Pittsburgh-Based Milk Bank Adds New PA Sites, Plans to Host Fundraiser in November
The Pittsburgh-based Mid-Atlantic Mothers’ Milk Bank has expanded to include three new milk depots in Pennsylvania and will host a cookie-themed fundraiser in Pittsburgh in November.
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The nonprofit - which is based in Pittsburgh - has added depots at UPMC Hamot in Erie, St. Luke’s Baby and Me Support Center in Bethlehem, and WellSpan York Hospital in York as well as at CAMC Women and Children’s Hospital in Charleston, WV.
In Pittsburgh, the milk bank operates a site at 3217 Penn Avenue that includes a depot, dispensary, and lab. It also operates a depot in nearby North Huntingdon and other sites throughout the state.
In a recent interview with Pittsburgh’s NPR station, 90.5 WESA, the milk bank’s executive director, Denise O’Connor, said there has been a surge in demand for human donor milk.
“We went from no one using donor milk in this area in western PA to within six months of us opening in 2016, every single NICU in Western Pennsylvania using donor milk,” she said. “Exposure to human milk early on helps to create a more diverse and better microbiome, which is so important for a lifetime of health.”
O’Connor added that early access to human milk also supports long-term breastfeeding success, helps babies to stay exclusively breastfed for longer, and promotes better health outcomes through infancy and beyond.
Milk Bank & Cookies
The milk bank will hold an event - Milk Bank & Cookies - on Thursday, November 6 at Stage AE that will act as a fundraiser. During the event, the region’s top bakers and cookie-table makers will compete to raise funds for the Mid-Atlantic Mothers’ Milk Bank.
This year’s theme is “The Mother of All Cookie Tables.” The event will include cookie displays and local celebrity judges. Proceeds will help to provide donor milk to medically fragile infants in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware.
The event starts with a cocktail hour at 6 p.m., after which the cookie table will be open. Each attendee will be given a small box to fill with cookies. Winners will be announced at the end of the evening.
Tickets, which cost $75, are now available.