance to connect with other mothers who are nursing past the infant stage and share information and support. Topics covered include nighttime parenting, nutrition and weaning, tandem nursing, nursing in public, dealing with criticism and more. Little ones are welcome at the meetings. More than one mother has told us that they are the only one they know who is still nursing and the meetings help them feel less alone. Meetings are monthly and alternate between Friday and Saturday mornings. For more details about the meetings please visit:
LLLC-Halifax HRM toddler meeting | La Leche League Canada: Mother-to-Mother Breastfeeding Support and Information
If you have any other breastfeeding questions or need assistance feel free to contact the LLL metro line to get the phone numbers of local leaders 902-470-7029.
The La Leche League HRM nursing toddler group gives mothers a chance to connect with other mothers who are nursing past the infant stage and share information and support. Topics covered include nighttime parenting, nutrition and weaning, tandem nursing, nursing in public, dealing with criticism and more. Little ones are welcome at the meetings. More than one mother has told us that they are the only one they know who is still nursing and the meetings help them feel less alone. Meetings are monthly and alternate between Friday and Saturday mornings. For more details about the meetings please visit:
LLLC-Halifax HRM toddler meeting | La Leche League Canada: Mother-to-Mother Breastfeeding Support and Information
If you have any other breastfeeding questions or need assistance feel free to contact the LLL metro line to get the phone numbers of local leaders 902-470-7029.
June 2014 Breastfeeding Champion Award
We would like to congratulate our next Breastfeeding Champion Award that will be going to a very deserving mother named Storm Isles. Storm had a very challenging start to breastfeeding, and despite her intense desire to continue, had to give up and turned to formula. She was devastated and her baby had trouble digesting the formula. She heard about relactation and researched this on her own, and rallied support around her to attempt to get her milk supply back after 3 months of formula feeding. After a lot of perseverance and hard work, she was successful in reestablishing a full milk supply. Storm has continued to support and educate others with sharing her own story. She has spoken at the IWK at Breastfeeding Grand Rounds, at the Breastfeeding: Making a Difference course, and most recently at the biannual meeting for Atlantic Province LLL leaders. Storm is truly an inspiration to all and a good reminder that not all is lost if you get off to a bad start.
Storm has won a series of 4 Infant massage classes, location of her choice, compliments of Lori Robbins, Registered Physiotherapist and Registered Infant Massage Instructor.
Storm has won a series of 4 Infant massage classes, location of her choice, compliments of Lori Robbins, Registered Physiotherapist and Registered Infant Massage Instructor.
December 2013 Breastfeeding Champion Award
Congratulations to Dr. Amy Ornstein, pediatrician at the IWK, for winning December's Breastfeeding Champion Award. She was nominated for not only providing exceptional medical care to her clients, but is also a champion in the provision of psychosocial support to mothers, giving sound breastfeeding advice, enabling continued breastfeeding during times of crisis. Thank you to Dr. Ornstein for the incredible work that you do to support breastfeeding every day!
Dr. Ornstein has won a months membership to Moksha Yoga.
Dr. Ornstein has won a months membership to Moksha Yoga.
October 2013 Breastfeeding Champion Award
October's breastfeeding Champion Award goes to Heather Pye, a Mom who against all odds was able to come back to exclusive breastfeeding, after many challenges. Heather has shown many what can be accomplished with the right attitude and a supportive environment! Heather has won a gift certificate to Sobeys as well as soft organic bamboo rayon and cotton breast pads from Bamboobies.
June 2013 Breastfeeding Champion Award
Officially announcing our June 2013 winner of the Breastfeeding Champion award: our winner this month is Hannah Gibson! In going public with her story as a local restaurant owner who brings her breastfed baby to work with her, Hannah made a bold and incredibly brave step in supporting, protecting and promoting a breastfeeding mother's rights and freedoms! Hannah wins a one hour massage with Evolution Massage Therapy! Evolution is a mobile RMT servicing HRM, owned by the very talented Mr. Kelly Carrington. Congratulations Hannah!
April 2013 Breastfeeding Champion
This months breastfeeding Champion award goes to Jenn Jollymore who is an RN on the Birth Unit at the IWK Health Centre. She has been very involved in protecting and promoting "The Golden Hour". Through this "Golden Hour Blitz", Jenn has educated nurses, physicians, patients, and lab staff about the importance of uninterrupted skin to skin contact for the first hour after birth. Uninterrupted skin to skin contact is now routine practice for all moms and babies for whom it's possible. Baby weights and newborn exams are delayed and routine procedures are done with mom and baby in skin to skin contact. Jenn is a strong advocate and an excellent staff mentor. Jenn has won a $50 Pete's Frootique gift card!
February 2013 Breastfeeding Champion
Our Local Breastfeeding Champion for the month of February is Elizabeth Chiu! She has won a ONE MONTH pass to Cyclone, Halifax's premier spinning studio!! Elizabeth is a strong advocate for the BCP, and is always eager to support our stories. As the anchor for the CBC News in Halifax, Elizabeth has a strong voice in our community. We are fortunate to have worked with Elizabeth several times this past year. She is professional, caring, and compassionate! Elizabeth, thank you for all that you do to promote, protect and support breastfeeding!!
